Tag: Reuse

Lights on fishing nets reduce unwanted bycatch. But, once discarded, fishing nets endanger sea life. Enter a British startup, which aims to reuse old nets and reduce marine pollution. With the help of small investors, the English founder has developed a patented machine in a shipping container, which can shred and clean up to 20kg of old nylon nets...

Some loudspeakers double as air purifiers. But what about analogue loudspeakers sitting gathering dust? Well, according to a Danish startup, it's time they received a new lease of life. The team's crowdfunded battery-powered box provides access to the digital world with a stereo port for two-wire audio cables. An in-built Bluetooth connection allows the box to be coupled with digital...

Wastewater has already been used to make beer. Now, a research team from the UK is focusing on how to make cow dung contribute to the circular economy. Cellulose fragments were extracted from dried manure using a salty liquid and an organic sulphur compound. Turning them into fibres was more complex and involved adapting a previously developed technology called...

Groundnut shells can help cultivate saplings sustainably. Now, a Japan-based research team has been investigating how cashew nuts can break down fatty tissue in the body. The nut itself grows in a shell, the shell in a kind of fleshy apple. The latter is rich in ascorbic acid, fibre and polyphenols, which have anti-inflammatory properties. An extract taken from...

Blood sugar levels can be tested using the magnetometer in smartphones. Permanent magnets, however, are needed for EVs and wind turbines. The rare earths they contain are particularly valuable. Now, a Northern Irish startup is using a patented method to recycle magnets sustainably. The magnets are crushed before being mined for base metals like iron, aluminium or copper using...

Some toys are rightfully unwanted. The multi-coloured building blocks manufactured by a Danish firm, however, have given children and grown-ups joy for decades. But when themed sets are dismantled and the bricks get mixed up, that enjoyment can be lost. Enter an independent Lithuanian startup and its new service for used and undamaged original bricks. The team will first...

A robot could make old clothes fashionable again. With unused and depreciated work materials or equipment, however, things are a little harder. Still, functional objects are worth something. Which is why a French startup is providing companies with platforms for reuse. Listed on an internal online portal, employees can loan these objects or exchange them for something else. Points...

Tempura leftovers can be repurposed. But glass-fibre reinforced plastics, used for boats, cars and wind turbines, have always been trickier to recycle. Until now. A Swiss-based startup cuts pieces into 1.5 x 2 metre units, before separating the glass-fibre structures from the resin in their oxygen-free reactor. By applying heat the resin is converted into gas. Some of it...