Several low-cost opportunities exist for scrubbing CO2 from waste gas streams, utilizing spontaneous chemical reactions in the presence of water and inexpensive or waste alkaline compounds. These reactions convert CO2 to bicarbonate or carbonate in dissolved or solid form, thus providing CO2 capture and low-risk CO2 storage underground, in the ocean, or in some cases on land. Useful by-products...

The combination of a nonthermal, atmospheric plasma with a catalyst is investigated as a means of destroying pollutants in waste gas streams. Using the examples of dichloromethane (DCM) and toluene in air streams, it is shown that the destruction of the pollutant can be increased whilst lowering the operating temperature, giving increasing energy efficiency. Unwanted by-products can also be red...

E-waste is one of the fastest growing waste streams in India due to increasing “market penetration” in developing countries, “replacement market” in developed countries and “high obsolescence rate”. The composition of e-waste is very diverse and differs in products across different categories. It contains more than a 1000 different substances, which fall under “hazardous” and “nonhazardous” cat...

The objective of this research was to compare the chemical/physical parameters and bacterial qualities of selected surface water streams in Louisiana, including a natural stream (control) and an animal waste related stream. Samples were collected and analyzed for fecal coliforms. Fecal coliforms isolated from these samples were identified to the species level. Chemical analysis was performed fo...

BACKGROUND Operating rooms (ORs) are estimated to generate up to one-third of hospital waste. At the London Health Sciences Centre, prosthetics and implants represent 17% of the institution's ecological footprint. To investigate waste production associated with total knee arthroplasties (TKAs), we performed a surgical waste audit to gauge the environmental impact of this procedure and generate ...

Biodegradable printed circuit boards based on water-soluble materials are demonstrated. These systems can dissolve in water within 10 mins to yield end-products that are environmentally safe. These and related approaches have the potential to reduce hazardous waste streams associated with electronics disposal.

A continuous end-to-end synthesis and purification of diphenhydramine hydrochloride featuring atom economy and waste minimization is described. Combining a 1:1 molar ratio of the two starting material streams (chlorodiphenylmethane and N,N-dimethylaminoethanol) in the absence of additional solvent at high temperature gives the target compound directly as a molten salt (ionic liquid above 168 °C...

Materials sustainability requires a concerted change in philosophy across the entire materials lifecycle, orienting around the theme of materials stewardship. In this paper, we address the opportunities for improved materials conservation through dematerialization, durability, design for second life, and diversion of waste streams through industrial symbiosis.