CleanTechnica

2k Manufacturing based in Luton, England has come up with a process that can take any type of plastic - clean, dirty, or defected - and remake it into what they’re calling ‘EcoSheets’.  These EcoSheets are a composite material made to have the same mechanical properties as plywood.  They are the end result of a process called powder impression molding, which takes all forms of plastic and makes it into a fine powder.  The powder is then sandwiched in between two polymer films and is heat treated to form a viable substitute for plywood, a ubiquitous building material.

Read the rest of this entry »

The economy is down, but here is another sign that green technology may be the way out of our economic dilemma. US clean energy patents hit a record high last quarter.
Read the rest of this entry »

If you want to cut your carbon footprint, you can ride your bike a little more. If you want to cut it even further (from all that exhaling while pedaling), meet the EniCycle. This one-wheeled ride has a range of just under 19 miles on a charge. But it recharges when you ride it downhill (if you dare).

Read the rest of this entry »

Labor Day will soon be upon us, and with it, the unofficial end of summer. Back to school time. Summer is the season for camping, getting out of the city and getting a little dirty in the woods. Some folks like to tent it. Some folks like a travel trailer, with their own bathroom (my wife included).

But one problem with campers is how much they weigh, the large vehicles needed to tow them and frequent trips to the gas station. Travel trailers are getting lighter and lighter, however, and easier and more affordable to pull. Take a look at the latest entry, from EverGreen (like the tree) in Middlebury, Indiana. Read the rest of this entry »

Editor’s Note: Carrotmob is a form of consumer activism that invites businesses to compete in order to win a mob of customers. But everyone wins, because the extra money the winner makes goes toward things like improving their energy efficiency. Usually the business who promises the largest percentage of revenue from the event wins, but this Carrotmob was done a little differently. Each contestant explained what they’d do if they won, and what they were currently doing around sustainability, and the general public voted, actually choosing the one who had already shown the greatest commitment to sustainability. Epicenter wanted to get some feedback from the public around what type of to-go containers to use.

What is the most sustainable type of take-out packaging?

Ah yes, the burning question that keeps many an environmentalist tossing and turning well into the night. On the one hand, PLA, aka “polylactic acid” comes from plants, not petroleum, so it must be good, right? But which plants does it come from? And what part of the plant? Is it waste being upcycled? Is it replacing food crops? It must be good, right, it’s not petroleum!?

Epicenter Café, being a very conscientious Carrotmob winner, wants to be sure they make the right choice. They also want your input, sage readers. So I present to you the options, because even the Green Café Network does not take an official stance on this ever-evolving topic. There is an increasing array of options for eco to-go containers.

Read the rest of this entry »

A recent study concluded that it’s dangerous to text while driving.

What about texting while bicycling?

That’s also not advised, but a device from a company called PedalPower+ will charge your Blackberry while you ride. It also will charge your iPod.

The device, similar to the old school dynamo systems used to power headlamps via the back wheel of a bike, also stores generated power in a battery and will charge with solar panels even when you’re not riding, according to a report from the Austrailian Broadcasting Corp.

Gizmag, a technology blog, explains that developers spent three years working on PedalPower+, to work out the kinks of safely regulating current to electronic devices via a spinning bike tire.

As a result, the patented technology will charge a mobile phone from flat to finished in about two hours, the company says.

How much? Right now, the devices are only available Down Under. But the company says it’s setting up distributors in the United States and Europe.

(Image Credit: PedalPower+. Caption: Bottle dynamo installed on the back wheel of a bicycle.)

Yet another reason for protecting the seas and the biodiversity that exists (including nuisance species): scientists at Ben Gurion University in Israel have developed a biogel that helps fight heart disease. The source of this gel? Seaweed. Read the rest of this entry »

When the sun goes down, some walkways in Birmingham, Michigan, start to glow.

They’re fitted with a phosphorescent glow-in-the-dark pavement marking system from Glow-Mark Technologies LLC of Royal Oak, MIchigan.

The system consists of encapsulated “pucks” fitted into brick pavers, wood or other material with a boring drill. Read the rest of this entry »

Bruce Foods, maker of legendary “Original” Louisiana Hot Sauce, is leading all other hot sauces into a more sustainable future.  The company has nearly completed an expansion of its food processing plant in Wilson, North Carolina that includes a major methane capture installation.  The Wilson plant, one of four owned by the Tex-Mex specialist, produces canned yams, potatoes and gravies, which results in huge mounds of food waste and consequently a prodigious output of methane.  Previously, the plant simply vented the methane but purchased natural gas to run its equipment.  After the expansion is complete, the plant will run mainly on recovered methane.

Read the rest of this entry »

David Schiraldi has seen the future and it is clay.  The Case Western Reserve University professor and his research team are developing a clay aerogel that transforms common clay into a super lightweight material that could be used as insulating or packing foams, magnets, conductors, and yes, even high tech kitty litter that weighs only 1/10 as much as conventional clay litter.

Read the rest of this entry »