We have all heard of recycling, but what is upcycling? It’s a new term used to describe the process of recycling materials to make something more valuable than the initial materials.
For example, a scientist from Argonne Labs has developed a way to make a component of lithium-ion batteries from ordinary plastic bags. These components, called carbon nanotubes, are a critical part of the batteries which are now used to power everything from cell phones, laptop computers, and even cars.
The process involves “cooking” the bags at over 700 degrees Celsius. Combined with cobalt acetate, this process causes the carbon in the bags to grow as nanotubes on the cobalt particles.
One plastic bag creates enough nanotubes to power an ordinary cell phone.
