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A sparkly revolution in eco-friendly glitter
CategoriesSustainable News

A sparkly revolution in eco-friendly glitter

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: As most parents can tell you, glitter is something of a scourge – it gets everywhere and is very difficult to clean up. It is also an environmental nightmare — made from plastics, metals, and dyes, it is essentially a microplastic and easily enters the food chain. Some of the materials used to colour glitter are also toxic. In fact, Europe has already banned titanium dioxide, a compound often used to colour glitters, from use in food products.

Startup Sparxell is working to make glitter safer for everyone by using plant-based pigments specially designed to deliver the intense colours and bright shine needed for glitter and sequins. The biodegradable pigments are made from cellulose nanocrystals, which form helix-like structures that reflect light, in a similar way to how birds and butterflies achieve their bright colours.

To make the glitter, the crystalline part of cellulose is extracted and dispersed in water. On drying, the crystals form a film that reflects light and colour over a large area. The film can then be ground into a range of sizes and shapes to produce glitter. By controlling the interactions between the crystals, Sparxell can tailor-make the crystals to match a specific appearance.

Sparxell was spun out of Cambridge University and is currently seeking to raise a $2 million (around €1.9 million) seed round of funding. The money will be used to scale up production to deliver large quantities of the product.

Sustainable glitter joins a host of other eco-pigments. Recent innovations spotted by Springwise range from eco-paints made using graphene to low-heat, low-energy bio-pigments.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

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An eco-friendly helmet made from waste scallop shells
CategoriesSustainable News

An eco-friendly helmet made from waste scallop shells

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Each year, Soya district in northern Japan produces 40,000 tonnes of shells. This marine waste is an inevitable result of the fishing industry in Sarufutsu Village, which regularly wins the prize for Japan’s largest scallop catch. Until 2021, scallop shells were exported out of the country for re-use, but this trade has now ceased. And, while the shells are picked up and disposed of by companies for a fee, there have been issues with the shells being stacked in large piles before disposal. 

Now, Sarufutsu village, along with creative agency TBWA\Hakuhodo, design startup Quantum, and plastics manufacturer Koushi Chemical Industry, has come up with a solution: an environmentally friendly helmet made from the discarded shells. In addition to cutting down on plastics, the ‘SHELLMET’ protects fishermen working in an industry that is notoriously dangerous, especially in a part of the world prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, heavy rain, and snow.  

Moreover, the SHELLMET contributes to a 36 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions compared to a helmet made from 100 per cent new plastic, as well as a 20 per cent reduction compared to limestone-derived eco-plastics. As a result, the eco-friendly helmet not only solves a particular problem facing the local community – it also demonstrates how waste materials can reduce environmental impact by replacing fossil-derived plastic. 

The design of the SHELLMET is inspired by biomimicry – the application of the mechanisms of the natural world to technological development. After all, shells protect scallops and oysters in the wild, and the helmet’s design incorporates a special rib structure that mimics the shape of the scallop shells. The partnership claims this improves the helmet’s durability by around 30 per cent.  

Other innovations spotted by Springwise that put marine waste to use include tiles made from fish scales, batteries made from crab shells, and shrimp shells used to strengthen concrete. 

Written By: Matthew Hempstead

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Eco-friendly sneakers are 97 per cent natural 
CategoriesSustainable News

Eco-friendly sneakers are 97 per cent natural 

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Having inherited their family shoe business, and after learning the ins and outs of the industry, a pair of Croatian brothers, the Boljars, decided to step away from the literal toxicity of footwear. They created Miret, an eco-friendly sneaker made from 97 per cent natural materials. The upper is wool, the insole is hemp, and the outer is natural rubber and cork.

The remaining three per cent of the shoe consists of synthetic glue and polyester thread. The brand emphasises that although its footwear is low impact, it is by no means ‘sustainable’. Production still affects the Earth, and most of the company’s products, including the sneakers, are not easily compostable. Making shoes from bio-based materials is a huge improvement, though, and something the company wants to continually improve.

Replacing the glue and thread with natural materials is a priority, as is continuing to raise the profile of the threat of plastic pollution to the natural environment. Assembling the shoes in the same country that the brand is based in helps reduce emissions. And the Life Cycle Assessment of the full emissions footprint of a single pair of Miret sneakers is 3.7 kilogrammes of carbon dioxide. That compares to the 14 kilogrammes of carbon dioxide typically created during the production of a pair of sneakers.

Environmentally friendly sneakers are becoming more common and are an exciting area of development. Springwise has spotted materials innovations that include plant-based oils and eucalyptus used in a biodegradable shoe and a brand that offers a vegan, fully traceable sneaker. 

Written By: Keely Khoury

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Eco-friendly sound-proofing made from seaweed
CategoriesSustainable News

Eco-friendly sound-proofing made from seaweed

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Most of the acoustic materials that can cancel out sound are made from plastic foams that aren’t easily recycled or degraded. This is a significant environmental issue, as plastic can take centuries to decompose if they enter the environment. Moreover, current alternative options are made from plant fibres that don’t effectively dampen noise in the most useful range of sound frequencies, or are too thick or unwieldy to fabricate.

Now, researchers reporting in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering have created a biodegradable seaweed-derived film that effectively absorbs sounds in the useful frequency range. The new material could provide a more sustainable way to reduce noise pollution.

The team started with agar, a gel derived from seaweed that is often used as a culture medium for bacteria or as a thickener in food. They mixed the agar with glycerine as a plasticiser and cellulose nanofibres to create a flexible film. When tested, the film was found to effectively absorb sounds in the frequency range of human speech, which is typically between 500 Hertz and 2000 Hertz.

The team is now working on optimising the film’s sound-absorbing properties, while exploring further properties such as flame resistance. They are also considering the use of other plant-based materials. Funding for the project came from the Science and Engineering Research Board, India, and the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur.

Springwise has spotted other innovations looking at the use of seaweed. Norway’s material science company B’ZEOS is working with global corporations to replace single-use plastics with seaweed-based alternatives. And UK-based Notpla is making seaweed packaging in partnership with well-known brands such as Just Eat.  

Written By: Katrina Lane

12th August 2022

Email: hindamc@iitk.ac.in

Website: iitk.ac.in

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