sustainable tagged posts

Sustainable Plastics from Agricultural Waste

The dyed and natural polyamide fibers after extrusion. Credit: Lorenz Manker/EPFL
EPFL scientists have developed a sustainable method to make high-performance plastics from agricultural leftovers, turning them into valuable materials.

Scientists have developed a sustainable method to make high-performance plastics from agricultural leftovers, turning them into valuable materials.

In our rapidly industrialized world, the quest for sustainable materials has never been more urgent. Plastics, ubiquitous in daily life, pose significant environmental challenges, primarily due to their fossil fuel origins and problematic disposal.

Now, a study led by Jeremy Luterbacher’s team at EPFL unveils a pioneering approach to producing high-performance plastics from renewable resources.

The research, published in Nature Sustainability, introduces a novel method for creating...

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New Fuel Cell Harvests Energy from Microbes in Soil to Power Sensors, Communications

New fuel cell harvests energy from microbes in soil to power sensors, communications
The clean fuel cell in the lab. Credit: Bill Yen/Northwestern University

A Northwestern University-led team of researchers has developed a new fuel cell that harvests energy from microbes living in dirt.

About the size of a standard paperback book, the completely soil-powered technology could fuel underground sensors used in precision agriculture and green infrastructure. This potentially could offer a sustainable, renewable alternative to batteries, which hold toxic, flammable chemicals that leach into the ground, are fraught with conflict-filled supply chains and contribute to the ever-growing problem of electronic waste.

To test the new fuel cell, the researchers used it to power sensors measuring soil moisture and detecting touch, a capability that could be valuable for track...

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