As new methods of reusing raw materials are developed by scientists, we sometimes rub our eyes in amazement. Petrol, which was once regarded as a waste product from the distillation of crude oil and sold in pharmacies as a cleaning product, is triumphing with the development of motorisation and new technologies.
The reuse of raw materials, closed-loop economy and upcycling of raw materials is discussed once again (see previous episode) by Dr. hab. Wojciech Hyk (CNBCh UW), manager of the Greenmet Lab project, answering questions from Dr. Justyna Pokojska:
- the purpose for which the waste is reused,
- the threat of depletion of the raw materials we use in the economy,
- sources of phosphorus and its great importance for the economy,
- ways of preventing the depletion of raw materials that science is implementing,
- scientific methods for recovering raw materials and their imperfections,
- alternative sources of raw materials,
- the process that used batteries go through to get the raw materials back into circulation,
- the concepts of upcycling and downcycling,
- a scientific approach to the re-use of products and raw materials, e.g. through the second-hand fashion.