Computers to Cars: IDTechEx Celebrates Sustainable Tech on Earth Day

The environment often pays a price for the comforts of modern life. Every year on Earth Day, the world reflects on pathways towards a greener economy that promotes resource circularity and a lower carbon footprint. From computers to cars, IDTechEx's sustainability research portfolio explores how emerging sustainable technologies can create an environmentally friendly tomorrow.

 

 

 

As the AI boom continues to heat up in 2025, IDTechEx forecasts the energy consumption of the data center sector could triple by 2035. IDTechEx's "Sustainability for Data Centers 2025-2035: Green Technologies, Market Forecasts, and Players" report analyses how the lifeblood of the digital world can be decarbonized. Key themes include technology developments in power generation and energy efficiency. Beyond wind and solar, data center players are investing in energy storage technologies such as Li-ion batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. To reduce energy lost from temperature control, the data center sector is transferring over from traditional air cooling to direct-to-chip liquid cooling. Data center hyperscalers have demonstrated their intentions to keep supporting emerging sustainable technologies, from direct air capture to small modular nuclear reactors.

 

 

Conventional electronics manufacturing creates waste and is resource-intensive. For example, the semiconductor industry, a cornerstone of modern technology, is facing a growing water crisis. As demand for integrated circuits continues to surge, water usage in semiconductor manufacturing is projected to double by 2035. In 2023 alone, TSMC, one of the world's largest semiconductor manufacturers, consumed a staggering 101 million cubic meters of water. With many factories located in water-scarce regions like Taiwan and Arizona, the industry must adopt sustainable water management practices to mitigate this escalating demand.

 

IDTechEx's report, "Sustainable Electronics and Semiconductor Manufacturing 2025-2035: Players, Markets, Forecasts", explores how manufacturers are tackling this challenge. Key strategies include increasing water reuse, optimizing process efficiency, and diversifying water sources. Companies like SK Hynix have already made significant strides, increasing their volume of reused water by 51% between 2020 and 2023. Meanwhile, innovations such as rainwater collection and air dehumidification are being employed to reduce reliance on municipal water supplies. However, the industry must continue to innovate, particularly in the treatment and recycling of ultra-pure water (UPW), to ensure long-term sustainability.

 

 

The automotive industry is under increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact, with plastics emerging as a major area of focus. Passenger vehicles use over 14 million tonnes of plastics annually, most of which are derived from petrochemical sources. This contributes to significant embodied carbon emissions and exposes automakers to market and regulatory risks.

 

To address these issues, manufacturers are turning to recycled plastics and bioplastics. Mechanically recycled plastics are currently the most accessible option. Supported by maturing infrastructure and regulatory mandates such as the EU's End-of-Life Vehicles Directive, which targets 20 % recycled content, these materials are already being used in parts like interior panels. Mechanically recycled plastics, however, suffer from degradation of physical properties. Chemical recycling offers a more advanced solution by providing virgin-quality recycled plastics, though cost and scalability remain limiting factors.

 

Bioplastics, derived from renewable sources, offer another route to reduce fossil dependence. However, the market remains nascent. Supply constraints, higher costs, and the limited availability of bio-based equivalents for key polymers restrict adoption.

 

Despite strong forecast growth by IDTechEx, sustainable plastics will still only make up 18% of total automotive plastics by 2035, below current industry and regulatory targets. Achieving higher adoption will require stronger collaboration across the supply chain. Automakers, suppliers, and recyclers must invest in materials innovation, circular design, and long-term partnerships to overcome technical and economic barriers.

 

 

 

With 2024 being the hottest year on record, the importance of sustainable technologies is clearer than ever this Earth Day. Innovation can help decarbonize all aspects of life - from AI to automobiles - driven by regulations, corporate sustainability targets, and resource scarcity.

 

To find out more about these reports, including downloadable sample pages, please see the IDTechEx sustainability portfolio - www.IDTechEx.com/Research/Sustainability.

IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging technologies and their markets. Since 1999, we have been helping our clients to understand new technologies, their supply chains, market requirements, opportunities and forecasts. For more information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or visit www.IDTechEx.com.