Imagine RIT
Exhibit Highlight
RIT Engineers Reduce Reuse and Recycle
According to the Fresh Air Council the average person generates 56 tons of trash per year and only one tenth of all solid waste generated in the U.S. is recycled annually. This situation puts a severe strain on the environment and greatly increases expense to businesses and communities in the form of new production as well as increased disposal and clean up costs. In response, a number of researchers and engineers are working to advance methods for recycling and reusing materials while also enhancing product design to improve durability, environmental quality and reusability.
Rochester Institute of Technology has a long history of expertise in this field, developing numerous innovations in the areas of pollution prevention, life cycle engineering, sustainable design and remanufacturing while also working closely with industry to transfer these technologies for use in a host of companies around the world. In fact, RIT is the site of the National Center for Remanufacturing and Resource Recovery also known as NC3R, the nation’s first and only research center devoted to the study of remanufacturing, and recently opened the Golisano Institute for Sustainability, a research and education center that is developing one of the world’s first doctoral programs in sustainable production and houses the NYS Pollution Prevention Institute.
Work conducted by these entities is greatly enhancing opportunities for material reuse and promoting the sustainable design of products and processes. For example, engineers with NC3R developed the Imaging Components Analyzer, a patented scientific testing device designed to enable the testing and ultimately the reuse of imaging components in printers and copiers. The center has licensed the device for commercial use and to date it has assisted in diverting 2 million components from landfills, representing 600 tons of metal and urethane.
In addition, researchers at the Golisano Institute are conducting an evaluation project, which is testing the feasibility and quality of railroad ties made from scrap tires. The product, being developed by a New York state company, is less susceptible to deterioration than wood ties and could provide a use for a substantial proportion of the thousands of tons of scrap tires that are discarded annually.
These and other projects related to product reuse and sustainable design will be featured as part of sustainability demonstrations for RIT’s Imagine Festival occurring May 3 on campus. A display featuring an overview of research activities will be set up in the main festival center in the Gordon Field House and additional demonstrations of current work will be available in the Golisano Institute labs located in the Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies facility. Visitors to the facility will have an opportunity to see testing and simulation activities in action and staff will be on hand to answer questions and provide additional information about current and future research projects.