Soluble circuit boards to reduce e-waste

British researchers say they're working on developing water-soluble circuit boards that could significantly improve e-waste recycling. Britain's National Physics Laboratory, working with companies In2Tec and Gwent Electronic Materials, say the new printable electronics circuit board will dissolve when placed in hot water. The circuit boards are made of polymeric layers that can withstand prolonged thermal cycling and damp heat stressing during normal use in electronic devices, but can easily be separated into their constituent parts after immersion in hot water, TG Daily reported Wednesday. Researchers said 90 percent of a circuit board for an electroluminescent lamp dissolved in a small amount of hot water in a test of the material. Electronics waste is the fastest-growing category of waste in the world, taxing normal recycling techniques, the researchers said. The water-soluble technology can be used in rigid, flexible and 3D structures, they said, allowing the electronics industry to pursue designs using less material and improving environmental sustainability.