In my research with colleagues at Swansea’s energy safety research institute, I’ve worked on decreasing the mass of all these wires by using carbon nanomaterials instead of heavier copper alloys to make them. Carbon wires can be made from many sources – including recycled plastics. By turning these discarded plastics into useful, high-quality wires, we’re turning waste into wealth.

Image: Bao Menglong, Unsplash