AudioPod

About this episode

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, billions of plastic facemasks have been used and disposed of, with the majority destined for landfill. Professor Andrew R. Barron and his team at the Energy Safety Research Institute in Swansea, Wales, have developed an innovative method for repurposing these used facemasks. By transforming them into a powdered material that acts as a reducing agent, Professor Barron’s team aim to make the steel-making process more energy-efficient and sustainable.

Original Article Reference

This SciPod is a summary of the paper ‘Facemasks and ferrous metallurgy: improving gasification reactivity of low-volatile coals using waste COVID-19 facemasks for ironmaking application’, in Scientific Reports. doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06691-w

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Creative Commons License

What does this mean?

Share: You can copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format

Adapt: You can change, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

Credit: You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made.

Increase the impact of your research!

More episodes

Dr Marie McGregor | Why Gifted Students Need More Than Ability to Thrive in Science

Walk into any classroom, and some students immediately attract attention. They ask thoughtful questions, solve complex...

Professor Thomas Münzel | Nicotine: The Molecule the Tobacco Industry Doesn’t Want You to Question

For decades, the story of tobacco and the heart seemed settled. Cigarettes were dangerous because they burned,...

Prof. Jean-Sébastien Delisle – Dr Mélanie Dieudé | The Medicine Is Ready. Is the Health System?

A medical breakthrough is only truly a breakthrough if it can reach the person who needs it. That simple idea sits at...

Prof. Dr. Jörg Meyer | When Greener Plastic Sees the Light

Most of us rarely wonder what a bicycle headlamp, ceiling light or LED lens is made from. We notice whether it shines...

Prof. Yuben Moodley | Signals in the Scars: The Search for New Ways to Predict and Treat Lung Fibrosis

Breathing is so automatic that most of us notice it only when something goes wrong. Yet every breath depends on an...

Prof. John Kopchick | Turning Off Cancer’s Growth Signal: The Unexpected New Life of a Growth Hormone Related Drug

When most of us hear “growth hormone,” we think of childhood, with bones lengthening, bodies developing, and the...