Cross-contamination of recycling occurs when items that cannot be recycled are placed in the same collection bins as items that can be recycled. Over the past 20 years, cross-contamination has become a tremendous problem for recycling centers across the country and the world as they have transitioned to single stream collection which requires individuals to determine if an item is recyclable.
At the North Carolina School of Science and Math (NCSSM) alone, we recycle 23.66 tons of single stream material each year. There is a great need for inexpensive solutions that will enable potential recyclers to easily discriminate between recyclables and non-recyclables.
How can you help?
In our project, we use image processing and machine learning algorithms to help discriminate between recyclable and non-recyclables at the site of collection and to predict the level of contamination of a single stream container. Our hope is that this app will help individuals to identify potential contaminants prior to throwing them in the recycling bin, and to learn to recycle more efficiently even without the app. At the institutional level, we hope to reduce cross-contamination to less than 5%, teach students about machine learning and AI tools, and also provide an inexpensive mobile solution that can be used broadly in our community. We will be working on this project throughout the school year and also in the summer as part of the Summer Research and Innovation Program.
You can help us by submitting images of recycling and contamination to help us build our image database. Please submit images from the categories listed below placed on a surface to this Google Form. The images can be in any orientation and can be handheld or placed on a surface.
Aluminium foil
Battery
Aluminium blister pack
Carded blister pack
Clear plastic bottle
Glass bottle
Other plastic bottle
Plastic bottle cap
Metal bottle cap
Broken glass
Aerosol
Drink can
Food Can
Corrugated carton
Drink carton
Egg carton
Meal carton
Pizza box
Toilet tube
Other carton
Cigarette
Paper cup
Disposable plastic cup
Foam cup
Glass cup
Other plastic cup
Food waste
Glass jar
Plastic lid
Metal lid
Normal paper
Tissues
Wrapping paper
Magazine paper
Paper bag
Garbage bag
Single-use plastic bag
Polypropylene (plastic) bag
Plastic film
Six pack rings
Crisp packet
Other plastic wrapper
Spread tub
Tupperware
Disposable food container
Foam food container
Other plastic container
Plastic gloves
Plastic utensils
Pop tab
Rope & strings
Scrap metal
Shoe
Squeezable tube
Plastic straw
Paper straw
Styrofoam piece
Other plastic
Unlabeled litter
Examples of Images are shown below:
The Sustainable Recycling Project in the News
NCSSM Team Named National WINNERS in Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest
A team of NCSSM students led by Instructor of Engineering Dr. Letitia Hubbard has been named one of five NATIONAL WINNERS in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition. As a National Winner, the NCSSM Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Sustainable Recycling Team has been awarded $100,000 in Samsung technology for the school.
The students created an app that uses image processing and machine learning algorithms to help people separate recyclables and non-recyclables. An estimated 25% of recycling is contaminated by waste, making cross-contamination a tremendous problem for recycling centers across the country.
Dr. Hubbard says, "This award is only a small glimpse of what happens at NCSSM and definitely could not have happened without all of the support from the entire NCSSM community."
NCSSM team National Finalist in Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest
The NCSSM team is now one of only 20 national finalists from an original application pool of over 2000 entries! Dr. Hubbard, the advisor for this project, tells team members they should be very proud of the passion and work ethic that they have exhibited over the past few months. As National Finalists, the team guaranteed $50,000 in Samsung equipment for our school. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the final round, a pitch competition, has been postponed. Work on the project will continue as a Summer Research and Innovation project at NCSSM.
NCSSM team named state winner in Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest
NCSSM has been named one of two state winners, from thousands of entries nationwide, for the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest. Our teacher-student team led by engineering instructor Letitia Hubbard is developing an app that will reduce recycling contamination by using AI and machine learning.
The Samsung contest encourages teachers and students to solve real-world issues in their community using STEM skills. NCSSM is among the nation’s 100 State Winners (representing all 50 states) and will receive $15,000 in technology for its achievement. The NCSSM team will continue to work on their project, including creating a three-minute video on their project development, in hopes of advancing to the National Finalist round. Keep up the great work! See student Jason Li on ABC11 News.
Text and Photo credit: NCSSM Communications
Durham Students Create Phone App that identifies Recyclable Items
♻️ Our #NCSSM state-winning Samsung Solve for Tomorrow team continues to work toward their goal of being named a #SamsungSolve finalist. "Recycling contamination is a huge problem," said Jason Li, a senior at #NCSSM. "Once recycling gets contaminated, you can't recycle that anymore. So that basically goes to waste." Together, Li and fellow student Dalia Segal-Miller helped lead a team of students on an "artificial intelligence" project. Their prototype phone app uses #ai to quickly identify recyclable items and avoid contamination.
Text and Photo Credit: NCSSM Communications
Best & Brightest: Not all Recycling is Created Equal
#NCSSM’s state-winning Samsung Solve for Tomorrow team was featured in WNCN's Best & Brightest! Our team, comprising 20 students and led by Engineering Instructor Letitia Hubbard, developed an app to reduce #recycling contamination through #ai & #machinelearning. “This is definitely a team and school-wide effort,” says Hubbard. Stay tuned in March for the voting portion of the contest! Watch the full feature here.
Text and Photo Credit: NCSSM Communications