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Study cases

Innocentive-CEA prize to the best technology to recycle cathodic ray tubes

Our technology wins the first prize from the Consumer Electronics Association and Innocentive among 357 proposals from all the world

The problem: 

With the diffusion of the plasma and LCD screens, the old cathodic ray tube (CRT) is slowly disappearing.  Milions of TV sets and monitors will have to be recycled. The CRT is made of glass with about 30% lead, becoming thus a material  difficult to place in the market of the recycling or reuse. Furthermore, within 10 years there will be no more  production of CRTs, hence no more demand for recycling them, so it is necessary to develop a process that does not require high investment, in order to build leaded glass recycling facilities that will surely have a short life.

Our solution:

It consists of a low cost chemical process that allows recovering the lead oxyde, which has an intereting market value and constant demand because it is the main material to make car  batteries , paints and other products. The process requires very little energy, simple machinery and, most important, does not emit lead neither in water nor in the atmosphere.

Press releases:

web of Innocentive: https://www.innocentive.com/cea-edf-and-innocentive-announce-winners-open-innovation-eco-challenge-tackle-leaded-glass-tvs-monit

web of CEA (Consumer Electronics Association): http://www.ce.org/Press/CurrentNews/press_release_detail.asp?id=12311

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Energy audit in an alumina production plant

The Highland Group hired Sustainable Technologies’ services to perform an energy audit in Brazil.

The plant of Companhia Brasileira de Aluminio,  in Cidade Aluminio (São Paulo) consumes about 1,5% of all the energy produced by the Latinoamerican giant. During our energy audit, that lasted 5 days, we found energy savings opportunities of 8%  electricity and 20% of the consumed natural gas.

 

 

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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.

The Economist’s Award to the best idea against global climate change

First prize of The Economist – Innocentive to the best entrepreneurial idea against the global climate change

Several links, in English, with more information about the award and the event.

Video of Mario A. Rosato’s  conference at the Pace University of New York,   Feb. 2011


Article published by The Economist
http://ideas.economist.com/blog/climate-change-challenge-0

Article published by The Economist, downloadable version
http://ideas.economist.com/sites/default/files/imce/Economist%20InnoCentive%20Challenge%20Final%202%2018%2011.doc

Press release of  The Economist
http://ideas.economist.com/press

Biography of  Mario A. Rosato published by The Economist
http://ideas.economist.com/speaker/mario-rosato

Articles published by Innocentive.com
http://www2.innocentive.com/economist-and-innocentive-announce-winner-reverse-climate-change-challenge

http://blog.innocentive.com/2011/02/24/i%e2%80%99m-a-solver-mario-alejandro-rosato/

Rain harvesting in Kerala. (India)

First prize of the Rockefeller Foundation for solving the problem of  rain harvesting in Kerala.

Problem:

  • To build a tank of at least 6 m3 capacity for rain harvesting during the Monsoon, that costs less than 120 US$ and does not need machinery for the transport and erection. Furthermore, it must be mounted on weak consistency ground, with underground water that comes up during the Monsoon.
  • To create job places for low income inhabitants, specially for women.
  • Use only local materials.

Our solution:

A 8 m3 capacity tank designed to be easily erected by two women by assembling locally made vegetable fibre-cement panels.  Our design reduces the erection time to only 2 days and the cost of 120 US$ to the final customer leaves a margin of 30 US$ for the workers. The carbon emissions  calculated for the whole process of fabrication are null.