Ecoresorbable chipless temperatureresponsive tag made from biodegradable materials for sustainable IoT
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Author
James Bourely, Nicolas Fumeaux, Xavier Aeby, Jaemin Kim, Gilberto Siqueira, Christian Beyer, David Schmid, Oleksandr Vorobyov, Gustav Nyström, Danick Briand, Oleksandr
DOI
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-65458-9
Abstract
Temperature monitoring within the cold chain, essential for safety of perishable
products, typically employs devices such as battery-powered data loggers
and radio-frequency identification tags. Such devices include non-eco-friendly
components, posing challenges for their safe disposal and recycling. This
study demonstrates the fabrication of a fully ecoresorbable, chipless, and
wireless temperature-responsive tag, designed to irreversibly track temperature
changes through a permanent shift in resonance frequency. The tag is
printed on a customized moisture-resistant poly(β-hydroxybutyrate)-cellulose
composite substrate. An RLC circuit made of printed zinc metallic traces,
encapsulated with beeswax to prevent oxidation, enables seamless wireless
operation. The tag utilizes bio-based phase-changing materials such as frozen
olive, jojoba, and coconut oils to induce irreversible resonance frequency
shifts of more than 30 MHz at respective melting points of 8 °C, 15 °C, and
25 °C. A cellulose capillary element efficiently absorbs themelted oil, enabling
reliable operation at inclinations from 0° to 90°. At the end of its service life,
the device can undergo disintegration in a compost environment within 9
weeks. This work demonstrates a sustainable chipless technology from
material selection and manufacturing processes to end-of-life disposal as an
advanced thermal indicator solution for cold chain temperature-excursion
detection.
Publication Reference
Nature Communication 16
Year
2025-10-15
Sponsors
funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation and Innosuisse BRIDGE Discovery program for the project “GREENsPACK—Green Smart Packaging” (Grant No.: 187223)