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AI-powered leak detection reduces water waste
CategoriesSustainable News

AI-powered leak detection reduces water waste

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Managing water well is increasingly important as the world is impacted by climate change. Yet water in buildings is unmanaged – delivered through unintelligent pipes that are unnecessarily costly and inefficient. The average household can lose 10,000 gallons of water every year due to leaks, and when a pipe breaks or leaks, escaping water can cause severe damage. With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), Israeli company Wint has found a way to change this: using intelligent pipes to detect water leaks and wastage. 

Using real-time AI, Wint’s breakthrough technology prevents water waste at the source. When there is a break or leak, the devices alert maintenance staff and can even automatically shut off water supplies when needed. Unlike other solutions, the AI system is constantly learning and adapting to different water networks, supporting systems from domestic water to air conditioning and heating to ensure the buildings can effectively manage the water throughout. 

Yaron Dycian, Wint’s Chief Product and Strategy Officer explains: “The built environment is one of the largest industries in the world sized at many trillions of dollars; it includes all construction sites, residential buildings, commercial buildings, etc… Yet this vast ecosystem is also one of the least technologically advanced one. Having built solutions for the most advanced users of IT technologies such as banks and e-commerce, I decided that it would make sense to help bring the benefits of IT to this relatively less IT-savvy world. Seeing the growing need for sustainability combined with the insurance impact of water leak damage, this seemed like an obvious area to address.” 

Recently, the company completed a funding round, raising $35 million (around €32.4 million) to drive growth for managing water through AI. 

Springwise has previously spotted other intelligent innovations in the archive tackling water scarcity through management, from an AI used to manage global water supplies to a data-driven water management system that ensures communities have enough fresh water.

Written By: Georgia King

Reference

A smart shower reduces behavioural water waste in hotels
CategoriesSustainable News

A smart shower reduces behavioural water waste in hotels

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Globally, water scarcity is a growing problem. According to some estimates, demand for water could exceed supply by 40 per cent as soon as the year 2030. At the same time, a typical 300-room hotel will use nearly 200 gallons per room a day, with the bulk of that coming from the bathroom.

To encourage hotel guests to use less water, startup Shower Stream has developed a device that attaches easily to the shower head and connects to Wi-Fi for collecting water usage, temperature, and pressure data in real time. Guests turn on the shower as usual and, when the water has reached a desired temperature, the device will pause water flow and restart it at the same temperature once the motion sensors detect the guest has entered the shower.

Not only does the device lower water costs for the hotel, but it also provides monthly reporting of energy and water data that helps hotel operators identify potential maintenance issues before they become expensive. The data collected also helps hotels apply for local rebates and incentives that act as additional revenue streams.

According to Shower Stream, the device averages water and energy savings of around $30,000 (around €28,000) per hotel. The technology is also low-cost, at around $5 (around €4.67) per unit and $10 (around €9.34) per month for the advanced analytics. This device is attracting the attention of a number of hotel chains and investors, with Shower Stream already installed in properties belonging to Hyatt Hotels, Global Hotel Group, Extended Stay America, and more.

Hotels are not the only ones concerned with water savings. Springwise has recently spotted a number of innovations aimed at reducing water use. These include a water-recycling shower and sustainable laundry service.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

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New net-zero glass reduces heating costs
CategoriesSustainable News

New net-zero glass reduces heating costs

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: The energy crisis is impacting everyone, and the situation has only gotten worse with the invasion of Ukraine. What has become apparent over the years is that as energy prices have risen, inefficient designs and techniques have played an increasingly big part in contributing to the financial costs of living and working in older buildings. For instance, a building with inefficient windows will lose around two-thirds of its heat through the glass.  

Now, a patent-pending innovation by LuxWall called Net Zero Glass reduces building carbon emissions and energy consumption by up to 45 per cent. The windows consist of two vacuum-insulated coated glass (VIG) panes that are installed from inside the building, making it much quicker and easier to retrofit as tenants experience minimal disruption.  

The panes act like a thermos bottle, reducing the transfer of heat and cool air via convection, conduction, and radiation. Heat from the sun’s rays is reflected, and HVAC conditions inside the structure are blocked from leaving the space.  

The company recently closed a Series A funding round that raised $33 million (around €30.8 million). The funds will be used to scale production at the business’s first purpose-built commercial factory. If the glass technology is used widely throughout the world, the company could support an annual global carbon emission reduction of more than half a gigatonne.  

Springwise has spotted window technology providing a range of new services, from Wi-Fi alternatives to nature scenes for rooms without access to natural light or green views.  

Written By: Keely Khoury

Reference

Quick-growing cultured meat saves water and reduces emissions
CategoriesSustainable News

Quick-growing cultured meat saves water and reduces emissions

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Grown from cells taken from unharmed animals, Meatable’s meat is identical in every way to a traditionally farmed animal meat with a significant exception – the production process. The harvested cells are used to replicate the natural process of fat and muscle growth in a process that takes only a few weeks. By contrast, it takes around three years for a cow to grow to a point where it can be slaughtered.

In addition to speeding up the process of producing meat, the company’s technology involves zero slaughter of animals or antibiotic use, while saving on land and water.

Because it takes up to 20,000 litres of water to produce a single kilogramme of traditionally reared beef, cellular agriculture saves millions of litres of water a year. A typical farm also produces vast volumes of animal waste that must be sustainably managed to prevent it from polluting waterways. Cultured meat, on the other hand, produces very little pollution or carbon emissions.

With global population growth continuing, and demand for meat staying fairly steady despite the rise in numbers of vegan products, Meatable’s team decided to produce food that could directly replace current favourites. The company recently revealed images of its pork sausage product – created in response to the demand for the food in Europe and the United States.

Currently awaiting regulatory approval for commercial sale of its products, Meatable plans to have its meat on shelves by 2024.

Molecular farming is growing in leaps and bounds, with plant cells being used to produce dairy proteins and an AI system building amino acid structures for growing new proteins through fermentation.  

Written by: Keely Khoury

2nd September 2022

Email: information@meatable.com

Website: meatable.com

Reference

A thermal energy storage system reduces energy costs and emissions
CategoriesSustainable News

A thermal energy storage system reduces energy costs and emissions

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Today, significant energy is spent on keeping buildings warm or cool. In fact, nearly half of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with buildings are the result of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC). Buildings, in turn, account for 39 per cent of energy-related global greenhouse gas emissions. In response, buildings are increasingly fitted with thermal energy storage systems that smooth and optimise heating and cooling throughout the day. Traditionally, these systems work by changing the temperature of water in huge tanks that are expensive and inefficient. This could be set to change, however.  

Instead of water, the HeatTank system developed by Hungarian startup HeatVentors, uses phase changing materials—substances that absorb and release heat energy when they solidify or melt—to store the heating or cooling energy from a building’s HVAC system. If the system is being used for heating, excess heat is stored, melting the phase changing materials (PCM). When the heat energy is needed later on, it is discharged and the PCM solidifies. The process is exactly reversed if the system is being used for cooling. Cold air solidifies the PCM, with the cooling energy later discharged when the PCM melts. The temperature range for solidifying and melting the PCM is much narrower than for water – 20 degrees Celsius for solidifying, and 40 degrees Celsius for melting.

By storing energy when it is most abundant and releasing it at more expensive times, the HeatTank system helps organisations reduce their carbon emissions while also saving money on energy costs. In essence, the system allows organisations to bypass the most expensive times of day or night for buying or producing energy. In addition, by more steadily regulating interior temperatures, the technology reduces the overall amount of energy an organisation consumes.

Rectangular in shape, the storage unit is 90 per cent smaller than current, water-based versions, making it suitable even for relatively small buildings. What is more, the system is 20-40 per cent more efficient than others on the market.

The company currently focuses on data centres, district heating and cooling networks, commercial buildings, and gas engines, all of which rely heavily on HVAC throughout much of the year. For data centres, a gap of cooling power for even five minutes can result in significant damage, something HeatTanks can help to prevent by providing immediate backup energy in case of emergency.

Energy storage remains one of the most significant challenges in transitioning entire economies to renewable energies. Innovators are seeking myriad solutions, from reusing old EV batteries for energy storage units to using captured CO2 for long-term energy storage. 

Written by: Keely Khoury

19th August 2022

Email: hello@heatventors.com

Website: heatventors.com

Reference

Nanofiltration reduces industrial chemical separation emissions
CategoriesSustainable News

Nanofiltration reduces industrial chemical separation emissions

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: An invisible polluter, industrial chemical separation is a necessity in many industries, including pharmaceuticals, oil refinement, and semiconductor and vegetable oil production. Accounting for up to 15 per cent of the world’s energy use, the process of separating chemicals for commercial and industrial use creates significant volumes of carbon emissions – possibly up to 10 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gases.

Seeking a way to reduce the environmental harm of those processes, Singapore-based Seppure built a membrane capable of separating even the harshest chemicals at the molecular level without using heat. Built with nanotechnology, the membrane is so strong yet porous at a nano level that it can be reused multiple times, in a wide range of temperatures, and remain resistant to degradation from the chemicals with which it comes into contact.

Importantly, the membranes can be used throughout the processes of separation, from distillation to evaporation, without heat at any stage. By removing the need for high temperatures, the new membranes conserve water while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

Resource conservation and energy conservation are key aims in every industry. Springwise is spotting an exciting mix of initiatives that tackle these goals, from magnetic levitation for frictionless motors, to a new method for extracting lithium that recycles water and brine.  

Written by: Keely Khoury

27th May 2022

Email: farahani@seppure.com

Website: seppure.com

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