Student Develops Ocean Cleanup Array That Could Remove 7,250,000 Tons Of Plastic From the World's O

reply to post by purplemer


There, is someone that would deserve the environmental nobel prize! It is the kind of technology that could change a great deal if used worldwide.

In the same picture there is another environmentally friendly machine made by a japanese that convert a wide range of plastics back to oil. The name of the machine is Blest plastic-to-oil and is available in small and big size. The biggest model can convert up to 200kg of plastics to oil per day with an oil ratio of about 80%. Still overpriced though... due to lack of interests i guess. Such a machine should be required in EACH recycling centre in every states in every #ing countries. But no, they got better to do with the money.

more infos here www.blest.co.jp...

Originally posted by Teye22
Now that is the best thing I have heard in a while!!

I was thinking the same thing!

How very hopefully, I hope too that someone serious runs with this idea, because if there's no money in it, corporations won't be interested.

Originally posted by GreenGlassDoor
Reply to post by purplemer

 

I sincerely hope that theory meets reality in this instance.

Time will tell if its economically feasible.

 

Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com

 

The definition of "economically feasible" is part of the many problems facing us. What is not included in such an evaluation here is the eventual economic cost of damaging the world's oceans.

Now that is a great invention worthy of substantial investment had I the funds. Something like that can be easily deployed and left to do its thing. In addition to things like this, refuse sources need to be eliminated. While visiting St John, I saw first hand the effects of ocean cruises dumping trash. The eastern side of the island was riddled with trash. The locals all spoke of how the cruise liners dumped their trash while mid-ocean to save weight and cost. It ruined some otherwise beautiful beaches. And yes, at least some of the trash could be traced to cruise liners, as I saw trash with Royal Caribbean insignias. As waves of trash were carried by the tide, some identifiable trash was mixed in.

reply to post by purplemer


If it ever were funded/built/used, I wonder if suddenly corporations would be trying to gain rights to the processed plastic like it was owed to them. They're usually d0uchebags like that. I mean, I would assume the processed plastic could then be made into other things. Free raw materials. Then the end products the corporations make would probably be more expensive than usual because they're "environmentally friendly", and the advertising would be along the lines of "If you don't buy these, you're killing the planet". Just a pessimistic thought.

Originally posted by purplemer
reply to post by EartOccupant

 

I do not think it has a fuel source. I does not say they do it the article. I would guess they use the currents to turn...But yes it would be good to use the plastics as a fuels source.

It does mention that the angle of the boom forces water in. I would imagine it would be like those swimming pool drains that are at the edge of the pool. Waves skim over the edge and down into the channel. The only thing I wonder about is how these can withstand the worst storms with waves 30 metres high and lightning strikes.

Originally posted by YouSir

Originally posted by sean
I suggested something similar like this a couple months ago to US gov website. A rig like that out at sea to capture the garbage. Yes it will cost initial money, but we created the problem and we're the only ones that can fix it. The salvaged plastic can be used to make new products or fuel/oil. It's a win win win. It's good to see others out there that think the same way.

1. Clean up the environment.
2. Create jobs.
3. Sell the plastic to fund the project.

Ummm...Wow...I stated in a thread about a month ago that instead of 30,000 drones flying over Amerika we should instead make 30,000 drone garbage scows to clean up the oceans...some for plastic and some to just filter out contaminants...I thought that a foundation would be the best way to go...I even e-mailed the UN environmental agency to find out how such a project would be affected by international treaties....I'm still waiting for a reply back...not really expecting one though.....

That was my thought as well...sell the plastic to help offset cost...although most of the funding would be from Governments, corporations, philanthropists, etc...Have various media personalities put a "face" on the issue...etc.

YouSir

It's really not hard to put something like this together we have the technology and the money to put it together. This should be a national project where all countries come together and help.

reply to post by purplemer


it is the majority of USA problem.

reply to post by purplemer


Hi

I was not aware of this one but I do know more and more people are thinking of ways to tackle our plastic problem, the biggest problem of these ideas though is profitability
I believe the South Koreans have also designed something that will do a similar job, I mentioned it in this thread I made a while ago Thread

There is also a few other concepts that are designed to tackle this problem too such as this that you may be interested in Plastic eating drone

Also here is the Korean invention Link

I hope that some of these ideas come to fruitation because the mess in the oceans is only going to get worse as it all breaks down

This is truly amazing...

It would be good if the large fishing companies who have long exploited the seas pay for this. It is investing in their own livelihoods as well.

i imagine it can't be overly expensive, as it seems like a rather simple design.

This is all well and good but if you really want to clean up the planet earth we need to find a way to eliminate the garbage in our govts.

Corrupt politicians, govt officials and the super-wealthy will never let something like this come to fruition. Let's remove the power hungry scum that infects our govts first. Then we can have the freedom to concentrate on cleaning up the earth.

reply to post by purplemer


Please inform me when you return with the bottles. I will recycle them. I would make $1,000,000,000,000,000,000.05. Muhahaha

Plastics are made from oil and oil can be made from Plastics.

The problem is that the trash in the oceans is not in large masses or even small masses.
its spread out at pounds per sq mile.

Plus international laws of the sea does not protect unmanned ships that are drifting and does not even protect buoys in international waters.

One research ship set about 40 research buoys mid ocean and found five started moving.

They tracked them to a harbor in china and found the Chinese government would do nothing because the fishing boat claimed they were abandoned and drifting (even though the fishing boat had the anchors and the 1000s of feet of mooring ropes from the buoys.) and they claimed salvage rights.

At best these Ocean Cleanup Arrays would be a hazard to navigation and be sunk and at worse they would would be claimed under international salvage laws when they broke up during storms.

reply to post by purplemer


S&F for an uplifting article. It gives us hope that there's some way of dealing with the humonguous mess we've created on & in our oceans

If only we had the money to fund it. We need to get our financial house in order first -- so we can pay for it and other worthy eco projects. We have created incredible messes with our shortsightedness.

Originally posted by Xaphan
There's one thing I've always wondered...

Why the hell do birds eat the plastic? I mean like... it doesn't smell good, it doesn't taste good. Don't they have a natural instinct that tells them it isn't food?

So blame the birds for eating our plastic products, not the humans that use the ocean like a trash can.

reply to post by bgold1212


or even better oil slicks !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally posted by sean

Originally posted by YouSir

Originally posted by sean
I suggested something similar like this a couple months ago to US gov website. A rig like that out at sea to capture the garbage. Yes it will cost initial money, but we created the problem and we're the only ones that can fix it. The salvaged plastic can be used to make new products or fuel/oil. It's a win win win. It's good to see others out there that think the same way.

1. Clean up the environment.
2. Create jobs.
3. Sell the plastic to fund the project.

Ummm...Wow...I stated in a thread about a month ago that instead of 30,000 drones flying over Amerika we should instead make 30,000 drone garbage scows to clean up the oceans...some for plastic and some to just filter out contaminants...I thought that a foundation would be the best way to go...I even e-mailed the UN environmental agency to find out how such a project would be affected by international treaties....I'm still waiting for a reply back...not really expecting one though.....

That was my thought as well...sell the plastic to help offset cost...although most of the funding would be from Governments, corporations, philanthropists, etc...Have various media personalities put a "face" on the issue...etc.

YouSir

It's really not hard to put something like this together we have the technology and the money to put it together. This should be a national project where all countries come together and help.

Ummm...I agree, I'm sure that a project like this every government could get behind in some fashion, after all it's in everyones vested interest. If it were a Non-profit Foundation structure where you had these tele-operated electric driven scows that people could quasi operate from their PC. I was thinking a donational structure combined with a SETI-like program, yet geared more towards donator participation through quasi-teleoperation so that persons have a more hands-on experiance without actually getting their hands dirty.

YouSir

I supppose you haven't seen the video with dead birds on a remote island having plastics sometimes whole pencils in their bellies.

reply to post by ANNED


That is a good point if they are un-manned, If you look a few posts above I mentioned an alternative idea that is in the works.



Designed by South Koreans this idea will not be un-manned infact the idea would be to use it as a vacation spot too.



I'm not saying this is a better idea, not at all just that there is alternatives and other projects being worked on... I wonder who's idea this was first.
Anyways here is another link about the Plastic fish tower

Korean Plastic Fish Tower

Originally posted by Xaphan
There's one thing I've always wondered...

Why the hell do birds eat the plastic? I mean like... it doesn't smell good, it doesn't taste good. Don't they have a natural instinct that tells them it isn't food?

Simple birds and fish can mistake plastic as food, in the oceans/seas the plastic is not always floating on the surface and it's not always shiny clean new plastic. Plus plastics break down into smaller and smaller pieces and could possibly be digested by not even knowing it... It is not a simple as saying "those creatures are thick and deserve it because they eat plastic".
On another note when I have been out at sea I have mistaken old plastic bags as squid and jellyfish, when they several feet under the water it can be hard to tell