Smart Slug Bin

Sustainability Problem and Proposed Solution:

The recyclables collected from the UCSC campus are 75% contaminated by weight, which is above the 15% threshold permitted by the Recycling Center. The Smart Slug Bin Project seeks to divert UCSC’s recycling resources from the landfill stream by automatically sorting recyclables at the time of disposal, reducing the contamination ratio below the 15% threshold. This device will have an interactive display that will be used to provide feedback and educate users on proper methods of recycling.

Project Categories:

Awareness, Education & Engagement

Waste & Recycling

Project Status:

In Progress

Campus Organization:

Carbon Fund

Affiliated Department, Unit or College:

Grounds Services

Project Location:

On campus

Stakeholder Contacts:

Contact Name	Email Address	Contact Number
Joaquin Banuelos	jobanuel@ucsc.edu	6198668346
Stephanie Lin	slin41@ucsc.edu	5104565452
George Leece	gleece@ucsc.edu
Merlin Gunn-Cicero	mgunncic@ucsc.edu
Luis Mercado	lurmerca@ucsc.edu
Vianey Padilla	vapadill@ucsc.edu
Angelica Martinez	amart142@ucsc.edu
John Bennett	jbbennet@ucsc.edu

How to Join:

Email smartslugbinsc@gmail.com or slin41@ucsc.edu (Stephanie Lin) for more information. We are looking for a follow-on team to pick up the project due to members of the 2019-2020 team have already graduated.

Funding Sources:

Carbon Fund

goFundMe

College 9/10

Stevenson College

Crown College

Project Description:

Our main goal is to reduce contamination levels in recycling bins at UCSC from 75% to 15% or less. Our other main goal is to educate students and staff about proper recycling methods by stating the reasons for rejection for non-recyclables on the electronics display. In addition, we want to increase the amount of recyclables going to the Santa Cruz Recycling Center while making this device sustainable by implementing solar power instead of fossil fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide. The team has until June 2020 to complete the project. The goal is to complete all separate tasks by the end of winter quarter (March 13), and spend spring quarter (March 23) connecting parts, and testing the final prototype. The team is split up into four sub-teams: power, mechanical, software and sensors. All sub-teams have specific tasks to be completed. Our engineering lead and team progress lead will be checking with all the sub-teams and the rest of the team throughout the year to make sure we meet our milestones.

Metrics for Success:

The Rachel Carson Waste Characterization Study conducted every year would be our
longitudinal goal to make sure our bin performs as expected. We can use the study to analyze
our bin and the Baskin Engineering Courtyard zero waste bins. To verify that the Smart Slug Bin
is working correctly, we can analyze the data collected on the amount of items characterized
correctly over the years. If the study shows that there is no change in the difference in
contamination between the Smart Slug Bin and the zero waste bins over time, this could
indicate that Smart Slug Bin is not functioning correctly so that recyclables are still being
diverted to the landfill. If the amount of contamination of increases or does not change in the
zero waste bins, it could mean that Smart Slug Bin is not working effectively. The bin could be
too slow or broken, so people end up using the regular zero waste bins instead of the Smart
Slug Bin because Smart Slug Bin is not desirable to use. If the study shows that there are less
contaminated items in the zero waste bins over the years, this could be an indicator that the
education aspect of our Smart Slug Bin is working effectively since students are recycling
correctly after using our bin or becoming more aware of proper recycling techniques.
In the long term, we would educate users on which plastics are recyclable. If effective,
we would find more plastics that are recyclable in the bins and less of the ones that aren’t
recyclable over time due to people paying attention to plastic packaging material. For example,
Santa Cruz Recycling Center only accepts plastics with resin codes 1, 2, and 5. If we find that
most plastics consists of those resin codes in the Smart Slug Bin and the zero waste bin, then it
could mean that the users are being aware of recyclable plastics. By incorporating recyclable
instead of non-recyclable plastics into their lifestyle, more and more plastics will eventually be
diverted away from the landfill.

Next Steps:

Due to social distancing and lack of access to equipment (COVID-19), the construction of the physical prototype is delayed. Instead, the 2019-2020 team simulated their designs to verify that they met the design criteria so that the follow-on team can focus on integration and implementation of our designs. The results were documented and analyzed to allow the follow-on team an idea of where the project is left off and where to continue.

Result Categories:

Technology

Education/Outreach

Results:

The Smart Slug Bin would benefit the colleges by promoting education about proper recycling methods and reducing the local pollution rate. With the use of technology, our project will fix UCSC’s recycling crisis, and help meet the goal of Zero Waste 2020. By having a successful prototype, our team can manufacture this device to be implemented in the dorms.

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