
Printed NFC in plastic is set to make recycling rewarding
The Sustainable Plastics Recycling Innovation by Tagging Electronically (SPRITE) initiative looks to automate the recycling of bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and refillable packaging by giving each item a unique digital identification.
Under the SPRITE scheme, Pragmatic is charged with delivering a system that works alongside existing return and recycling schemes and uses NFC to uniquely identify consumer packaging so that consumers can collect rewards anywhere using a network of smart recycling points and their existing kerbside recycling collections.
Worldwide more than 1 million plastic bottles are created every minute with less than 10 percent being collected to be turned into new bottle. The rest are sent to landfill, incinerated or dumped, often at sea.
As well as rewarding recycling the scheme is intended to demonstrate the use of NFC to enhance refillable packaging models.
Related links and articles:
www.pragmaticsemi.com
News articles:
PragmatIC receives orders for 20 million printed ICs
ARM backs printed electronics startup
Printed electronics opens up large flexible sensor design
