A 2024 United Nations report highlights a troubling trend: global electronic waste has nearly doubled over the past 12 years, growing from 34 billion to 62 billion kilograms, with projections reaching 82 billion kilograms by 2030. Yet only about 20% of that—roughly 13.8 billion kilograms—is expected to be recycled, which is a figure that shows little sign of improvement. As the volume of discarded electronics increases, traditional recycling efforts are failing to keep pace. There’s a deep call for solutions to recycling and sustainability of materials used in electronics.

New research from Virginia Tech could reshape sustainability in electronics. Researchers have developed a next-generation circuit material that is recyclable, electrically conductive, reconfigurable and self-healing—all while maintaining the strength and durability of traditional circuit board plastics.

The innovation is based on a vitrimer, a dynamic polymer that can be reshaped and recycled. A vitrimer is a type of polymer material that combines the best properties of thermosets and thermoplastics—offering both strength and are the ability to be “reprocessable.” Vitrimers have a stable, cross-linked structure, giving them mechanical strength and chemical resistance. Reprocessable refers to the characteristics of vitrimers that can be reshaped or repaired when heated, without degrading their overall structure.

Embedded within this polymer are liquid metal droplets, which provide conductivity similar to rigid metals used in standard electronics. This combination results in a material that withstands mechanical stress and damage without losing functionality. It represents a promising step forward in creating sustainable, high-performance electronics designed for reuse and repair.

Conventional circuit boards are made from rigid thermoset plastics that are nearly impossible to recycle or repair. In contrast, the newly developed vitrimer-based circuit boards can be reshaped or healed using heat, all without compromising their electrical performance—something traditional boards cannot achieve.

At the end of their life, the boards can be broken down through alkaline hydrolysis, allowing for the recovery of valuable components such as liquid metal and LEDs. While fully closing the loop to reuse all components is still an area of ongoing research, this approach marks significant progress in sustainable electronics.

Given the growing volume of discarded devices worldwide, this innovation offers a meaningful step toward reducing e-waste. By enabling more repairable and recyclable circuit components, it paves the way for future high-performing and environmentally responsible electronics.

For electrical professionals, this development could eventually lead to easier repair, reconfiguration and recycling of circuit components, reducing e-waste and enabling longer product life cycles. As demand grows for sustainable solutions across construction and tech sectors, materials like these may become part of the toolkit for smarter, greener electrical design and maintenance.