Water that dissolves in water can solve disposal of electronic waste

The world appetite for computers, smartphones and other electronic devices grows more and more, and the other side of the coin – electronic waste – is sounding alarms.

According to a UN report released last year, 62 million tons of electronic waste were generated by 2022, enough to fill 1.5 million trucks that would surround the equator if bumper aligned with the bumper. Most of the electronic waste was for landfills or incineration, with potential negative consequences for the environment and human health, as electronic waste may contain toxic substances such as mercury or lead.

There is also an impressive economic loss, as $ 62 billion (about $ 365 billion) in recoverable resources, as elements of rare land, are lost in the process. Currently, only 1% of the world demand for these elements, essential for modern electronic devices, is met by the recycling of electronic waste, according to the report.

With electronic waste growing five times faster than recycling rates, new solutions to the problem may not take long. The aquafade can be one of them – a fully water -soluble plastic that dissolves completely in about six hours when placed in a container with water. It could be used to encapsulate electronics such as computers or keyboards and dissolved when the device is no longer desired, facilitating the recycling or recovery of the most valuable components and reducing the amount of electronic waste.

“For most electronic products, when being recycled, disassembly is the real problem, and really intensive in labor,” says Samuel Wangsaputra, one of the inventors of the aquafade. “I think the brilliant of the aquafade is that much of this process is decentralized and simply done at home.”

Unusual inspiration

The inspiration for the aquafade comes from an unlikely source: “One night I was washing the dishes and looking at a dishwashing capsule,” says Wangsaputra, adding that she was intrigued by the water-soluble transparent film that replaced traditional packaging. “And I thought, that must be some form of polymer. But where do you go? So I tried one, only in a glass of water, and disappeared completely.”

To find out more, Wangsaputra and his co-inventor Joon Sang Lee-with whom he founded the British startup Pentafor, a manufacturer of low-cost and affordable computers in 2019-joined Enrico Manfredi-Haylock and Meryem Lamari, two material scientists from Imperial College London materials.

“We find a material that is like a stick glue called PVOH or polyvinyl alcohol. One of the criteria is that it should be safe for food if children lick the product, and should be totally biodegradable in the sewage system,” he adds.

Wangsaputra realized that the PVOH could be the key to removing a bottleneck in the recycling of electronic waste – transportation, which increases costs and creates carbon emissions. This besides the fact that most of the electronic waste is not even recycled. Removing the plastic watcher at home would be beneficial, he thought.

The idea is funded by the British government and the four are working on the project at the Royal College of Arts in London, going through a series of iterations. “We are creating something that is soluble in water, but also waterproof. The challenge was to make a lining (waterproof) that was biodegradable but also very resistant.”

This coating, also made of a plastic polymer, is applied only to the outer shell, making the product resistant to five meters for 30 minutes, which covers accidental spills or moist climate. “But once you remove only one screw from the product, it creates a leak. It’s when you submerge it in water. Five to six hours later, it dilutes, and what is left is milky and the most valuable parts of the product (the electronics),” says Wangsaputra. The milky water can simply be dumped into a sink or toilet, and Wangsaputra says it decomposes even more in the sewage system.

The first commercial application of the aquafade will probably be like LED bracelet wrapping used at shows: “After just one use, thousands of people simply throw them out” “They are simple to build, and we are in negotiations with one of the largest suppliers of these bracelets,” says Joon Sang Lee.

The next step is a mini PC made with an aquafade housing that will be released on the PentaForm website. But the pair is thinking of applications beyond electronics: “It would work for any product that is molded by injection, or any plastic that is a rigid carcass, then even bags, interiors of cars, watches, sunglasses, even furniture,” says Wangsaputra, suggesting the possibility of licensing the aquafade for third parties.

For now, the aquafade costs twice the regular ABS plastic, which it would replace. But Wangsaputra says this represents 5 to 10% of the total cost of an electronic product, and that mass production will make it cheaper.

“The devil is in the details”

Peter Edwards, an inorganic chemistry professor at Oxford University, who is not involved with the aquafade, calls it “an interesting development,” but asks if dissolved plastic will persist in the environment and will eventually become microplastic. The Aquafade team recognizes that it has not yet fully investigated how the solution would be biodegrada in the long run.

Michael Shaver, professor of polymer science at the University of Manchester, who is also not involved with the aquafade, shares some reservations about his sustainability, noting that there are questions about the mechanism, safety and biodegradation rate, but adds that in wastewater systems in the developed world, this is generally well controlled when it comes to PVOH, which is well known in dishwasher capsules.

However, he adds, the impact of the waterproof coating in this degradation needs more clarity. “The secret is in the details here – electronics have high specifications for their plastics. Some need to be very good (electric) insulators or may need to be flame retardants, ”he says.“ And surely everyone needs to have exceptional performance against weather to ensure a long service life – I can see that this will be the biggest technical obstacle. ”

See also: Cities invest in electronic waste recycling programs

Electronic waste has reached record level; Understand the problem

This content was originally published in plastic that dissolves in water can solve electronic waste disposal on CNN Brazil.

Source: CNN Brasil