A new type of electronic tag may solve the vast environmental impact of radio frequency tech used in data collection.
Researchers at the University of Glasgow have devised a new wireless electronic tag system that can identify objects and monitor temperatures, all without the need for microchips, according to Tech Xplore.
These new chipless sensors use inexpensive coils and a sensing material made from a silicon rubber composite and carbon fibers, as the report detailed.
They're lightweight, flexible, and resistant to environmental factors, making them useful for food-industry "smart packaging," as well as tracking vital health data through smart clothing applications.
The sensors, which are smaller than the ones in credit cards, can carry identifying information, take real-time temperature readings, and even measure pH levels or track humidity.
"Developing wireless sensing tags is crucial for monitoring temperature across supply chains, particularly in food safety and medical applications. By eliminating the need for microchips, these chipless tags could significantly reduce both cost and electronic waste compared to traditional [radio frequency identification] RFID sensors," as Dr. Mahmoud Wagih, the study's corresponding author, shared in the article.
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"While there have been various efforts in recent years to develop chipless smart devices, many require expensive specialized equipment for readout, limiting their potential in commercial applications," Wagih continued.
RFID tags are currently used in fields such as agriculture, healthcare, transportation, and the textile industry for object identification and data transmission. They can help companies track products to optimize logistics, reduce waste, and support recycling efforts.
Sales of these devices are showing dramatic growth, going from 17.5 billion units sold in 2018 to over 28 billion in 2021, according to available data from IDTechEx. Since many of those are for single-use applications, a large number of these microchips end up in landfills.
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E-waste is of growing concern, as old electronic devices with plastic, circuit boards, microchips, and batteries are beginning to pile up. Over 68 million tons of it was produced in 2022, which is 85% more than in 2010. The Global E-Waste Monitor 2024 report projects that those numbers will go up another 32% by 2030.
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Billions of dollars of resources are being thrown away, while only 1% of rare earth element demand is met through recycling.
By finding alternative materials that can support our growing technological needs, we can start to reduce that waste and put less pressure on ecosystems that are overburdened with potentially toxic pollution as a result.
"The new technology we've developed uses materials which are cheap and widely-available, and the tags can be manufactured using a simple, scalable process. Our hope is that those unique characteristics could help the technology become widely-adopted in the years to come, helping to reduce the environmental harms currently being caused by single-use RFID tags," as Dr. Benjamin King, a co-author of the study, concluded in the report.
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