[Hot Spot] Researchers have developed a new PCB material that can achieve over 90% raw material recovery rate

A research and development team from the University of Washington recently announced that it has successfully developed a new type of PCB called vPCB.

vPCB uses Vitrimer material, which has electrical performance comparable to traditional PCB and can achieve over 90% raw material recovery rate.

Traditional PCBs typically consist of fiberglass reinforced epoxy resin laminates covered with copper foil. After PCB disposal, it is difficult to separate the epoxy resin from the fiberglass. This hinders the recycling of PCB materials and makes reuse of e-waste more difficult.

Traditional PCBs typically consist of fiberglass reinforced epoxy resin laminates covered with copper foil. After PCB disposal, it is difficult to separate the epoxy resin from the fiberglass. This hinders the recycling of PCB materials and makes reuse of e-waste more difficult.

The R&D team claims it has achieved 98% glass-like polymer recovery, 100% glass fiber recovery, and 91% solvent recovery.

Less than a decade old, vitreous-like polymers, first developed in 2015, have "dynamic covalent bonds" that can reversibly break apart and reform when exposed to certain environments.

In addition to ease of recycling, vPCBs using glass-like polymers have other unique advantages: due to their reconfigurable properties, vPCBs that are bent or cracked can be repaired under certain circumstances.

In a related article, University of Washington academics stated that producing vPCBs does not require significant adjustments to the PCB manufacturing process.

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