By Dr. Yolanda Alesanco | CIDETEC Surface Engineering
As electronics become increasingly ubiquitous, the overall market continues to grow significantly, along with its environmental footprint. Global electronic waste reached 62 million tonnes in 2022, 15% more than in 2019, of which only 22% was properly managed, highlighting the need to adopt more sustainable production and consumption models. The recently completed REFORM project, coordinated and led by CIDETEC Surface Engineering, addressed the technical and sustainability challenges associated with the growing integration of electronics into everyday products and devices.
Flexible printed electronics represent a promising alternative in the transition towards greener electronics, as they are based on additive manufacturing techniques that reduce material waste and are more adaptable to a wider range of raw materials.
The REFORM project has contributed to the development of lower-impact printed electronics by developing and validating more sustainable materials implemented in electronic systems designed to promote end-of-life recycling. The main achievements and innovations over the project's three and a half years include:
• Fully organic conductive inks cured at room temperature, improving energy efficiency by eliminating high-temperature processing and reducing environmental impact by avoiding critical raw materials.
• Bio-based detachable conductive adhesives enabling repair, reuse and recovery of electronic components, unlike conventional irreversible joints.
• Metal-free RFID tags printed on recyclable substrates and designed to facilitate material recovery.
• A sustainable printed sensor system embedded in pressure vessels for continuous safety monitoring.
• New recycling methods for printed electronic systems on both paper-based and thermoset composite substrates, enabling full recovery of their constituent components.
Throughout the project, CIDETEC Surface Engineering coordinated all scientific and technical activities while leading developments in several key areas. These include flexible substrates based on CIDETEC's patented 3R epoxy thermoset composites (Reprocessable, Repairable and Recyclable), suitable for printed electronics. CIDETEC Surface Engineering also manufactured the printed electronic devices, assessed the suitability of the developed materials, and optimised printing and manufacturing processes to ensure the required functionality, bringing these developments closer to industrial application.
REFORM: Printed Electronics for the Circular Economy
The REFORM project, coordinated by CIDETEC Surface Engineering with the participation of 12 partners from eight European countries, ran from January 2023 to June 2026. It had a total budget of €4,993,610, of which €3,588,156.25 was funded by the European Union through the Horizon Europe programme, with the remainder funded by UK Research and Innovation.
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