Sustainable Ambition

Today, scarce metals and unsustainable materials are used to build conductive circuits in electronic devices. To help reduce our dependency on these finite resources, we want to develop metal-free electronic components from bio-derived adhesives, conductive inks and flexible substrates.

Although each electronic device we own contains very limited amounts of critical materials, they are produced on a vast scale, meaning that the cumulative environmental impact of e-waste is substantial, particularly if components are embedded in ways that make recycling extremely difficult or uneconomic.

Those devices that aren’t recycled or disposed of correctly can often be found in landfill sites, where all sorts of dangerous toxins and carcinogenic substances, such as mercury, lead and cadmium, leach into the surrounding soil.

The REFORM project seeks to develop environmentally sustainable printed electronics by harnessing organic conductive inks and biodegradable or recyclable materials.

We anticipate that our metal-free, low-cost yet scalable solution will meet the demands of multiple industries and sectors, while also meeting societal and environmental drive for sustainability.

To succeed, our project draws on the skills and knowledge of world-leading academics, non-profit RTOs, industrial associations, private SME partners and large firms from eight countries across Europe.

Each partner brings unique specialisms and skills that will lend themselves to the development of bio-derived adhesives, conductive inks and flexible substrates.