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GREEN, ORGANIC AND PRINTED ULTRA-HIGH FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION TAGS

Project description

Eco-friendly wireless tracking

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags are widely used in logistics, healthcare and security to track items, but they often rely on batteries and non-renewable materials. This creates electronic waste and increases environmental harm. Many existing tags are also expensive and depend on the silicon industry, which faces resource challenges. A more sustainable and cost-effective solution is urgently needed. In this context, the EIC-funded GRETA project is creating the first green, flexible and printed wireless identification tag. These tags operate at ultra-high frequencies without batteries, using eco-friendly materials and sustainable manufacturing. GRETA aims to reduce costs, cut electronic waste and meet digital needs in a more environmentally friendly way.

Objective

GRETA will lay the foundation of the first green, printed and flexible organic wireless identification tag operating at Ultra-High Frequency (UHF, 300 MHz – 1 GHz). The long-term vision is to enable remote powering and readout of tags up to meters distance range, as required in logistics and security, without the need of a battery and with drastically reduced lifecycle impact and costing with respect to any available passive radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology. To achieve such overarching goal, GRETA aims at groundbreaking progress along two specific complementary actions:
- Action 1: Removing present barriers preventing sustainability of printed organic electronics, by tackling the most environmental and economically impactful aspects, yet seldom addressed, of organics synthesis and processing.
- Action 2: Demonstrating unprecedented UHF operation of printed organic electronics.
Measurable objectives of GRETA are: Objective 1. Green synthesis and development of sustainable and biodegradable materials (Action 1); Objective 2. Sustainable inks formulations for large-area printing tools (Action 1); Objective 3. UHF electronics based on sustainable printed organic semiconductors (Action 2); Objective 4. Enable an eco-designed, printed UHF wireless tag with sustainable lifecycle. Objective 4 is dedicated to demonstrators of the entire effort: GRETA UHF tag, demonstrating rectification of a 400 MHz wave to enable a code generator, and GRETA UHF logic, demonstrating a sustainable printed integrated 4-bit shift register. GRETA perfectly matches the scope of the Call as it serves emerging digitalization needs in logistics, healthcare and security without adding e-waste, independent from the silicon industry and from any critical raw material, and delivering safe materials for the environment. GRETA will quantify its drastically reduced environmental impact with a full LCA, along a cradle-to-grave approach, anticipating end-of-life scenarios.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

Keywords

Programme(s)

Topic(s)

Funding Scheme

HORIZON-EIC - HORIZON EIC Grants

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Call for proposal

(opens in new window) HORIZON-EIC-2023-PATHFINDERCHALLENGES-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

FONDAZIONE ISTITUTO ITALIANO DI TECNOLOGIA
Net EU contribution
€ 1 396 728,75
Address
VIA MOREGO 30
16163 Genova
Italy
Region
Nord-Ovest Liguria Genova
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost
€ 1 396 728,75

Participants (5)

Partners (1)