Earlier quoted context omitted.
if you're worried about microplastics from drying your patagonia fleece in the dryer, worry about other things first. Car tires get ground up into microplastic and estimates range between 10 and 28% of the total microplastic pollution in the oceans [1]. And that's not surprising - the weight loss of a single tire over its lifetime likely exceeds the entire weight of your fleece jacket. Drive less car miles before wor…
For tires, is anyone working on biodegradable or otherwise eco-friendly tire materials? Something that is biocompatible. Although you don't want tires breaking down and causing accidents... Tires have a lot of conflicting design requirements.
Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
151–160 of 288 posts
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#152It would be nice if they listed safe use cases for oil from squished plastic… I couldn’t imagine you want this reaching smoke point. BRB drinking water derived from urine to wash down the bug protein bars I ate earlier. I’ll be sure to wipe later with 2 square inches of newspaper that I’ll later dispose in my apartment’s communal compost heap…protect the planet!
what oil would you ever want to reach its smoke point?
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#153Earlier quoted context omitted.
if you're worried about microplastics from drying your patagonia fleece in the dryer, worry about other things first. Car tires get ground up into microplastic and estimates range between 10 and 28% of the total microplastic pollution in the oceans [1]. And that's not surprising - the weight loss of a single tire over its lifetime likely exceeds the entire weight of your fleece jacket. Drive less car miles before wor…
I'm wondering - how much microplastics come from _bicycle_ tires? I mean, surely it's a lot less, but how much less? Say, per bike km ridden?
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#154Earlier quoted context omitted.
How exactly do materials go from dryer lint to trash bag and then somehow end up in the ocean? I can see a washing machine sending micro plastics down the drain resulting in some small percentage of those ending up in the ocean. Assuming some failure where raw sewage was dumped into a river or ocean.
Most, if not all dryers vent to the outdoors. Some particles make it through the lint trap into the hot/humid air stream into the environment. Normal wear of the garments will shed micro particles from just rubbing up against them.
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#155Everyone is talking about using this oil as fuel and the shortcomings. Could you cook with this oil? Or lubricate some tool/equipment in your garage?
would you cook your dinner with gasoline?
Heres a video of one of the original engineers brewing coffee with "plastic oil". Does not look healthy given that there is so much black smoke.
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#156Earlier quoted context omitted.
This does nothing to prevent micro plastics. Micro plastics are plastics that have escaped into the environment, which by definitions means we are no longer collecting them for disposal or recycling. All this does is keep some recycling programs from shutting down, and most of those are collecting bulk #1 and #2 which as far as I’m aware are not the major source of micro plastic pollution. Patagonia has a fucked up p…
How exactly do materials go from dryer lint to trash bag and then somehow end up in the ocean? I can see a washing machine sending micro plastics down the drain resulting in some small percentage of those ending up in the ocean. Assuming some failure where raw sewage was dumped into a river or ocean.
[0] - example - https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sewage-overf...
[1] -https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/victoria-crd...
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#157This tabletop unit is more of a demonstration unit they don't really intend to sell. It is for educational purposes and really as a demonstrator for their large scale industrial units. This is why when you search for Blest Plastic to oil on Youtube you'll mostly find educational institutions demoing this unit and not much else.
One of the original engineers is apparently an independent contractor now?
He used to post a few Youtube videos of a similar unit to the tabletop version but he seems to have disappeared as well.
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
Most, if not all dryers vent to the outdoors. Some particles make it through the lint trap into the hot/humid air stream into the environment. Normal wear of the garments will shed micro particles from just rubbing up against them.
So using a dryer is better for the ocean than air drying, good to know.
Would it be safe to say that (mostly) frictionless line drying would shed fewer particles than tumble drying?
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#159It is written in one of the pages - "As you look into the data you can understand our machine can produce high grade oil mixture of gasoline, kerosene, diesel oil and little heavy oil. The oil can be used as recycled fuel for electric power generator without refining" I am no expert, and so I have the question actually. How do we use that oil in reality?
My question is, if it's aimed to power an electricity generator, why not just burn the plastic at a high temperature? (What I imagine there's no answer for, because it's what people actually do. They are probably using the generator only as a display application.)
Re: Plastic to Oil – Produces 80% Oil
#160"This sounds too cool, let's check HN comments for the disappointment"
You have to put more energy in to get oil out.
Um. And climate change.