In 2021, we live in a world that is entirely driven by technology. Innovative tech solutions are now present in every sphere of daily life, improving every aspect of living and working. While technology is advancing rapidly, there is one trend that is evolving along with it sustainability.
From sustainable energy cars to carbon capture and storage, more and more industries worldwide are choosing the eco-friendly approach.
With sustainability undoubtedly going global, its more than clear that modern technology is the solution to making the world more sustainable and eco-friendly. With that in mind, lets see how advanced technology can help usher in a new era of sustainability.
Public electric transport
With more than 160 hybrid and electrical vehicle models available on the market at the moment, solving the problem of individual vehicle owners is well underway. However, municipalities are the real problem.
Fortunately, more and more municipalities are taking notice as the widespread adoption of more sustainable and eco-friendly transport solutions continues taking the world by storm. Electric buses and other similar solutions for public transportation are becoming a common sight on city streets almost every day. More cities follow this trend, enticing other countries to follow suit.
While eBuses may be more expensive than the traditional ones at the moment, this will change in the future due to the independence of electric vehicles from pricey fossil fuels.
If public electric transport becomes adopted worldwide, it will help eliminate local particulates, including the major issues in most cities such as CO2, NOx, and SOx.
Affordable energy storage
The adoption of electric vehicles depends on the market for cobalt and lithium batteries and their prices. Since the urge of ushering in a new age of sustainable energy vehicles has rapidly increased the demand for these batteries, their prices are now drastically reduced.
However, there are implications that these batteries can be used for more than just powering electric vehicles. Utilities and industry are coming up with broader use for such batteries, ranging from powering all sorts of grids and vehicles to energy storage solutions.
With their prices dropping, these batteries are slowly becoming the most valuable solution for making power systems more operable and flexible, increasing resiliency and reliability, and reducing power costs.
Plastic recycling
Every year, there are 260 million tons of plastic waste generated all over the world. Out of all that plastic, we recycle only 16%, the rest remains in the ground, polluting our natural habitat.
To solve this serious global problem, the plastics industry must abandon the current business model that comes down to making and disposing of materials and goods and embracing a circular approach aimed at eliminating waste across all industrial sectors.
It could lead to creating a range of environmental, societal, and economic benefits. At some point, all businesses will be able to sell their used plastic machinery and convert all that plastic waste into a recycling-based profit.
The pool for such profit is estimated at $55 billion by 2030. Pyrolysis is probably the most promising process of eliminating plastic waste. It uses the absence of oxygen and heat to turn plastic waste into liquid feedstock, creating environmental and economic benefits in the process.
Accessible solar power
The concept of renewable energy isnt quite new per se, but it continues to be more accessible and affordable in 2021. What was just a concept in the past is now a global trend with more than 1 billion people worldwide on the bandwagon.
Even today, there are still countless people without reliable access to electricity. Some unelectrified populations, like the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa, are making all the efforts they can to explore different renewable energy solutions like solar energy.
They need affordable, accessible, and quick access to energy, and the best way to solve their problem is to turn the existing unaffordable solar home systems into fully sustainable and smart solutions for communities without a reliable grid connection. Solar home systems could become a viable solution for powering more than 150 million households in the near future.
Conclusion
As the worlds population grows, there is an ever-increasing need for more energy with each passing day. Unfortunately, the more we produce, the more carbon we emit, increasing gas emissions and the greenhouse effect. Thats why all emerging technologies need to be designed with sustainability and eco-friendliness in mind.
An excellent way to reduce gas emissions and carbon footprints are to safely capture the carbon emitted from everything we do. There is a way to capture carbon and permanently store it. You can then use it for manufacturing products in a more sustainable and profitable way. The worlds pursuit for the most viable and eco-friendly solutions continues as more industries accept the concept of sustainability.