Today’s Solutions: October 16, 2026

Close-up of wet, dark brown soil with small clumps and granular texture.

Wet coffee waste becomes coal-grade fuel in under two minutes

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Researchers at the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources developed a plasma-based process that converts wet coffee grounds into coal-grade biochar in under 90 seconds, with no pre-drying required. The system, described in Chemical Engineering Read More...

Water treatment plant uses exp

Water treatment plant uses expired beer to produce green energy

As restaurants and bars in Australia were forced to close due to the pandemic, millions of liters of unsold beer went stale. But instead of going to waste, some inventories of expired beer are being turned into renewable energy to power a water treatment plant in the state of South Australia. In Read More...

How food-spattered plastic was

How food-spattered plastic waste could soon heat homes in the UK

When plastic waste is spattered with scraps of food, recycling it becomes impossible. But that could soon change after a group of scientists in the UK have discovered a way to use dirty plastic waste to produce hydrogen, which can heat homes and fuel cars without producing greenhouse gas emissions. Read More...