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Monthly Archives: September 2011

Environmental Defense Fund / Innocentive Award

Biological capture of nitrogen by means of bamboo

Problem:

The rain washes away the fertilizers, flowing till the rivers, lakes and sea. The increase in the concentration of nutrients leads then to euthrophization phenomena.

Our solution:

A drain system collects the water with nutrients and a pump brings them to a plantation of bamboo disposed as a belt around the plot’s perimeter. The bamboo works as a biofilter.  In this way the fertilizers washed away by the rain are recycled to grow giant bamboo with several food and industrial scopes. With less ploughed area the same quantity of crops is produced, because the hydric stress on the plants is reduced. Furthermore it is possibile to harvest the bamboo shoots and canes all year round, because it is a perennial crop.

Sustainable solution for the waffer industry

Innocentive prize to the best solution for cleaning charred batter from the hot plates in a factory of waffers.

The problem:
The batter adheres to the plate’s surface, and with time gets charred. The char is difficult and expensive to remove. Some cleaning methods harm the surface.

Our solution:
A simple thermal treatment that, with minimum investment and lowest energy consumption, allows to clean a big quantity of plates every day, without any damage.