Compost from electronics
Last reviewed: 16.05.2018
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In the near future, obsolete and out-of-date gadgets can become compost and become a fertilizer, instead of poisoning the earth.
A group of young scientists from the research center of the University of Karlsruhe, one of the oldest and most prestigious educational institutions in Germany, in its desire to reduce the load of electronics on the environment, decided to develop printed electronics completely from natural materials that would not subsequently release toxins and harm the environment.
In recent years, the number of electronic devices has significantly increased, without which it is difficult to imagine modern life, all this has led to the accumulation of millions of tons of electronic waste worldwide.
Tons of spare parts that have already outlived their service life fall yearly into the landfill, but the elements (heavy metals, silicon, etc.) that make up them remain at the landfill, present a danger to the environment (they decompose toxic substances that poison the earth and air .).
Young researchers decided to use biodegradable materials (plant extracts and gelatinous insulators) instead of traditional elements.
Researchers noted that perhaps such elements will not be longevity, but they will be able to compete with disposable electronics.
The head of the group of young scientists Dr. Gerardo Hernandez-Sosa explained that after the element from the biodegradable material fails, it can be easily disposed of by sending it to compost for processing.
It is worth noting that other materials that in their name have the word "organic" are not at all so and do not decompose in nature like materials developed by young specialists from Germany.
All synthetic materials, which are based on carbon, are now called organic, but this does not mean that such materials do not harm the environment afterwards, when they become unnecessary and decompose for years in landfills.
In their work, experts used natural materials - cellulose, starch, hard gelatin - instead of metalloids or metals as substrates.
By the way, recently a team of scientists from Wisconsin, also interested in creating harmless biodegradable electronics, manufactured a semiconductor chip almost entirely from wood - most of the chip consists of a substrate in which cellulose fiber (flexible biodegradable wood material) is used instead of silicon.
The main part of the project to create biodegradable printed electronics will be the development of ink, which, in addition to environmental and conductive properties, could easily be combined with printers.
Young specialists suggest that organic electronics, which can be sent for processing without harm to the environment, will be available to consumers in a few years, immediately after the completion of all necessary research and development (scientists hope that all the work will take about 3 years).