Articles tagged with "recycling-technology"
Inside Glacier's mission to modernize recycling
In Episode 223 of The Robot Report Podcast, Rebecca Hu-Thrams, co-founder and CEO of Glacier, discusses her company’s mission to modernize recycling through advanced robotics and artificial intelligence. Glacier focuses on addressing challenges faced by material recovery facilities (MRFs) by developing systems that detect and sort valuable materials efficiently without disrupting existing operations. Their technology enhances safety, reduces human error, and improves the quality of materials recovered from waste streams. Hu-Thrams emphasizes that Glacier’s innovations support the economic viability of MRFs while contributing to sustainability goals by minimizing waste and lowering carbon emissions, positioning the company as a key player in the circular economy. The episode also covers other robotics industry news, including significant funding rounds for companies like Physical Intelligence, which raised $600 million to advance robot foundation models, and Distalmotion, which secured $150 million to accelerate U.S. adoption of its portable DEXTER surgical robot. Additionally, Parallax Worlds raised $4 million to develop hyper-realistic digital
roboticsartificial-intelligencerecycling-technologymaterial-recovery-facilitiesautomationsustainabilitycircular-economyTrump DOE confirms it’s canceling over $700M in manufacturing grants
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under the Trump administration has confirmed it is canceling approximately $720 million in manufacturing grants originally awarded during the Biden administration. These grants, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021, were intended to support companies involved in battery material production, lithium-ion battery recycling, and manufacturing of energy-efficient super-insulating windows. Energy Secretary Chris Wright cited missed milestones and insufficient progress toward national energy goals as reasons for the cancellations. The affected projects include several startups such as Ascend Elements, Anovion, and LuxWall, which had received substantial funding to develop innovative technologies and manufacturing facilities aimed at strengthening domestic supply chains and reducing energy consumption. Among the impacted companies, Ascend Elements was awarded $316 million to build a lithium-ion battery recycling facility in Kentucky and had already received $206 million. Anovion received $117 million to reshore synthetic graphite production critical for battery anodes, a market currently dominated by Chinese suppliers. LuxWall, awarded
energybattery-materialslithium-ion-batteriesmanufacturing-grantssynthetic-graphiteenergy-efficiencyrecycling-technologyGaniga will showcase its waste-sorting robots at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025
Italian startup Ganiga Innovation aims to improve global plastic recycling rates, currently below 10%, through AI-enabled robotic waste sorting solutions. Their flagship product, Hoooly, is a fleet of robotic waste bins that use generative AI to distinguish trash from recyclables and sort them accordingly. Additionally, Ganiga offers a smart lid attachment for existing bins with similar sorting capabilities and a software platform that tracks corporate waste production and provides recommendations to reduce it. Founded in 2021 by Nicolas Zeoli, Ganiga has sold over 120 robotic bins to clients including Google and major European airports, generating $500,000 in revenue in 2024 and $750,000 in the first nine months of 2025. Ganiga will showcase its technology at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in San Francisco from October 27-30, participating in the Startup Battlefield competition. The company recently raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding and plans to raise a $3 million seed round. In
robotAIwaste-managementrecycling-technologysmart-binsenvironmental-technologysustainabilityGaniga will showcase its waste-sorting robots at TechCrunch Disrupt
Italian startup Ganiga is addressing the global plastic recycling challenge—where less than 10% of plastic is recycled—by developing AI-enabled robotic waste bins designed to improve sorting and waste management. Their flagship product, Hoooly, uses generative AI to distinguish between trash and recyclables, automating the sorting process. Ganiga also offers a smart lid that can retrofit existing bins with similar AI capabilities and a software platform that tracks corporate waste production and provides actionable insights to reduce waste. Founded in 2021 by Nicolas Zeoli, the company has sold over 120 robotic bins to clients including Google and major airports in Europe, generating $500,000 in revenue in 2024 and $750,000 in the first nine months of 2025. Ganiga will showcase its technology at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in San Francisco from October 27 to 30, participating in the Startup Battlefield competition. The company plans to launch Hooolyfood in November, a software product that
robotAIwaste-managementrecycling-technologysmart-binsenvironmental-technologysustainability92% lithium recovery rate achieved as method uses natural compound
Researchers at Clausthal University of Technology in Germany have developed a method to improve lithium recovery from smelting slags—rocky byproducts of ore processing—using punicin, a natural compound derived from pomegranate leaves. By synthesizing and testing over 50 punicin derivatives, the team achieved lithium recovery rates of up to 92% through optimized flotation separation processes. Punicin’s unique chemical structure, which allows its charge state to be adjusted by pH and its properties to change under light exposure, enables selective attachment to lithium-bearing minerals, making them hydrophobic and easier to separate from unwanted materials. This advancement in lithium recycling is significant given the growing demand for lithium in batteries powering electric vehicles, smartphones, and other electronics. The researchers are also exploring punicin derivatives for recovering other lithium engineered artificial minerals (EnAMs), such as lithium manganates, as well as valuable metals like copper and tantalum. The ability to control flotation through light and pH adjustments offers greater precision in mineral separation
energylithium-recoverybattery-materialsrecycling-technologyflotation-separationnatural-compoundssustainable-energy-materialsAMP Robotics acquires Portsmouth recycling operations from RDS of Virginia - The Robot Report
AMP Robotics Corp., a developer of AI-powered robotic sorting technology for waste and recycling, has acquired the Portsmouth recycling operations of RDS of Virginia LLC, which has served South Hampton Roads since 2005. Since late 2023, AMP has operated its AMP ONE system at the Portsmouth facility, autonomously processing up to 150 tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) daily with over 90% uptime. The system separates recyclables and organic materials from bagged trash, enabling the facility to divert more than 50% of landfill-bound waste when combined with organics management and mixed recyclables sorting. AMP also plans to expand the single-stream recycling operations inherited from RDS Portsmouth. Founded in 2014, AMP Robotics has identified 150 billion items and sorted over 2.5 million tons of recyclables using its AI platform. The company raised $91 million in funding at the end of 2024 and is transitioning from solely a technology developer to an operating company by acquiring and managing
roboticsAIwaste-managementrecycling-technologyAMP-Roboticsmunicipal-solid-wasteautomationApple aims to end rare earth reliance on China with $500M deal
Apple has committed $500 million in a multi-year deal with MP Materials, the only U.S.-based company that mines, processes, and manufactures rare earth materials entirely domestically. This partnership aims to reduce reliance on China for critical rare earth elements, especially neodymium magnets used in Apple devices. As part of the agreement, Apple will purchase American-made magnets from MP Materials’ expanded Independence facility in Texas, which will feature new manufacturing lines tailored for Apple products and is expected to begin global supply by 2027. The expansion will create advanced manufacturing and R&D jobs, alongside training programs to build U.S. expertise in rare earth magnet production. Additionally, Apple and MP Materials will establish a state-of-the-art rare earth recycling plant at the Mountain Pass facility in California to recover materials from electronic waste and industrial scrap, further integrating recycled rare earths into Apple’s supply chain. This initiative builds on Apple’s prior use of recycled rare earth elements since 2019 and supports its broader commitment to invest
materialsrare-earth-elementsneodymium-magnetsrecycling-technologysupply-chainadvanced-manufacturingsustainable-materialsNREL Publishes Method for Recycling All Components in Carbon Fiber Composites - CleanTechnica
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has developed a novel, scalable, and cost-effective method to recycle all components of carbon fiber composites (CFCs), materials widely used in high-value products like aircraft, bicycles, and automobiles. CFCs consist of carbon fibers embedded in epoxy-amine resins, which are strong, lightweight, and expensive, but difficult to recycle due to the chemically interlocked and complex nature of the resin. Traditional recycling methods have been limited by the inability to dissolve or break down these resins without degrading the valuable fibers or wasting the resin’s chemical components. NREL’s breakthrough involves using hot acetic acid—essentially vinegar—to cleave the key bonds in the epoxy resins, solubilizing the polymer networks while preserving the chemical building blocks for reuse. This method was optimized to handle diverse resin formulations from various industries and was shown to recover carbon fibers without compromising their strength. In a demonstration, recycled fibers extracted from a scrap mountain-bike frame were used to
materialscarbon-fiber-compositesrecycling-technologyepoxy-resinssustainable-materialsNRELcomposite-materials-recycling