Tag: electronic waste

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Plastic Eating Microbes Found In The Alps

A close up of plastic watse

MNK Blog

Plastic Eating Microbes Found In The Alps

A Chilling End To Plastics

Hello Tech Lovers!

In the Alps, microbes that can east plastic at low temperatures have been discovered.

Microorganisms capable of destroying plastic polymers have previously been discovered and as a result, scientists and businesses have latched onto bioengineering enzymes found in bacteria and fungi, as a means to tackle plastic pollution.

picturesque scene of a wooden shack on a hillside with the alps mountains in the background

However, since the majority of those found require high temperatures to function, the industry has been limited due to the process been costly and not carbon neutral.

The most effective performers are two fungi discovered by the Swiss Federal Institute, which work at just 15 degrees Celsius. They are capable of digesting biodegradable polyester-polyurethane (PUR), and two commercially available biodegradable mixtures of polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) and polylactic acid (PLA.)

PUR is commonly used in artificial textiles, PBAT is used widely in industries for packaging, and PLA is found in biomedical applications.

A total of nine fungi, and eight, bacteria species from multiple genera found, are able to digest PUR. And a total of 14 fungi and three bacteria, managed to eat mixtures of PBAT and PLA

During the hunt for a microbe capable of digesting in the cold, the team studied 19 strains of bacteria and 15 fungi growing on plastic that had been left behind, or intentionally buried in Greenland, Svalbard, and Switzerland.

Scientists let isolated microbes grow as single-strain cultures in a dark laboratory at 15 degrees Celsius. Molecular techniques were used to identify them.

In the study published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology, in total, 59% of strains, including 11 fungi and eight bacteria, could digest PUR at 15 degrees Celsius

Read the related blog post, ‘Scientists Use Mushrooms To Make Biogradable Computer Chips’ here

Don’t forget to check out the blog archive below for more posts from me and why not subscribe to the blog to be the first to hear when a new post is available, also get the low down on new product arrivals?

Adam – MNK Founder

#ProtectYourTech

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Scientists Use Mushrooms to Make Biodegradable Computer Chips

MNK Blog

Scientists Use Mushrooms to Make Biodegradable Computer Chips

The Future Of Computer Chips

Hello Tech Lovers!

The skin from the stems of a mushroom could potentially offer a sustainable alternative to insulative substrates in computing chips.

Scientists are looking at alternatives to common components like the mircochip, as production of electronic devices increases. Peeling the skin from the mycelium of a mushroom can protect chips from heat up to 392°F (200°C.)

The equivalent of the scale of ewaste produced each year

Scientists from Johannes Kepler University in Austria, discovered that once dried, the skin was found to be not only heat resistant, but lasted for years – withstanding being bent and folded thousands of times without wearing or tearing.

The fungus, Ganoderma lucidum grows on dead rotting wood in European mountains. As it reaches maturity, it creates a fibrous skin to protect its own substrate which if peeled, can be used to protect microchips.

Currently computing chip bases tend to be made with un-recyclable plastic materials and the increase of electronic devices has not been paired with an increase in their lifespan. Throwing them away is more economical for users than replacing individual parts. “The vast number of devices produced every day along with the decrease of their lifetime inevitably results in the generation of enormous amounts of electronic waste,” wrote the authors of a paper published in Science Advances.

“Circular economy and recycling concepts alone cannot solve the growing waste crisis. Electronics research, and especially electronic materials research, thus must shift its focus from strictly high-functionality concepts to sustainable, cost-effective approaches.”

Read the full report here

Read the related blog post, ‘Over 50 Million Tonnes Of Electrical Waste Is Produced Each Year here

Don’t forget to check out the blog archive below for more posts from me and why not subscribe to the blog to be the first to hear when a new post is available, also get the low down on new product arrivals?

Adam – MNK Founder

#ProtectYourTech

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Over 50 million Tonnes Of Electrical Waste is Produced Each Year

Pile of waste on landfill site. Tonnes Of Electrical Waste Is Generated Each Year. MNK

MNK Blog

Over 50 million Tonnes Of Electrical Waste is Produced Each Year

The Scale Of EWaste

Hello Tech Lovers!

According to the Global E-waste Monitor, in one year, a staggering 44.7 million metric tonnes of e-waste are generated. That is the equivalent to just over six kilograms for every person on the planet. Europe and the US alone contribute to almost one-half of the total e-waste generated annually.

One-half of all e-waste is personal devices, such as computers, screens, smartphones, tablets and TVs – that’s equivalent to a mass of 4,500 Eiffel Towers! 40 million tonnes of e-waste are discarded in landfill, burned or illegally traded and treated in a sub-standard way every year.

The equivalent of the scale of ewaste produced each year

The reason I set up MNK, was to help reduce landfill waste of laptops and tablets. I provide robust protection so consumers can better protect their devices, also reducing expensive repair bills and or costly renewals. I have also partnered up with the charity, Computers For Charity whereby I collect old and unused laptop cases, sleeves and covers and pass them onto the charity when they donate their laptops.

One huge cause of ewaste is, technology being discarded early – way before it’s depreciated or, even near the end of it’s lifespan.

Every year new mobile phones, laptops, and tablets, are released with consumers acting quick to snap up the latest gadget. They are only too quick to throw away their “old” devices. Electrical equipment can last longer than the twelve month period people have them for, yet they swiftly adopt the, ‘out with the old and in with the new’ attitude as soon as the big tech giants announce a new product.

So far, smartphone and laptop manufacturers have done little to react to the environmental waste problem. To avoid further mountains of waste, tech companies could act by offering cheaper and quicker repairs, extending the time between new product releases, better access to repair parts, and the products could also be designed to be repaired easily.

Better protection too of technology devices will help reduce costly repair bills, premature renewals and reduce landfill waste. Such as the shock absorbing, splash proof and water repellent laptop case pictured below.

girl looks down and strokes dog while she holds her laptop case - click to view MNK - PROHOOD Laptop Case and Privacy Shield

View our range of robust and lightweight tech protection here including the PROHOOD® Laptop Case with its protective privacy screen / sun shade.

Read the full report here

Find out more on Computers For Charities here

Don’t forget to check out the blog archive below for more posts from me and why not subscribe to the blog to be the first to hear when a new post is available, also get the low down on new product arrivals?

Adam – MNK Founder

#ProtectYourTech