02/25/2005: 
Technologica
When it Overheats, it Smells Like KFC
from Wired (Beware of lame puns)
Richard Wool, a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Delaware, wants to recycle discarded chicken feathers and use them to manufacture circuit boards, replacing petroleum-based components with keratin-based composites. Computer circuit boards are only one of the many applications researchers envision for this material.
(pun omitted) One of the most well-known technology companies, Intel, is contributing its expertise to the project, Wool said. He recently submitted a proposal to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for $500,000 over four years. If it is funded, the research will start in the fall.
"The basic goal is to introduce new green materials that will have a positive effect on the environment, reduce waste materials, provide a better bang for the farmers' buck and improve the current properties of petroleum-based printed circuit boards, which are not sustainable," Wool said.
Circuit boards are typically made of an epoxy-fiberglass composite, Wool said, which is then printed with wires and circuits. Wool envisions using soybean oil to replace the epoxy and chicken feathers to replace the fiberglass, creating a healthier composite for the environment.
The hair on the chicken feathers -- the quill is not used -- contains about 50 percent air, which has some benefits: It lightens the weight of the composite and creates an environment conducive to high-speed circuits, Wool said.
Fun Fact: There are 5 billion pounds of chicken feathers generated in the United States each year. Currently, the feathers are rendered into low-grade animal feed for cattle, called feather meal.
