>>Recycling Plastic on rivers & more

Upcycle plastic from rivers

From 1,350 rivers studied, only 10 of them were able to get the most plastic waste into the oceans.

These are above all the Nile, the Niger and the eight great Asian streams!

If one places an endlessly circulating safety net on both sides of the river bank in front of the delta of these streams, then most of the floating material flowing in the current can be intercepted.

The two, about the middle reaching nets would be to each other in the distance so that they are easy to navigate for ship passages.

The endless circling net turns horizontally on the bank and shakes the picked-up material down onto an assembly line. It leads the yield - over a hot air drying - directly to a provided, high-quality upcycling plant.

You can find one on the models for this useful recycling plant at:

View www.recenso.eu.

Two more precedent coarse nets are needed to scoop up heavy, coarse driftwood that would rip the finer mesh for the plastic components.

However, microplastics especially needs our renunciation of unnecessarily driven car kilometers. Also plastic clothing has a large share.

In the same configuration, floating current delta turbines connected in parallel as large carpets could be placed and generate large amounts of electricity.

Each of these bucket wheel rollers would have valuable power operation in the megawatt range 24 hours a day.

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2050 - more plastic than fish in the sea

8 million tons of plastic waste arrive in the oceans every year. Figuratively: Every minute a truckload of plastic is sunk in the water!

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MUD working BOOTS -

DO NOT STICK IN THE MORAST

Of course, there are already many different rain boots on the market. From the working to the fashion sector, there are models for every need, but there is also the need for work in boggy deep mud, which is particularly energy-sapping.

To allow normal walking in tough wet mud, all that is needed is simply an open, co-processed 2 mm air channel that runs down the calf shaft in the boot, then through the heel sole to the instep arch.

This means that the foot does not have to form a strenuous suction stamp with the boot, and you can walk almost unhindered as if on neutral ground.

It is irrelevant here that this channel absorbs some of the mud with every step, as this amount comes out again quite easily by pneumatic means.

Chunky Boots: Dank dieses Stiefel-Modells lässt du alles andere im Schrank | BUNTE.de

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www.earthsolar.at

Coarse vacuum use in the interior of the refrigerator and refrigerator

Suggestion for the manufacturing industry of refrigerators, refrigerated containers, refrigerated trucks, refrigerated wagons etc.

Designed as an airtight cooling housing, a low vacuum is generated when the door is closed by means of a vacuum pump in order to keep the stored food fresh for several times longer (Tupperware® effect).

When the door closing mechanism is actuated, the extracted air can flow back in through its construction (pressure compensation). The door handle, which is recessed in an olive, first opens the air inlet valve. Only after this immediate pressure equalisation can the door be opened without resistance.

Each time the door is closed, a sensor or switch causes the air to be pumped out again; however, the sensor can be deactivated using a locking bar.

The condensate drain opens the outflow of the resulting liquid each time the refrigerator is opened (via a vacuum ball valve). The valve closes this drain again when the door is closed or air is thinned again.

www.earthsolar.at

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05/07/2021 Bioactive paper coating replaces plastic packaging in food

The amount of plastic waste increases from year to year. The plastic packaging of the food also contributes to this.

Researchers at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have developed an environmentally friendly coating for paper packaging in the “BioActiveMaterials” project. This not only saves plastic, the coating of plant-based proteins and waxes also extends the shelf life of the food. After use, the packaging is disposed of in the waste paper bin.

Those who get their groceries from the discounter today almost always buy the plastic packaging with them. Sausage, cheese, meat and fish are almost always packaged. Fruit, salad and vegetables are also often packaged in plastic. This is hygienic and protects the food when it is transported home. However, the mineral oil-based plastics contribute to the growth of the mountains of rubbish. In Germany alone, a total of 38.5 kilograms of plastic packaging waste was generated per inhabitant in 2017.

The plastic waste floats on the oceans or is exported to Asian or African countries for disposal. Abrasion or disintegration creates microplastics that end up in the food chain. A reduction in plastic packaging in the food sector is therefore necessary. Now the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV and the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Bioprocess Engineering IGB have presented an innovative and sustainable solution for food packaging. As with conventional packaging, the shelf life of the food is extended.

But the new packaging dispenses with plastic. After use, it can be easily recycled. Proteins, waxes and antioxidants extend the shelf life In the “BioActiveMaterials” project, the researchers use paper as the base material for the production of typical and functional packaging materials: sealable edge-sealed bags or wrapping paper.

The paper is given a special coating using standard processes. The researchers use proteins and waxes with bio-based additives for this coating. The special formulation of the long-term stable coating fulfills several functions at the same time. “On the one hand, the proteins serve as an oxygen barrier and the waxes as a water vapor barrier, so fruit, for example, does not dry out so quickly. On the other hand, the bio-based additives provide antioxidant and antimicrobial effects. Meat and fish do not spoil as quickly then.

Overall, the shelf life of the food is significantly extended, ”explains Dr. Michaela Müller, head of the Functional Surfaces and Materials innovation field at Fraunhofer IGB. The proteins in the coating also perform certain tasks. They prevent mineral oil from the paper being transferred to the food. Waste paper in particular contains residues of printing ink containing mineral oil. The coated papers developed as part of the “BioActiveMaterials” project represent an alternative to current packaging for all kinds of food, regardless of whether it is fruit and vegetables, meat and fish, cheese or even confectionery. The consumer can store and handle the paper-packed food in the same way as food packed with plastic.

»Our paper-based packaging is also suitable for food that needs to be cooled, such as meat. The protective function against oxygen is retained, ”adds Müller. You can even pack frozen food in it. "After use, the packaging goes to the waste paper bin, the coating is biodegradable and does not interfere with paper recycling," says Dr. Cornelia Stramm, head of department at the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV.

The Fraunhofer institutes pushed the project forward in close teamwork. While the scientists at Fraunhofer IGB took care of the complex formulation and manufacture of the coating, the researchers at Fraunhofer IVV tested how well the coating works in practice. "For example, we tested how effectively the respective coating protects the food from external influences such as water vapor, oxygen and mineral oil," explains Stramm. In addition, the team at Fraunhofer IVV was responsible for applying the coating to the papers using the roll-to-roll process.

This is done by means of a machine on which the paper is guided over rollers. The coating is applied as an aqueous dispersion. Proteins from residues, waxes from Brazil and northern Mexico When choosing the raw materials for “BioActiveMaterials”, the Fraunhofer team relied on natural substances approved by food law. For the protein component, for example, they experimented with rapeseed, lupins, Whey or sunflower.

In practice, farms could deliver unused residues from production to the packaging industry. When it comes to waxes, the researchers are using beeswax and waxes obtained from the candelilla bush found in northern Mexico and the Brazilian carnauba palm. "We decided on these waxes because they are biodegradable, approved under food law and easily available on the market," explains Müller.

Classic laboratory technology is used in production, i.e. chopping, heating, stirring and mixing. »The art consists in the mixing ratio and in the order in which the individual substances are added. The flexibility in the mixing ratio of the substances also enables us to optimize the coating for certain applications, ”says Müller. For example, packaging for meat could develop a particularly strong antimicrobial and antioxidant effect with more antioxidants, while the lettuce in the bag is particularly well protected against drying out by a wax coating. Advantages for manufacturers, retailers and consumers The researchers have also thought of very practical aspects. In addition to paper, cardboard can also be equipped with the bioactive coating. Printing the packaging is not a problem. A manufacturer could print their logo or information on ingredients required by food law. Discounters and grocery retailers also benefit from Fraunhofer packaging. Because resource-saving and biodegradable packaging without plastic is popular with consumers. The project partners from Fraunhofer IVV and Fraunhofer IGB are already experimenting with concepts in which the coating is applied directly to food such as fruit or vegetables, thus increasing the shelf life. From a health point of view, the edible coating is harmless anyway.

SOURCE Fraunhofer Society 2021

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