IIT-Kharagpur team wins national ideathon under ‘save water' category
Kharagpur: Out of 21 innovative solutions chosen from 1,384 entries received from across India, a sustainable waste management solution proposed by a IIT-Kharagpur team has bagged the first prize at a national ideathon, 'Ideas4LiFE', under the 'save water' category.
The IIT-Kharagpur team proposed the concept of reducing water footprint using moisture from raw sewage during treatment of waste and converting the same into bio-carbon materials used for various purposes. The bio-carbon materials are used for energy storage, environmental remediation and industrial processes.
'Ideas4LiFE' is a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC) in collaboration with UNICEF YuWaah, launched under the framework of Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment).
The team comprises Rajarshi Bhar, Joydeepa Taran, and Anil. The teammates were guided by Civil Engineering Department professor Brajesh Kumar Dubey.
The idea has been titled as "Reducing Water Footprint Using Raw Sewage during Hydrothermal Carbonization." The project proposes an innovative solution to use raw municipal sewage as a moisture source during the production of lignocellulosic hydrochar, effectively reducing the dependence on freshwater. This approach not only advances water conservation efforts but also integrates waste management with renewable energy production, making it a scalable and sustainable intervention, the team claimed.
The 'Ideas4LiFE' platform was launched on July 29, 2024, at IIT Delhi.The competition followed a rigorous three-phase selection process, including evaluation by experts from the Department of Higher Education and a national jury.
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