English Version In the common imagination, technology and environment can be seen as in contrast. On the one hand, the manufacturing industry with its energy-intensive production processes, which consume enormous amounts of resources, introduces toxic substances in exchange for air. On the other hand, the environment is seen as an element to be preserved and defended. The term technology itself, however, indicates the most efficient and economical use of available goods and tools. This is why it is not an oxymoron to talk about Cleantech, clean technologies, although it can be complex to define its fields of action in an exact manner. Cleantech: clean technology without borders The concept of Cleantech is difficult to define. If it is true that in a theoretical level it is a rather simple concept when you go into it, the possibilities become practically endless. In Cleantech, we can include all the innovations, regarding processes and products, that limit or completely eliminate the negative environmental impact of human action. We can talk about Cleantech when we are faced with technologies that deal with: • Collection and recycle of waste • Production of electricity from renewable sources • Rationalization of transport • Optimization of energy consumption • Reduction of packaging volumes • Limitation of resources used in the production process • Cutting emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere. In a Circular Economy perspective, Cleantech can, therefore, become any technology that limits energy; optimize their production and consumption processes; prevents waste eventually produced. In our analysis, we will focus on technologies that provide innovative energy production and storage. Artificial intelligence Forbes has dedicated to the world of new technologies for the creation of clean energy an article on the possible trends for 2019. Among the 6 trends that could emerge this year, the newspaper cites Artificial Intelligence,...
Month: June 2019
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7 June 2019English Version Plastic is probably humanity’s biggest failure. Even today hundreds of millions of tons are produced, despite the risks it entails, for humans and ecosystems. The solution is biomaterials, substances obtained from organic elements (from fruit to plants, to mushrooms), biodegradable and potentially zero-impact. Let’s find out why today it is increasingly necessary to identify these types of solution and why some companies have already focused their core business on biomaterials. The huge problem of plastics In spite of good intentions and proclamations, the creation of plastic does not seem to stop globally. Historically, the production of this material has established itself in the first decades of the twentieth century and has not stopped growing until at least 2010. Estimates tell us that plastic production has grown from 1.5 million tons, globally, from the 1930s to the 280 million tons in 2010, with a 38% growth in the last 10 years of the reference period. Statista also reports that in 2017 the figure has risen further to 348 million tons. According to the portal, the greatest growth in recent years has occurred in non-European countries: in 2002 global production was in fact 200 million tons (almost half compared to today), but Europe has contributed to this growth “only” for 8 million tons. The quantity of materials deriving from the oil that we put into the environment, therefore, becomes abnormal. According to UNEP, the UN environmental program, 8 million tons of plastic waste ends up in the oceans every year, an enormous amount of material that will remain there for decades, if not centuries. A plastic bag takes 20 years to degrade, while bottles and cutlery can take up to a thousand years. In reality, the problem is even more serious than it seems: in nature, nothing is created and...