As 3D printing grows ever more popular and people use at-home devices like 3D printing pens and mini-fabricators, we’re going to encounter a pretty serious plastic problem. Plastics already place a heavy toll on the environment, but the plastic filament used to fabricate stuff at home is rarely recycled. Now, in comes Wound Up, a 3D printing filament made of recycled coffee grounds.

The product from 3Dom is actually a coffee-filled wire filament. It’s not completely free of plastic, but its plastic content is significantly lower than comparable filaments. Wound Up can be used in any printer that accepts PLA, and it creates objects with a very unique look.

Things printed using Wound Up look almost like they’re carved from wood. Their rich, deep color is reminiscent of a dark wood while the natural coffee material gives them a natural-looking grain. The inventors say the products created with Wound Up are just as sturdy as their plastic counterparts. One of their example projects is a drinking cup made of coffee grounds.

Even the spool that holds the Wound Up filament is eco-friendly. The Eco-Spool is made of plant sugars and will decompose much quicker than traditional plastic spools. This type of recycled and eco-friendly material could be a real game-changer when it comes to the environmental impact of 3D printing, which is something we should all be concerned about as the practice edges closer and closer to being a routine in-home thing.

The post Caffeine Dreams: Recycled Coffee = 3D Printing Filament first appeared on Gajitz.

The next time you pick up an eco-friendly pair of shoes, you might actually be wearing the byproduct of the thriving pineapple industry. A new textile called Piñatex has the potential to push environmentally-harmful products like leather, vinyl, and even cotton out of the way. And, interestingly enough, it is made from the discarded leaves of pineapple trees.

Carmen Hijosa invented Piñatex while working in the leather industry. On a business trip to the Phillippines, she witnessed first-hand the toxic effect the industry had on the environment and on its workers. On the same trip, however, she was struck by a brilliant idea: the ridiculously abundant natural fibers in the Phillippines could be used as a harmless and versatile substitute. After years of research and development, Hijosa founded the company Ananas Anam and patented her invention.

Once the fruit is harvested from the pineapple tree, the tree is left to rot. Hijosa developed a method in which the otherwise-wasted leaves from those trees are harvested, degummed, and put through a process that turns them into a non-woven textile comparable to felt or leather. The Piñatex can then be stamped to resemble other materials such as metallic vinyl, leather, or snakeskin.

The most exciting aspect of Piñatex is that it is completely sustainable and uses no more water than it takes to grow the plants, which are already being grown for the food industry. Even cotton, long considered an eco-friendly textile, uses an alarming amount of water in its production. Piñatex is currently being tested in real-world applications such as clothing and upholstery, and it has the potential to become an incredibly versatile, Earth-friendly alternative to traditional textiles.

The post Next-Gen Eco-Friendly Leather Comes From Pineapple Trees first appeared on Gajitz.

This cute convertible bike goes from tricycle to little bike to big kids’ bike as your child grows, but that isn’t even the most impressive of its tricks.

The Wishbone Bike Recycled Edition from Wishbone Design Studio also happens to be made from 100% post-consumer recycled nylon carpet. All outward appearances suggest that its frame is made of normal plastic, just like any other kids’ bike.

To make the bikes, the studio gathered used nylon carpeting from homeowners and shredded it into tiny pieces. Glass fibers were added for strength before the whole mess was turned into tiny pellets that would be molded into the bike frames.

For each Wishbone Bike Recycled Edition, 7.5 pounds of old carpet are kept out of landfills. In addition, 7.5 gallons of of oil which would have been used to make new plastic for the frames are diverted for other purposes. Not bad for a kid’s first ride.

The post Cut a Rug: Kids Bike Made Entirely of Recycled Carpet first appeared on Gajitz.

If you’re environmentally-minded, powering a little fridge just to keep your sodas cool in the summer probably seems like an unreasonable luxury. Soda giant Coca-Cola has introduced a bio-cooler that keeps cans of Coke cool without the use of electricity.

Developed by Leo Burnett Columbia and the International Physics Centre in Bogota, the cooler works on the natural biological process of evaporation. Contrary to logic, the cooler actually works better the hotter it gets outside. The cooler is topped by a small bed of plants. Watering those plants causes evaporation to take place inside of the cooler, bringing the interior temperature down. A mirror harnesses the power of the sun to convert gaseous water into liquid water, making it even cooler inside of the small soda machine.

The cooler was used as a marketing device in Aipir, Columbia – a place that is unthinkably hot and where residents travel 12 hours to fetch ice. While it may seem cruel to provide such a device in a place that would clearly be better served by technology that can help residents rather than provide them with unhealthy sugary drinks, the ad campaign focuses on providing the residents with a luxury that they otherwise would not have access to. Still, the brilliant idea – based on principles that have been known for centuries – could easily be replicated to provide natural refrigeration for food and water.

(via: Adweek)

The post Coke Introduces an Electricity-Free Evaporation Cooler first appeared on Gajitz.

Water wheels are ancient tools that were used for centuries to perform a huge variety of jobs. They aren’t often used today, but a handful of Chinese designers want to bring back the water wheel for a brilliant purpose. The invention, called the Waterwheel Washing Machine, was a Red Dot Design Award winner in 2013 designed by Huang Tao, Jin Ronghao, Zhang Yixin, and Zhong Ce. If produced and used, it could make the process of washing clothes much easier for people who live near water but have no access to electricity.

The concept is impressive and simple. A water wheel with three individual closed chambers is driven around and around by the flow of river water. The chambers can hold the laundry of three families or three individuals. Ridges embedded in the wheel’s structure agitate the clothes, much like a traditional washboard. The ingenious invention could not only ensure good hygiene, but could also save time for the women who currently spend many hours every week washing their clothes in the river with washboards.

The post Ancient Waterwheel Recast as Modernized Laundry Machine first appeared on Gajitz.