Blog posts

Upcycling palm oil waste to mitigate climate change

Let’s check our shopping list, does it include items such as shampoo, detergent, margarine or cookies? According to the WWF, it is highly likely that some or all these items contain palm oil. You have probably heard about the negative connection between palm oil and deforestation and displacement of wildlife. However, you might be unaware of the large amount of waste generated during its production. Here, IMSE’s latest guest blogger, PhD researcher from Future Materials Group,  Dharu Smaradhana, discusses his research into waste generated by palm oil production and its potential as sustainable material.

Palm oil is criticised due to deforestation concerns, but replacing it with other vegetable oils is not a straightforward solution. Palm oil is the most land-efficient vegetable oil crop. It supplies 40% of the world’s demand while using less than 6% of the land allocated for all vegetable oil production. Alternatives like soybean, coconut or sunflower oil require considerably more land which could lead to additional environmental damage.

Comparison of palm oil yields to other vegetable oils.
Comparison of palm oil yields to other vegetable oils. Image credit: Valori news

(more…)

Multidisciplinary approach to Zero Waste

Have you ever given an object a second life? Reusing yogurt pots to grow plants or a mug with a broken handle turned into a pencil holder. I recently made cushions out of coffee beans sacks from the nearby roasters. You probably also recycle glass bottles and carry a tote bag when going shopping, reducing the number of plastic bags.

Empty yogurt pots used to grow plants.
Re-using yogurt pots to grow plants. Image credit: Flickr, Ilja Klutman.

From linear to circular economy

These are all examples of a circular economy. Established as a concept in the 70s, circular economy is the system of production and consumption that reduces waste to a minimum. Extending a product’s life is achievable by re-using, repairing, recycling and sharing, all of which create further value. Circular economy is the opposite of the linear economy model, where goods are simply thrown away after use.

(more…)

Water in an increasingly polluted world

How much do you know about water? It’s all around us and used in pretty much all human activities. This might be as simple as washing our face or as complex as being used in the development of semiconductors for our electronic devices. But how many of us really know the impact of our behaviours on water? What sort of water pollution do we generate? What challenges are we facing in trying to provide all enough clean water for human activity? IMSE’s latest guest blogger, Bioengineering student Naveesha Karunanayaka, explores the topic.

(more…)

Interdisciplinary education leads to increased earnings

“Greater exposure to interdisciplinarity—especially for science majors—is associated with increased earnings after college graduation.” This is one of the conclusions of an article on interdisciplinary education by Han et al in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, published in 2023.

(more…)

Microplastics: the cost of laundry

When you think about plastic pollution, you probably think of water bottles, single-use plates and cutlery, or food packaging. “Oh well, I don’t litter, so I’m not responsible” you might think. But in fact, you probably do contribute to plastic pollution: every time you wash your clothes. The escape of microplastics from laundry is a substantial problem. This is another guest blog post from an IMSE work experience student, Rolando Charles!

(more…)

Hydrogel tablets: clean water made easy?

Many of us are privileged to have constant access to clean drinking water. We only need to walk to the nearest tap or if we fancy a cup of tea we can turn on the kettle. Obtaining clean drinking water is a fairly mundane task that requires minimal effort on our part. This is not the case however for many communities around the world. Frances Mak explores new technologies to generate clean water.

(more…)

Engineering agrochemicals for drone delivery

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been writing about formulated products, how formulated products have climate impact, and what sorts of skills are needed to reformulate to make them more sustainable. In the coming weeks, I’m going to give some examples of how changing a product to adapt to or mitigate climate change also requires changing the formulation. This turns out to be a complex process. Here’s the first example: reformulating fertilizers and pesticides for drone delivery.

(more…)