As our reliance on electronics — from smartphones to computers — continues to soar, so does the environmental burden of e-waste. In 2022 alone, a staggering 62 million tons of e-waste were generated globally. To put that in perspective, it’s enough to fill 1.5 million trucks, lined up bumper-to-bumper, that would stretch all the way around the globe. Yet, only a fraction of this e-waste is recycled, with most ending up in landfills or incinerators, releasing toxic chemicals into the environment and threatening human health.

Aside from the environmental toll, e-waste is also costing us billions of dollars in recoverable resources. The UN reports that $62 billion worth of valuable materials, like rare earth metals, are lost every year as e-waste is improperly disposed of. Despite the clear need for better recycling systems, only about 1% of the demand for these critical materials is met through e-waste recycling.

With e-waste growing five times faster than recycling efforts, finding new, innovative solutions is more urgent than ever. Enter Aquafade — a revolutionary new material that could help tackle this growing problem.

Aquafade is a fully water-soluble plastic designed to make the recycling of electronic products easier, faster, and more efficient. When submerged in water, this innovative plastic dissolves completely in about six hours, making it possible to recover the most valuable components of a device — such as its circuitry — without the need for complex and labor-intensive disassembly.

Samuel Wangsaputra, one of Aquafade’s inventors, explains the concept: “For most electronics, the real headache during recycling is the disassembly process. It’s time-consuming, costly, and often done by hand. Aquafade simplifies this by decentralizing the process, making it easy for people to recycle products at home.”

The idea for Aquafade came from an unlikely source: a dishwasher pod. While washing dishes one night, Wangsaputra noticed the water-soluble film around the pod. He wondered where it went after dissolving in water. Intrigued, he tested it and watched as the film completely disappeared, sparking the idea for Aquafade.

Teaming up with Joon Sang Lee, his co-inventor and founder of Pentaform (a UK-based startup that makes low-cost computers), Wangsaputra worked with material scientists at Imperial College London to develop Aquafade. Together, they created a material made from PVOH (polyvinyl alcohol), a biodegradable, food-safe polymer. The goal: to create a material that could dissolve in water, yet still meet the durability standards of modern electronics.

Aquafade’s key innovation lies in its ability to make electronics easier to break down for recycling. The material is applied as an outer coating on electronic devices, which is waterproof and durable enough to withstand everyday use. However, once the device is no longer needed, a simple twist of a screw is enough to trigger the dissolution process. The plastic casing dissolves in water within hours, leaving behind a milky solution and the valuable parts of the device — ready to be recovered and reused.

This solution could significantly reduce the environmental impact of e-waste by making the recycling process simpler and more effective. Moreover, the dissolved plastic is biodegradable and can safely decompose in sewage systems.

The first commercial use of Aquafade will likely be in the form of LED wristbands used at concerts. Thousands of these wristbands are discarded after just one use, contributing to the growing waste problem. Wangsaputra and Lee are in talks with major wristband manufacturers to bring Aquafade to this market.

Beyond electronics, Aquafade could be used in a wide range of other products that rely on hard plastic shells, such as luggage, car interiors, furniture, and even watches. The potential applications for this material are vast, and the creators are exploring licensing opportunities with other manufacturers.

While Aquafade holds promise, it’s not without its challenges. Experts, including Peter Edwards, Emeritus Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Oxford, have raised concerns about the long-term environmental impact. Will the dissolved plastic ultimately break down into microplastics? Wangsaputra and his team acknowledge that more research is needed to determine the full biodegradability of Aquafade over time.

Michael Shaver, a Professor of Polymer Science at the University of Manchester, shares similar concerns about the sustainability of the material. The waterproof coating, in particular, raises questions about how it will degrade over time and whether it will meet the stringent durability standards required for modern electronics. As Shaver notes, “The devil is in the details” — ensuring that Aquafade meets the technical specifications for different types of electronics could be one of the biggest hurdles to widespread adoption.

For now, Aquafade is about twice the cost of traditional plastic like ABS, but its inventors are optimistic that mass production will drive costs down. At just 5-10% more than conventional plastics, the material’s price is relatively small in comparison to the overall cost of an electronic product.

While Aquafade is still in its early stages, it represents a bold step forward in the fight against e-waste. If the material can live up to its promise and overcome technical hurdles, it could play a key role in reducing electronic waste, recovering valuable resources, and making electronics more sustainable in the long run.

As the world continues to grapple with the growing issue of e-waste, innovations like Aquafade offer hope that we can find better, more efficient ways to recycle and reuse the materials that power our devices. The future of e-waste management could very well depend on solutions like these — ones that not only solve an environmental crisis but also change the way we think about product life cycles.

Source: CNN – To tackle the e-waste problem, this casing for electronics dissolves in water

The post How Aquafade’s Water-Soluble Plastic Could Change E-Waste Recycling Forever appeared first on Journos News - Breaking News, World News, Top Stories, Todays Headlines and Flash Reports.

Alisha Fredriksson, the CEO of Seabound, is driven by one core mission: to tackle the climate crisis and make a significant impact on reducing global emissions. Seabound, a UK-based climate tech startup, is developing an innovative onboard carbon capture device specifically designed for cargo ships.

The Shipping Industry’s Challenge to Decarbonize

Global shipping contributes about 3% of total greenhouse gas emissions and is working toward achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. However, Fredriksson believes the industry is moving too slowly in reaching that target. “I’m an impatient person,” she says, expressing frustration with the pace of decarbonization in the sector. Seabound’s technology could provide a key solution.

The company’s onboard carbon capture system, which fits into standard shipping containers, works by taking exhaust gases from the engines and running the carbon dioxide (CO2) through a natural process that has been occurring in the oceans for millions of years. The device contains calcium oxide pebbles, or lime, that absorb CO2 from the exhaust. “It’s like a box of rocks,” Fredriksson explains. As the exhaust gases pass through the container, the CO2 is absorbed and transformed into limestone, while the remaining gases are released.

Simplifying Carbon Capture for Ships

Unlike some other carbon capture technologies, Seabound’s system doesn’t separate or compress the CO2 onboard, as those processes are energy-intensive and complex. Instead, the captured CO2 is stored in the pebbles and offloaded when the ship docks at port. The pebbles are then taken to specialized plants where the CO2 can be extracted for reuse or even recycled as construction material.

Seabound has tested its technology, successfully capturing 80% of the carbon emissions and 90% of the sulfur from exhaust gases, which is a significant improvement compared to other methods already in use by about 5% of the global merchant fleet. The company is now in talks with shipping companies and plans to launch commercially by the end of 2025.

A Simple Retrofit for Ships

Fredriksson, who co-founded Seabound in 2021 with Roujia Wen, has a background that includes launching a climate program for a global nonprofit and founding a maritime green fuel startup called Liquid Wind. She was named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Europe list and MIT Tech Review’s Innovators Under 35 list in 2023.

Seabound’s system offers several advantages. It doesn’t require additional fuel or energy, as the process generates its own heat. The space occupied by the carbon capture device depends on the size of the ship, but Fredriksson says it’s designed to use no more than 1% of the cargo capacity. The installation is simple, requiring only piping to connect the Seabound container to the ship’s engine exhaust system.

Once the ship reaches port, the pebbles are swapped for new ones, and the captured CO2 is processed to make it ready for reuse or further treatment, such as turning it into chemicals, fuels, or storing it underground. Alternatively, the pebbles can be used as limestone for concrete or road construction, although their quality may be affected by exposure to exhaust impurities.

Pilot Project and Growing Interest

Seabound completed a successful pilot project with global shipping company Lomar in 2023. A prototype device was placed on a medium-sized vessel, capturing 80% of the carbon emissions. This was a crucial milestone for Seabound, and since then, they have been refining their commercial product. Fredriksson envisions Seabound’s technology being implemented on all types of ships around the world in the future.

However, onboard carbon capture systems (OCCS) face challenges, particularly high retrofit costs and infrastructure limitations. A different project conducted by the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) found that an alternative OCCS system could reduce CO2 emissions by up to 20%, but the installation cost was a hefty $13.6 million. Additionally, the lack of infrastructure at ports for CO2 offloading poses a significant hurdle.

Seabound’s Competitive Edge

Fredriksson believes Seabound’s system has a distinct advantage over other technologies. “Our system leaves the complicated parts of carbon capture to be handled onshore, which lowers the costs and makes it easier to scale,” she explains. While other systems are in development, like Calcarea’s technology that discharges CO2 directly into the sea, Fredriksson is open to exploring potential synergies. For example, combining Seabound’s limestone creation with Calcarea’s technology could potentially double the amount of CO2 captured onboard.

The Future of Onboard Carbon Capture Systems

Experts in the field are optimistic about the future of OCCS, but some challenges remain. Tristan Smith, a professor at University College London, sees OCCS playing a transitional role in the shipping industry before hydrogen-derived fuels become more competitive by the mid-2030s. Similarly, Faisal Khan from Texas A&M University believes carbon capture technologies on ships will become “almost mandatory” in the coming years, much like catalytic converters in cars.

Fredriksson remains confident about Seabound’s long-term potential, noting that the simplicity and scalability of their system could position them as a key player in the race to decarbonize the shipping industry. While challenges remain, the company’s innovative approach to carbon capture offers a promising solution to a pressing global problem.

Source

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