Recyclable vitrimer-based printed circuit board for circular electronics

• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2308.12496
• Publication Date: 2023-01-01
• Authors: Zhihan Zhang; Agni Kumar Biswal; Ankush Nandi; Kali Frost; Jake A. Smith; Bichlien H. Nguyen; Shwetak Patel; Aniruddh Vashisth; Vikram Iyer
• Keywords: Miscibility; Electronic waste

Electronics are integral to modern life; however, at their end-of-life these devices produce environmentally hazardous electronic waste (e-waste). Recycling the ubiquitous printed circuit boards (PCBs) that make up a substantial mass and volume fraction of e-waste is challenging due use irreversibly cured thermoset epoxies. We present PCB formulation using transesterification vitrimers (vPCBs), an end-to-end fabrication process compatible with standard manufacturing ecosystems. create functional prototypes IoT transmitting 2.4 GHz radio signals on vPCBs electrical mechanical properties meeting industry standards. Fractures holes in can be repaired while retaining comparable performance over more than four repair cycles. further demonstrate non-destructive decomposition vitrimer composites solid inclusions metal attachments by polymer swelling small molecule solvents. hypothesize unlike traditional solvolysis recycling, does not degrade materials. Through dynamic analysis we find negligible catalyst loss, minimal changes storage modulus, equivalent backbone composition across multiple recycling achieve 98% recovery, 100% fiber 91% solvent recovery which reuse new without degraded performance. Our cradle-to-cradle life-cycle assessment shows environmental impact reduction conventional PCBs 11 categories.