Recycling

Production of cement is a big source of CO2 emissions, so the more we can recycle existing concrete, the better. That's where a new study comes in, which indicates that discarded concrete becomes stronger than it was before, when wood waste is added.

Scientists have come up with a new way to break apart key components from old care tire material for re-use. While currently expensive, with further work it could provide the basis for new and improved tire recycling methods.

Recycling almost all your shower water and half of what you use in your washing machine, Hydraloop lets you re-use about 85% of your domestic water, significantly dropping your water usage for a unit cost of around US$4,000.

Back in 2015, scientists from Stanford University announced that mealworms could be used to break down Styrofoam waste – by eating it. Now, they've additionally discovered that a toxic substance in that foam is not concentrated in the worms.

Pound the pavement long and hard enough in any pair of running shoes and you’ll reduce them to a flapping mess of rubber bound for the waste bin, but Salomon has grander plans for its latest footwear.

It takes a lot of raw material to manufacture a car, so if some of that material comes from eco-friendly sources … so much the better. European scientists are going one step further, utilizing agricultural waste that would otherwise be discarded.

The bananas that we buy in stores grow off of a central trunk-like structure, known as the pseudostem. And while that part of the plant is typically discarded during harvesting, it may soon find use in a plastic that biodegrades and is recyclable.

According to Queen's University Belfast, EU breweries dispose of about 3.4 million tons of spent grain every year. That could be about to change, though, as scientists at the university have created a method of converting that waste into charcoal.

Although chemicals, foods and other odorous substances are often sold in recyclable plastic containers, sometimes the smells absorbed by the plastic make it unsuitable for recycling. A new process, however, is claimed to get the stink out.

Concrete is made of a combination of cement, an aggregate such as gravel, and water. If that mixture dries too fast, then cracks can form within it as it cures. Now, however, scientists have determined that the use of coal-ash spheres can help keep that from happening.

Some solar panel components are more easily recycled than others, and scientists in Australia may have just figured out how to repurpose one of the trickiest and most valuable: the silicon that serves as its semiconductor.

In the chemical-production industry, energy-intensive processes are constantly being used to remove unwanted molecules from liquids. It now looks like much of that energy could be saved, however, by utilizing filters made from plastic bottles.