Inside TU Dresden's Compostable Electronics Made From Leaves

The world's electronic waste crisis may have found an unlikely ally: leaves.

Researchers from Dresden University of Technology have successfully developed a prototype for biodegradable circuit boards, a technology which they call 'leaftronics'.

Rakesh Nair, Postdoctoral Scientist at TU Dresden, led the project in Germany with a simple desire to explore solutions to the growing e-waste problem.

The scale of the e-waste issue often isn't as widely discussed as other forms of pollution, but it is a serious issue that the electronics industry is starting to address.

Success stories around refurbishment and recycling are emerging more and more frequently, but, until now, the idea that biodegradable electronics could be a legitimate solution hasn't been given much credibility. 

"With the world producing over 50 million tons of e-waste every year, innovations like these could help reduce the environmental impact of modern electronics," says John W. Mitchell, President and CEO of IPC and Board Member for the US Partnership for Assured Electronics.

As John highlights, the sheer amount of electronic waste produced each year is shocking, though what's even more startling is the forecast for the future. By 2050, it's estimated that those numbers will double if a solution is not realised.

Printed circuit boards (PCBs), which are central to electronic devices, are a massive contributor to e-waste.

Traditionally, these objects are made from non-recyclable materials like fibreglass or composite plastic and they often end up in landfills or are incinerated to recover valuable metals.

So, could leaftronics provide the electronics industry with a genuine alternative?

How leaftronics were born

The process started with one small leaf from a magnolia tree.

Rakesh and his team stripped the leaf to its stem and veins before dipping it in a mould filled with ethyl cellulose, a polymer that is both durable and compostable.

Afterwards, the team were left with a smooth, flexible and transparent material, capable of withstanding high temperatures.

“Substrates made of biodegradable polymers could not be used for electronic device or circuit fabrication until now because they naturally do not handle elevated temperatures well,” Rakesh explains.

This new method not only addresses these pitfalls, but does so without compromising biodegradability. What's more, creating them is not energy intensive. Often, the same cannot be said for traditional circuitry.

The resulting leaf-based circuit boards can be laser-cut, printed with circuits and soldered with all kinds of necessary components.

Unlike traditional PCBs, leaftronics can be left in an acid bath to remove any valuable metals, before being degraded in a composting process that takes about a month.

Other forms of biodegradable electronics

While other biodegradable PCBs have been created using materials like paper, silk and even mushroom skins, Rakesh believes his team's work is in a league of its own.

Its reliance on natural leaf scaffolds simplifies the production process while also enhancing the material's thermal and mechanical properties.

These innovations position leaftronics as a genuine candidate for mass production.

Will leaftronics ever become the industry standard?

There is so much promise to this product, but its widespread adoption amongst the electronics industry is still uncertain. 

Existing industrial standards for PCBs prioritise durability, with materials designed to last for centuries, even in devices that are often discarded after only a few years. 

Whilst leaftronics are performing well in tests, it's too soon to say whether they are quite that durable.

“Circuit boards today are built for permanence, yet they’re used in products with a short lifecycle,” says Rakesh.

“The challenge isn’t just in developing the materials, but in reshaping an entire sector to embrace a more sustainable future.”

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