HavocNov 16, 2022
Thinking about circular economies and @hydroponictrash 's recent writing on modular repair and construction systems.
It'll be interesting to create a "reverse-LEGO" System, where System parts can be used to repair non-System products. Eventually, Ship-of-Theseus style, products would end up becoming entirely made of System parts as their old ones break and are replaced. To this end, you have to make sure the System is interoperable both with itself and with pre-existing products.
Further, it would be best if the System were not only easy to manufacture, but easy to acquire resources for. This is a big part of the #Junkpunk aesthetic, going out of your way to reuse pre-existing material. In the context of our System, this might involve anything from collecting screws of standard System size off non-System products, or searching for plastics to turn into stock for 3D printing. 3D printable printers and recyclable stock would be a HUGE jump towards making this a reality. #solarpunk
Show threadHydroponicTrashNov 16, 2022

@havoc Hell yeah, interoperability would be the biggest thing. A big gripe I have with most modular designs is that they are modular in their own ecosystem, but having a modular framework gives the guidelines enough to be able to have things work interoperabily, while also not needing to fit a need super strict standard or aesthetic.

Thankfully most stuff like screws are to a standard (for the most part) and can be reused. Plenty of proprietary stuff can't be reused though, especially if it was a planned obsolescence situation. But even then, we can look at it instead of broken, as just feedstock to use and remake into something else. Compared to just saying "eh fuck it it's broken", buying a new one while the old thing sits in a landfill for 500 years.

I've seen some amazing work by people making 3D printer filament recyclers that can turn some plastic bottles into 3D printing filament. Most of the same idea applies to most plastics. So when you print an object, and don't need it or it isn't repairable, chuck it in a shredder, melt it back down into fillament, make something new. No waste, no shipping, less impacts to the ecology. Way better than what we got going right now.

Show threadCassandrichNov 16, 2022
@hydroponictrash @havoc The opportunities for plastics recycling here are really phenomenal and we've barely scratched the surface of what's possible. At some point I'm going to be exploring high-quality direct-from-shredded-material printing.
Show threadTrash Robot
@dalias @hydroponictrash @havoc I'm interested in one step before that. Using heat and machines to get from one fully formed plastic product to another via welds and bends without shredding. I do this all by hand with HDPE +tweezers + candle or heat gun now but there's tons of possibilities here. not additive manufacturing and also not just "reuse" but transformative manufacturing. eg.Plastic bottle -> new blow mold shape.
Nov 16, 2022 at 6:14pmWeb
Show threadCassandrichNov 16, 2022
@lafelabs @hydroponictrash @havoc Have you experimented with vacuum source and heat to return bottles to "blanks" for blowing?
Show threadHavocNov 16, 2022
@lafelabs @dalias @hydroponictrash you could in theory get the same effect with a plastic solvent like acetone I think, rather than heat. Not saying it'd be better, just another avenue to explore
Show threadCassandrichNov 16, 2022
@havoc @lafelabs @hydroponictrash PET is immune to acetone and most solvents you would be comfortable being around. That's one of the many great things about it. The bottles you buy acetone nail polish remover in are themselves PET.
Show threadCassandrichNov 16, 2022
@havoc @lafelabs @hydroponictrash Actually, take that back - the one I have here is HDPE. But I don't see a reason PET wouldn't work too. Probably just more expensive.
Show threadHydroponicTrashNov 16, 2022
@lafelabs @dalias @havoc Yeah that would be sick. I remember seeing that plastic loses it's bonds the more its broken up, so that might help with a ton of it. Or print the molds to make direct forming easier, then you don't need to print, just dump it in and let it form. 🤔 📒
Show threadHydroponicTrashNov 16, 2022
@lafelabs @dalias @havoc Oh shit, adding onto that you can plastic form stuff that normally isn't really recyclable. Like plastic shopping bags tend to go to landfills because there isn't an easy way to reuse them, but they do melt and bond (some of them) and becasue you don't have to extrude it, no worries on the texture an all that, just form it into sheets then use forms to make them into something else.
Show threadHavocNov 16, 2022
@hydroponictrash @lafelabs @dalias I would think you could do this with synthetic rubber as well! Imagine finally being able to recycle tires
Show threadCassandrichNov 16, 2022
@havoc @hydroponictrash @lafelabs Is synthetic rubber a thermoplastic?
Show threadTrash RobotNov 16, 2022
@havoc @hydroponictrash @dalias there is a design out there for flip flops(sandals) from tires that I have not seen but have heard about. Tires --> shoes needs to be normalized and scaled up. I think the Viet Cong had a design they used to use(that's where I heard about it, from someone remembering the Vietnam war from that side).
Show threadHydroponicTrashNov 16, 2022
@lafelabs @havoc @dalias Ah yeah, they called them "Ho Chi Minh Sandals" pretty cool.