In the current age, technology is advancing at a pace more rapid than ever before, and the issue regarding the waste that old tech creates when it is discarded for new has started to become an issue. Americans alone, on average, replace their mobile phones every 22 months, which means that 150 million phones are sent to landfills in the process. Over time, the amount of waste has not only piled up due to its lack of biodegradability, but has also began to pose risks to health. In an attempt to alleviate the effects of this issue, researchers at the University of Missouri are on the path to creating biodegradable electronics by using organic components in screen displays. Using peptides, or proteins, researchers were able to demonstrate that these tiny structures, when combined with a blue light-emitting polymer, could successfully be used in display. These peptides are one hundred percent biodegradable according to Suchismita Guha, professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the MU College of Arts and Science. If these studies are successful, it would put a serious dent in the amount of cellphone-generated waste produced each year, and, hopefully, also allow for future technologies to be created in such a way that advancements could be constantly made without destroying the health of people and the environment in the process.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/10/151015131850.htm