Electronics Production |
Expanding waste to reduce waste
Waste material from discarded televisions could be recycled and used in medicine, according to new research by scientists at the University of York, thus reducing the amount of electronic waste dumped elsewhere.
The chemical compound polyvinyl-alcohol (PVA) is widely used in industry and is a key element of television sets with liquid crystal display (LCD) technology. When these sets are thrown away, the LCD panels are usually incinerated or buried in landfill sites.
Researchers have now found a way of recovering PVA from television screens and transforming it into - e.g. - a substance suitable for use in tissue scaffolds which help parts of the body regenerate.
The research is by five academics in the University's Department of Chemistry, which is home to the York Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence and the York Liquid Crystal Group, and is published in the journal Green Chemistry.
Professor James Clark, director of the York Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence and one of the author's of the research paper, said: "With 2.5 billion liquid crystal displays already reaching the end of their life, and LCD televisions proving hugely popular with consumers, that is a huge amount of potential waste to manage. It is important that we find ways of recycling as many elements of LCDs as possible so we don't simply have to resort to burying and burning them."
The researchers have developed a technique where recovered material is heated in water in a microwave and washed in ethanol to produce "expanded PVA". One of this material's key properties is that it does not provoke a response from the human immune system, making it suitable for use in biomedicine.
The latest research is a development from a long term project, funded by the Technology Strategy Board, examining the problems posed by LCD waste in which the University of York is a partner. Professor Clark's team is currently looking at other waste streams to identify more potentially useful components.
LCD waste from electrical and electronic equipment is the fastest growing waste stream in the EU. "Reuse in new LCDs is unlikely, so we need to find new applications for this plastic and thus avoid turning a useful material into a burden on the environment", Professor Clark is cited on RSC in saying.
