Each year about 5.5 million tonnes of plastic waste is created in research laboratories worldwide. This despite the fact that many researchers are working precisely here on tackling the waste problem in other sectors. A considerable part of this waste comes from the many single-use consumables in the lab, such as pipette tips, tubes or petri dishes. These are often chosen because of the strict requirements that exist for these products, but also because of the ease of disposal after use.
The objective of this research, however, is to ultimately be able to replace as many single-use products as possible with reusable alternatives in the laboratory. In the context of this project, we want to focus on the chemical sector in the first place. At the moment, alternatives are often not available or do not meet the requirements. Therefore, in this research, various variables are defined and the obstacles to (re)use are analysed. The four most important variables are: context, usage, design and the collection system. These will all influence the eventual use, reuse or disposal behaviour.
Through a number of cases, the theory will be continuously tested in practice. To achieve this, there is close cooperation throughout the research with various laboratories full of enthusiastic lab employees who are more than ready to contribute to this transformation.
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Waste Labo
Link with REuse Lab
The research aims to initiate reuse in a sector where this has long been considered impossible. By conducting thorough research into alternative solutions, it is being explored how a reusable product can comply with the high demands, in this case those of a laboratory. The various insights into design, high-level cleanability and end-user acceptance can all lead to interesting translations and applications in other sectors.
Timeline: 2019-2023