One potential downside to technological development is environmental sustainability. Each year, large quantities of discarded electronic materials could be improperly disposed of, missing opportunities to recover rare precious metals and risking ecological damage. To help curb the growing amount of electronic waste, semiconductor and printed circuit board experts Infineon and Jiva Materials may have teamed up to explore the company’s biodegradable, water-soluble printed circuit board design. The result would be Soluboard – a printed circuit board that dissolves.
Technological development could have a downside in terms of its environmental sustainability. It potentially happens that large amounts of discarded electronic materials are improperly disposed of every year. This could miss opportunities to recover rare precious metals while risking ecological damage. To help curb the growing amount of electronic waste, semiconductor and printed circuit board expert Infineon and Jiva Materials may have teamed up to explore the company’s biodegradable, water-soluble printed circuit board design. The result is Soluboard – a printed circuit board that would dissolve.
Instead of conventional glass fibers and chemicals used in traditional PCB materials, Soluboard technology uses natural fibers that are naturally biodegradable. These fibers are then coated with a non-toxic polymer (a sprayed-on plastic solution) that completely dissolves in hot water, allowing the environment to begin composting the fibers that make up the PCB structure itself. Aside from immediately improving environmental sustainability by avoiding the buildup of landfills from discarded electronic components, this degradable PCB also allows for the subsequent removal and recycling of electronic components without the risk of consequential damage.
Andreas Kopp, Head of Product Management Discretes at Infineon’s Green Industrial Power Division, says that “this is the first time that a recyclable, biodegradable PCB material has been used in the development of electronics for consumer and industrial applications – a potential milestone on the road to a greener future. They are also actively researching end-of-life reusability of discrete power components, which is another important step toward a circular economy in the electronics industry.”
Circular economy here refers to the dream of a noble recycling loop in which the components and materials for new electronics could be derived from existing materials. In addition to the obvious monetary benefits of this approach, there are also secondary benefits such as a potential reduced reliance on newly mined raw materials – an aspect that could potentially help the Western chip industry avoid being backed into a corner by China’s export restrictions on rare earths. A circular data economy would be exactly what AI companies like OpenAI are trying to solve with their research on recursive training. Most other industries are striving for it, too.
Jonathan Swanston, CEO and co-founder of Jiva Materials, suggests adopting a water-based recycling process to achieve improved recovery yields of valuable metals. In addition, replacing FR-4 PCB materials with Soluboard could result in a 60 percent reduction in carbon emissions; more specifically, 10.5 kg of carbon and 620 g of plastic could be saved per square meter of PCB.
Infineon is currently testing the PCBs in non-critical applications such as demo and evaluation boards to prototype quickly, but with high material consumption. So far, three PCB designs based on the material have been developed, resulting in more than 500 PCBs using the technology. One of these PCBs is to be used in refrigerators. The production of 500 PCBs based on just three basic designs serves as an example of the environmental benefits of this technology. Infineon aims to expand the use of Soluboard in its business areas, contributing to the European Commission’s Green Deal, which aims for climate neutrality by 2050.
Source: TomsHardware
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