by Komoneed | Apr 1, 2024
We may be at the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era but will that end come around fast enough? Post COP-28, the most recent United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Dubai in late 2023, it’s a question well worth asking.
That carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions must be drastically reduced is not in dispute. Governments around the world have acknowledged it’s an urgent imperative, if average temperature increases are to be contained to 1.5°C above industrial levels.
Unveiled in May 2022, the Australian Government’s whole-of-economy Long Term Emissions Reduction Plan outlined its plans to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 and, across the ditch, our Kiwi cousins have adopted a similar target.
Picking up the pace of change
But while the stage is being prepared for a just and equitable transition away from traditional energy sources, emissions look set to continue their steady northward creep, in the short term at least.
Under current national climate commitments, they’ll be 9% above 2010 levels by 2030; hardly the drastic reduction we desperately want and need.
As the damaging effects of climate change become ever more apparent — Australia has just weathered another summer of swelteringly high temperatures and wildly wet conditions, while New Zealand continues to recover from tropical Cyclone Gabrielle’s bruising $8 billion assault in February 2023 — it’s clear we need to take some big steps to achieve a sustainable transition faster.
Doing more with digital
So how can we do it? By improving the efficiency of our industrial sectors and boosting the development and deployment of renewable energy is the short answer.
At present, industry is responsible for 32% of the world’s CO2 emissions, with 73% of greenhouse gases deriving from energy.
The World Economic Forum believes there’s enormous scope to reduce those figures, by harnessing the power of digital technologies, including advanced algorithms, artificial intelligence and data analytics.
From boosting energy efficiency and reducing waste and carbon emissions at source, through to converting harmful greenhouse gases into high-value commodities, such as fertiliser and fuel additives, forward-thinking businesses are already reaping the rewards of their judicious deployment.
Adopted at scale in heavy-duty emission sectors such as energy, mobility and materials, digital technologies have the potential to reduce emissions by up to 20% by 2050, according to WEF’s calculations.
The benefits for businesses that go down this route extend beyond the ESG arena: documented gains include profitability gains of up to 10% and three-fold returns on investment.
Working together for good
What’s more, there’s an opportunity to amplify those gains, should industrial organisations opt to take a more collaborative approach with the other stakeholders in their supply chains and eco-systems.
India’s Pimpri Chinchwad Smart City is a case in point. The amalgamation of more than 4600 municipal systems and applications, from water and wastewater to traffic management, into a single, unified operations centre has enabled its leaders and residents to breathe more easily, environmentally and literally. That’s because taking a data-driven approach to service delivery has reduced pollution and congestion, minimised water losses and lowered energy use by an estimated 22%.
Similarly impressive outcomes have been recorded in food and beverage giant Danone’s Indonesian operations. Deploying a manufacturing execution system across four production sites provided decision-makers and line managers with real-time access to detailed production data. In addition to being able to offer higher quality, fully traceable products, factory performance has improved and wastage has been slashed: a win for Danone and the planet both.
Taking smarter, swifter steps towards sustainability
Opportunities for local businesses and industries to use digital technologies in similarly creative ways are extensive and those that choose to do so sooner may well gain an early mover advantage.
What’s good for business is even better for the long-term health and wellbeing of our region and the wider world.
If your organisation is yet to explore the possibilities, there’s no time to lose.
Alexey Lebedev, Vice President – Pacific at AVEVA.
Top image credit: iStock.com/nespix
by Komoneed | Mar 26, 2024
California’s Yurok Tribe had 90 percent of its territory stolen during the mid-1800s gold rush. Now, it will be getting a piece of its land back that serves as a gateway to Redwood state and national parks. For decades, the ancient redwoods on former Yurok lands were decimated for lumber and a sawmill built to […]
The post California’s Yurok Tribe Becomes First to Steward Land Alongside National Park Service appeared first on EcoWatch.
by Komoneed | Mar 26, 2024
This post was originally published on UNDPA bakery and best agricultural practices that contribute to environmental care | Una panadería y mejores prácticas agrícolas que contribuyen con el cuidado ambiental kate.smith@undp.org Mon, 03/25/2024 – 02:34 In the...
by Komoneed | Mar 26, 2024
We meet a bunch of next-generation drivers as they get to grips with electric power for the first time
by Komoneed | Mar 26, 2024
Nappies and sanitary pads present a problem for sustainability because their absorbent parts and waterproof layers contain plastics and other synthetic polymers. When thrown away, they can take hundreds of years to decompose.
Now, researchers have found a way to replace these problematic materials with porous components made from the protein biomass often discarded by the food and agricultural industries. These components are sustainable and biodegradable, and could potentially allow future nappies and sanitary pads to be flushed down a toilet or used as fertiliser.
Antonio Capezza, a researcher in the polymeric materials division at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden, presented these findings at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), held in March 2024.
Capezza said that in Europe, regulations discourage the use of certain petroleum-based plastics in disposable goods; however, there aren’t clear guidelines or regulations to ban these plastics in nappies, sanitary pads and other disposable sanitary items because a good replacement hasn’t been available. “But we’re hoping to change that with our protein-based materials,” he said.
Capezza is collaborating with researchers at KTH, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and other institutions, including Simón Bolívar University in Venezuela, the University of Tokyo in Japan and the University of Seville in Spain.
Ironically, the project had its origins in a demonstration designed to teach students what can go wrong in the lab. Capezza was showing them how to make bioplastic filaments using proteins. To mimic the impact of unwanted humidity, he added wet cotton, which caused the mixture to foam. Once the product dried, the material had become super porous, meaning it could sop up liquid like a sponge.
“So it was sort of an accident, but a good one, because that led us to an entirely new line of research,” he said.
While there are already some cotton-based alternatives to plastic sanitary products on the market, these rely on virgin cotton and may need bleaching or other chemical treatment for their production. Capezza’s team identified a more sustainable material source in the proteins and other natural molecules left over from food and agricultural production that might otherwise be landfilled or incinerated, including zein from corn, gluten from wheat and natural antioxidant extracts.
The researchers mixed the proteins together in different proportions and added water and bicarbonates, such as baking soda, as foaming agents; the sweetener glycerol as a plasticiser; and natural extracts as preservatives.
They then used equipment and processing techniques from the plastics industry, including extrusion, to make various components commonly found in pads and nappies. In much the same way as a pasta maker, the extruder enabled the team to produce filaments and flat sheets while simultaneously allowing them to foam the materials. These techniques produced a flat ‘nonwoven’ layer that remained dry to the touch while allowing liquid to rapidly pass through; a fluffy porous material with super-absorbent properties that captured liquid; and waterproof films to protect outer garments.
As a proof of concept, the researchers assembled these components to make protein-based absorbent prototypes that resembled disposable sanitary products. Once exposed to water or soil, the materials completely biodegraded in a few weeks, releasing carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, amino acids and other compounds that nature can reuse as nutrients.
Compost from these products (or any waste produced at the manufacturing stage) could be used to fertilise crops such as corn and wheat, which would in turn provide the starting materials to make new sanitary products. “So it’s a fully circular design,” Capezza said.
The researchers have already shown that plants grow longer leaves and roots when exposed to this compost. “And our tests have shown that because it’s protein based, there’s no risk whatsoever that these products will pollute the soil with microplastics or other unwanted chemicals when they break down,” Capezza added.
While the performance of protein sanitary pads is similar to that of conventional pads, protein nappies aren’t as absorbent as their plastic counterparts. That means protein nappies either need to be thicker, or their formulation needs to be tweaked to improve absorption. To boost liquid uptake and mechanical strength, the researchers are now exploring the addition of lignocellulose, a blend of lignin and cellulose found in plants. This material is a low-value by-product of the farming and forestry sectors. Results to date show its addition is bringing performance close to that of conventional nappies.
The team is now preparing for pilot studies to test the feasibility of scaling up production. Additional evaluations, including human skin irritation tests, will need to be done before any of these products can go on the market, Capezza said.
The research was funded by the Bo Rydin Foundation and Formas, a Swedish government research council for sustainable development. The team has filed a patent application on the technology and process.
Image credit: iStock.com/Collab Media
