ISTC News Highlights
The state, nation, and world continue to grapple with major environmental and economic issues related to threats to air, water, and soil. Society requires a multi-faceted approach that includes new technologies, changes to human behaviors, and policies that are targeted to address these issues. ISTC's researchers continue our focus on these challenges to protect our environment and simultaneously drive economic growth.
To address these critical issues, ISTC concentrates on the environmental and human health impacts of contaminants like microplastics and PFAS, as well as agricultural chemicals. Our waste utilization and large-scale carbon management projects close the loop on waste generation.
ISTC's Technical Assistance Program continues their work with Illinois manufacturers and publicly owned wastewater treatment plants, as well as projects that reduce food waste, help organizations develop materials management plans, and connect communities with nature.
With these efforts, ISTC continues to advance sustainability in Illinois and beyond.
Download the report for more details.
The projects will advance to Phase III (Construction/Operation) of funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0001788, Fossil Fuel Large-Scale Pilots. ISTC/PRI will build and operate a 10 MWe slipstream of the Linde/BASF post-combustion carbon capture technology at City Water, Light, and Power (CWLP) in Springfield, Illinois.
ISTC’s applied scientists sort through some of the 7,000 pounds of landfill and recycling-bound materials collected during the ten-day sampling period at Argonne National Laboratory. Download Argonne case study
Scientists at the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) are beginning a $1 million, two-year project to find new and value-added uses for fly ash, a powdery remnant of burning coal. Confining the ash in vegetable oil will potentially reduce the amount of fly ash waste and lessen the risk of heavy metals from waste piles leaching into surface and groundwater.
Plastic products permeate our environment and over time they break down. The microscopic size of particles, how long they last, and what is associated with them raise health concerns.