BME researchers develop compostable electronic substrate

“There are not many pioneering technologies in which a Hungarian research team ranks among the top two worldwide, but biodegradable electronics is one of them. There is only one Scottish startup at the same stage as us, but they make circuit carriers water-soluble, whereas we make them compostable," Attila Géczy, head of the Sustainable Electronics research group, told bme.hu, as he showed us around the laboratory of the Department of Electronics Technology at BME.

The team's results are also recognised internationally: two parallel development projects are underway within the Horizon Pathfinder (Desire4EU) and M-ERA (Beatrice) European Union funding programmes, and 

after the first year, the European Union recognised five different innovations in the former project. 

The significance of this achievement is well illustrated by the fact that BME has a total of 21 such recognised innovations in EU projects on the European Innovation Council's Innovation Radar platform.

This is all compostable 

It is easy to see why it is a good idea to develop degradable electronic substrates and materials. We buy and discard so many devices using printed circuit boards that we are slowly drowning in electronic waste. These components, made largely of plastic, also contain hazardous substances. There is hardly any established process or technology for recycling such waste, so incineration remains the only option.

With the innovations of BME researchers and a company from Győr, it is possible to manufacture products of which a very large proportion is either reusable or biodegradable – up to 90 per cent for simpler circuits, and 70-90 per cent for more complex components, such as control panels. 

“During composting under industrial conditions, they turn into organic debris, from which the metallic constituents and components then simply have to be sorted out,” 

explained Balázs Illés, head of the Department of Electronics Technology.

Attila Géczy and Balázs Illés

What kind of materials can behave in this way when treated with the appropriate process, but are suitable for use in a wide variety of machines? Biodegradable plastics are one part of the answer, but on their own they would not be sufficient. There is also a need for a flame retardant, such as polylactic acid (PLA), which can be extracted from maize or other plant sources and is used in the automotive and furniture industries and in packaging technologies. For structural reinforcement, linen proved to be the solution.

This machine is used to test heat resistance

One might well ask whether all this can be used to produce items as durable as conventional plastics. The answer is probably not – but one of the key elements of the concept is precisely the recognition that they do not need to be. The new technology is intended to serve mass-market, fast-obsolescing consumer electronics, since no one expects an average-priced household appliance to remain in use decades later.

“Of course, they won't be installed in nuclear power plant controls, medical electronics, but not even in BMWs at first. We expect the material to be introduced where the typical service life is five to ten years," 

notes Attila Géczy.

The concept is so viable that there is already interest in the results of more than 15 years of basic research. In the funding programme, the Italian company Arduino became the project partner – the development consortium also includes, among others, Meshining Kft. of Győr and the University of Grenoble – but other companies, and not only from Europe, also see potential in the innovation. It is particularly attractive that no new production lines are needed for manufacturing, while at certain points the process may also be cheaper and more environmentally friendly than current solutions.

“The fact that the costs are comparable to the current costs of circuit manufacturing is one of our big advantages over competitors working on similar innovations,” said Balázs Illés.

Balázs Illés and Attila Géczy in front of the project's poster, which anticipates market launch in 2030

The development has recently moved to a higher technology readiness level; several patents are being prepared for registration and a strategy for market introduction is also on the agenda.

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