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Brine Bricks – A Biomimicry and Green Chemistry based solution for Desalination Brine Disposal
Author : Amita Gowda, Grade 11
High School : Fremont Christian High School, Fremont, CA, USA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : December 21, 2022
Due to severe droughts, desalination is an important source of freshwater. The problem is that for every 1-liter of fresh water produced, 1.5-liters of brine is also produced. The challenges incurred in brine disposal, prohibits the expansion of desalination plants. So, my question was, how to safely process and recycle brine, instead of dumping it into the environment? I explored various brine disposal technologies and found that Thermal-based Zero-Liquid-Discharge treatment had comparatively fewer side-effects. I decided to use Biomimicry to further improvise this method. I mimicked the Himalayan Salt Mountain, which had many minerals in it. I also learned that Himalayan salt tiles/bricks are currently being used in constructions. My hypothesis was, “If the salt along with the mineral impurities in the brine is first crystallized, then it can be hardened to form bricks.” My experimentation with household materials, showed that the recrystallized salt with added mineral did not hold strong, so I explored the addition of other compounds to speed up the hardening process. I adopted Green Chemistry principles and tested starch. The coagulation happened without any additional energy and just used water as a solvent, and also the hardening process consumed 50% less heat energy. I now had an effective biomimicry and green chemistry-based brine rock creation process! In order to eliminate any environmental impacts, I designed a Crystallization Tray to ensure the whole process takes place in a well contained and controlled container. Solving the brine disposal issue will enable desalination plants to produce more usable freshwater.
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Zyme-Pipe: Filtration of Agrochemicals from Run-off Water on Agricultural Land
Author : Shreya Virunchipuram, Grade 12
High School : Washington High School. Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : November 30, 2022
A large contributor to water pollution that is often overlooked is nonpoint source pollution, namely pesticides, that accumulate in runoff water. This research article proposes a viable solution for this issue while addressing the biotoxicity agricultural chemicals have on the environment. Inspired by aquatic life such as marsh plants and the hagfish, the solution (the Zyme-pipe) utilizes nanomaterials that mimic the enzymatic activity and semi-permeability of the marsh plants and hagfish respectively. The system will be placed on agricultural land to ensure effective capture of contaminated waters directly from the source. This water must first be slowed down to be effectively filtered and exit out of the system. Drone and mobile app technology will efficiently help with maintenance of the filter by accurately indicating when filter replacement in a specific area is needed.
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An Innovative Solution to Reduce Waste from the Textile Return Policy Industry
Author : Sahana Sangha, Grade 10
High School : Fremont Christian High School, Fremont, CA, USA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : November 30, 2022
The returns policy industry largely adds to environmental waste accumulated in landfills every year. Most items returned by consumers are sent to landfills when they are still in perfect condition. Current solutions to this issue create minor changes to how materials are reused after being handled by companies. None of the solutions take a deeper look into the system itself to make larger scale beneficial impacts. I challenged myself to create a multi-step solution to change the system and reduce negative environmental impact while still staying economically in tune. I started by thoroughly researching the returns policy system, looked for the main flaws contributing to the waste output, and studied biomimicry to integrate into my final solution design. In my design, I added a separate entity to this system to help with re-usage and sustainability, as well as a change in the decision-making sectors to be more lenient and eco-friendlier. Finding that the main contributing factor to the promotion of this industry was from the consumer end, I decided to plan out a software simulation to help inform unaware consumers understand their negative environmental impact through this industry. Primarily inspired by biomimicry, my solution design takes a deeper look into the returns policy industry and makes considerable additions and changes to the system to be as sustainable as possible.
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Swarm Intelligent Mobile Application in the Detection and Prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease
Author : Gurseerat Kaur Kakar, Grade 11
High School : American High School, Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
This research paper intends to design an accessible innovation that allows for the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease in the general population. Alzheimer’s is a gradually progressive neurological disease that causes problems in memory, thinking, and general functioning by causing the brain to shrink. Today there are 55 million cases worldwide, and by 2050, it will officially become a global pandemic. And unfortunately, there is no current treatment that has proven to work, allowing it to become the sixth largest cause of death in America. Therefore, attainable prevention for the population is key in order to prevent this large rise in cases. The solution is a unique mobile application that will apply swarm intelligence, along with nature’s other time-tested strategies, to accurately diagnose and prevent Alzheimer’s disease. The apps on today’s market that attempt to be support systems or provide online games to assist Alzheimer’s patients don’t contain any accurate method of collecting real data from the user’s distinctive condition. This app is unmatched due to its implementation of an emerging type of artificial intelligence to healthcare to gather and analyze data from various parts of the user’s brain. This data is then used to assist the user in creating a healthier lifestyle, indulge in specifically chosen games meant to strengthen the user’s neural connections and ultimately their cognition, and lastly, provide an analytic report for the user to take to their physician if intervention is required so the user is able to live a longer, more memorable life.
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Sustainable Meat Packaging
Author : Audrey Young, Grade 9
High School : Lynbrook High School, San Jose, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
This research article addresses the issue of meat packaging. The current remedies only focus on certain aspects but do not target all the problems. This paper presents an all-encompassing solution addressing packaging, preservation, and leak mitigation. By adopting nature’s time-tested strategies and industrial designing process, this innovative eco-friendly meat packaging design offers durability and hygiene. The nanopillars on all outward materials including the film offers a pathogen resistant surface. Furthermore, the chemical free anhydrobiosis process used for meat preparation before being packaged, ensures longer shelf-life and proper preservation. Transportation conditions and rough handling of the packaging could cause accidental breaks and leaks. With the leak absorption channels and self-healing bioplastic materials, these accidents could be greatly minimized. This futuristic solution offers the meat supply chain with a timely and efficient way of meat transportation while protecting the meat quality.
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The Astrosuit: The Ultimate Ionizing Radiation Shield
Author : Prableen K. Kakar, Grade 11
High School : American High School, Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
This research paper aims to uniquely address the challenge of the immense quantities of ionizing radiation present in space that is inhibiting the advancement of space exploration. Ionizing radiation is extremely injurious to biological systems such as the human body because it can stimulate DNA damage and cultivate cancer along with other acute health conditions, which is why astronauts need to be shielded from it during their expedition. The solution is a distinctive nature-inspired suit that mimics biological strategies to offer complete protection. The design of this suit is heavily reliant on nature’s time-tested tactics, considering nature has had billions of years to test, develop, and perfect its methods and techniques, ensuring the success of its strategies. Along with biomimicry, the industrial design process, green chemistry, and the utilization of nature’s life principles also were crucial to the blueprinting process. The suit can be worn by astronauts in pressurized spaces with oxygen such as inside the space capsule or planetary habitat, as well as embedded into their Intravehicular Activity (IVA)/Extravehicular Activity (EVA) suits. It is designed to effectively deflect, absorb, and convert ionizing radiation, even healing irradiation damage to an extent. The implementation of this suit in the space industry would clear the pathway for current space exploration objectives, such as interplanetary travel and inhabitancy, not to mention attaining a greater understanding of our place in the universe and beyond.
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Solution to Soil Degradation
Author : Ramanathan Valliappan, Grade 11
High School : Dublin High School, Dublin, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
The objective of this research article is to address the problems of agriculture soil degradation, and the lack of soil regeneration. Due to recent increase in chemical usage, the soil and crop quality has substantially degraded, which ultimately affects our health. My solution is a two phased approach to first restore the soil and then keep it in a cyclic regeneration process. By utilizing biomimicry, green chemistry, and design strategies, the multi-step soil restoration process can be implemented to extract unwanted chemical pollutants, restore microorganisms, and preserve water and nutrients. The next phase of soil regeneration utilizes cloud computing and strategies from nature. Sensors are used to monitor soil levels and the data collected is analyzed through an Artificial Intelligence based cloud software. Current soil levels and the specific corrective actions are communicated through a mobile app, taking out any guess work in managing soil quality. The innovative device to increase the attractiveness for pollinators and the cyclic regeneration process helps improve and maintain the soil quality for better crop yield in a sustainable and eco-friendly way.
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River Waste Collector and Disposer
Author : Ethan Nguyen, Grade 10
High School : American High School, Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
Plastics are being used in everyday products and have even infiltrated our bodies as microplastics. Chemicals used during plastic production are known to be toxic and can leach toxic chemicals, causing harm to anything in contact with it. Most of the plastic disposed on land ends up in the ocean through streams and rivers. The solution focuses on capturing the plastic trash in the rivers and ensures it is responsibly disposed of and never returned to the water source. By incorporating strategies from natural models and systems thinking, this solution adopts technologies and processes to gather the floating waste, move it to the collection point and load the disposal trucks. It operates entirely on solar and hydropower which is distributed through a microgrid while ensuring no harmful byproducts or further harm is done to the environment. This two-part solution effectively captures and responsibly disposes of plastic waste in rivers, the primary means of transportation plastic takes to arrive at the ocean.
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Biomedical Waste Incinerator Emissions Filter
Author : Samhita Narnapur, Grade 11
High School : Washington High School. Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
Air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions are currently major issues that must be handled before the situation becomes permanent. Although numerous factors contribute to this problem, some causes are not being tracked. Incinerators that burn biohazardous waste are among them. The ash left behind produces hazardous gasses in addition to carbon emitted from the incinerators. A strategy to start the process of reducing air pollution is to remove carbon emissions from incinerators. As a result, I devised a solution that involved creating a filter for the incinerator’s gas line. My main focus of this research is a multilayer filter that traps pollutants of various sizes, including carbon-containing ash and dangerous gasses. Smaller particles are caught when the emissions pass through the filter’s four layers. A structure embedded into the center of bricks will be used to not only hold the ash, but also to safely dispose of the filter. Biomimicry has been used in nearly every aspect of the filter and disposal process to create a safe and functional solution.
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Dead Zone Prevention – Reducing Pollutants In The Ocean/Aquatic Areas
Author : Jasmine Lai, Grade 10
High School : Irvington High School, Fremont, CA
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : September 1, 2022
The purpose of this research article is to shed light on the problem of dead zones, specifically the type that is caused by agricultural pollutants. Due to the demand for food and produce every year, companies and farmers are forced to use chemicals to meet that demand. Agricultural materials such as pesticides, fertilizers, metals, plastics, and fossil fuels flow into the ocean due to runoff and spills. This is the main cause of dead zones. If the number of ocean dead zones continues to rise, it could lead to the extinction of most marine life and lead to severe water contamination. I have proposed in this article ways how to reduce the state of ocean dead zones. Utilizing the design and strategies from biomimicry, this two-stage solution could potentially block, trap, and absorb agricultural pollutants before harming the ocean any further.
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Allergen Information and Reduction System (AIRS)
Author : Shreya Sriram, Grade 12
High School : Commack High School, Commack, NY
Process Used : Whole System Design Thinking
Publication Date : February 15, 2022
The purpose of this research article is to address the problem of allergies, specifically those caused by pollen grains and dust particles. Due to climate change, allergy seasons are increasing, resulting in worsened allergy symptoms not only to those who have always suffered from allergies, but also to those who have never experienced allergies. As a result, my two-part solution informs users of the outdoor airborne allergen status through a mobile app and an innovative, eco-friendly table-top device that can be carried to school or a workplace to minimize exposure to indoor allergens. Utilizing industrial designing processes and strategies from biomimicry and green chemistry, the device captures indoor allergens within a diameter of six feet, acting like a protective bubble in which allergens are reduced, while facilitating air flow around the user. This futuristic solution will help us manage the worsening allergen conditions without pharmaceutical remediation.