[ad_1]
When we think about recycling, most of the pressure is on the consumer. Not manufacturers or industry leaders who force us to make certain packaging choices, and most often have no choice. .
This is especially true for the food industry, but recycling goods in any industry can reduce waste and conserve resources.
Wouldn’t it be great if the greater responsibility for sustainability started at the beginning rather than the end of the chain?
Here are some ways that companies can make it much easier to be “green”.
1. Filtered water with fruit skins
Mexican scientists have developed a way to filter heavy metals and other contaminants from the water using an absorbent material made almost entirely of discarded citrus peels such as oranges and grapefruits.
That’s great, because there are plenty of them. It is estimated that the food industry produces around 38.2 million tonnes of fruit peel waste annually worldwide, so this is a great opportunity to use what is usually considered garbage.
The material is produced using a new treatment called instant controlled pressure drop and then packed into fixed bed columns.
“The results show the great potential of using these materials as adsorbents capable of competing with commercial activated carbon for the adsorption and recovery of metals present in wastewater, so that sustainable processes can be carried out where products of great commercial value can be obtained from food industry residues . “
– Researcher Luis Alberto Romero Cano
2. Biodegradable packaging that keeps food fresh for longer
Food packaging made of composites of cellulose or plant material, then coated with “active ingredients” that have antioxidant and antimicrobial properties,
it can be an alternative to traditional plastic polymers (i.e. disposable containers that contain everything).
Research has shown that clove essential oil is best at binding free radicals and fighting oxidation, but it is not antimicrobial.
This is where silver comes in. The addition of the iconic silver particles not only gives the material long-lasting antimicrobial properties, but also makes it stronger and flexible.
It takes about two years for these non-toxic materials to decompose.
The biggest challenge: preparing ready-to-use packaging made of natural heat-resistant materials.
There are still difficulties creating something that will even withstand an oven or microwave, but will naturally decompose over time. Cellulose cannot be used in this way.
Similar products are already on the market. Compostable or edible water bottles seem to be gaining ground. From somewhat attractive to not at all.
One company has developed a bottle of Ooho, a gelatin-like substance made from seaweed and other plants. It can be flavored, is cheaper than plastic, and degrades within 4-6 weeks. Another company, Biota, offers corn-based products. Designer Ari Jónsson created a bottle with red algae powder. Crystal Mountain and Redleaf Water offer slightly more traditional options.
Other fully edible self-packaged foods such as Wikipedia Pearls are becoming popular in Europe and are sold in some parts of the United States. They have plant-based and nut-based skins, with yoghurt, ice cream or liquid agents.
It would be nice for our containers to dissolve naturally, rather than clogging landfills and waterways forever. But how many of us really want to take the next step and eat our water bottle remains to be seen. Sometimes you’re just not hungry.
3. Recycling of rare metals
New ways to recycle special and rare metals in batteries are on the horizon. The extraction of these metals is costly and can impact the environment.
The CoLaBats initiative is working to make the recycling of metals such as cobalt, lanthanides, nickel and lithium easier and more profitable.
Specialty Ion Liquids (TSILs) or “design solvents” as they are sometimes called are used to break down lithium-ion (lithium-ion batteries) and NiMH (nickel-metal hydride batteries) batteries.
These batteries are used in many of our rechargeable products such as phones, laptops, and increasingly in electric and hybrid cars. These fluids are non-toxic, inexpensive, and require little processing to be reused.
A task-specific ionic fluid is essentially a liquid salt that has been given special properties to perform a specific task. In some cases, they can be used with traditional ionic liquids to reduce costs.
Another group of scientists from the University of Pennsylvania is also working on new ways to separate rare metals from batteries.
The main method that is currently used to separate these metals is resource-intensive. Hundreds of fluid chambers are connected and two fluids begin to flow side by side. One is acidic and water-based, the other is organic. The metals then dissolve and are extracted. This chemical process has to be repeated thousands of times.
Due to costs, only about 1% of these metals are recycled.
“Everyone has heard of blood diamonds, but maybe people haven’t heard of blood cobalt, tantalum or lithium. We shouldn’t just throw away so much material. As part of a sustainable approach to production and the development of a circular economy, we should think about the impact and value of materials at every stage of their life cycle. And about how we can efficiently and effectively restore them back to usable raw materials as soon as they are left. ‘ again at the end of the product’s life. ‘
– Eric Schelter, Faculty of Chemistry, Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences
But that’s the old way.
The newer method reduces the amount of time and energy required while reducing the amount of waste generated during the process.
They did this by trapping ions in the mixtures. This mixture contains two types of elements. One is soluble in organic substances, the other is not. The solution acts as a filter, removing one metal from the rest.
Benzene, the solvent used in most of these experiments, is a natural part of crude oil, but it is also carcinogenic. For this reason, scientists are still researching other more environmentally friendly solvents.
Investing in such projects can help reduce landfilling and metal consumption.
[ad_2]
Source by Kate Alsbury