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The City of Phoenix has issued theTransforming Trash into Resources II Request for Proposals (RFP). They are looking for trash innovators who can transform carpeting, latex paintand urban wood into new products or reuse them for a new purpose. The RFP is posted on their website and will close on Wednesday, December 14, 2016 at 1:00 PM.  All questions about thisactive RFP must be submitted in writing to  Robyn.Skramstad@phoenix.gov.

EVENTS

EPFL: Turning Biofuel Waste into Wealth in a Single Step

Biomass used to produce biofuels contains lignin, a bulky, complex organic polymer that gives plants rigidity but is difficult to process, and is usually discarded. Swiss scientists from cole Polytechnique Fdral De Lausanne (EPFL) in collaboration with University of Wisconsin-Madison, the US Department of Energy, and Purdue University have now turned lignin from a nuisance to an important source of biofuel by simply adding formaldehyde to the process, converting up to 80 percent of it into valuable molecules for biofuel and plastics. The formaldehyde stabilizes lignin and prevents it from degrading during the process, increasing the amount of biofuel produced by 3-7 times. The chemistry is relatively straightforward; the real challenge is finding investors for a pilot facility to demonstrate this because of inconsistent political support and widely varying energy prices. To read more, click here.

Sustainable Technologies to Fuel the Future

For the past 10 years, Teesside UniversitysProfessor Maria Olea has been working on a number of research projects whichcan be summarized as advanced catalysis to sustainable technologies withher main focus on the production of synthetic fuels via thermocatalytic routes,mainly biomass and waste-to-fuel routes. One of the main thermocatalytic routesis pyrolysis. Her main research success to date has been in the conversionof biogas (consisting of about 60% methane and 40% carbon dioxide) as producedby anaerobic digestion of municipal wastewater sludge, into syngas (mixture ofcarbon monoxide and hydrogen). Going forward, her and her teams mission is tofocus on heterogeneous catalysis in their quest tosave the planet for future generations. Their ultimate goalis zero waste, zero emissions and they are confident that we are not far awayfrom achieving that. To read more, click here.

Utah's Hogle Zoo Looks to Keep More Waste Out of the Landfill

Salt Lake City, Utahs Hogle Zoo currentlydiverts less than 25% of their waste from landfills. They have recycling binsaround the park for the guests however the majority of what is sent to thelandfill is waste from the animals. The zoo will be sending their animal wasteto an anaerobic digester built at the South Davis Sewer District which willincrease their diversion to 37% and produce natural gas and fertilizer that canbe used for local farming communities. To read more, click here.