The invention of a “Process for producing activated charcoal from hydrothermal carbonization of cigarette butts,” developed by researchers from the State University of Maringá and the Federal Technological University of Paraná, was the grand winner of the 4th ABPI Patent of the Year Award. The invention pertains to a green patent filed in 2019 and granted by the BPTO in 2022. “Through the hydrothermal process, we treat the cigarette butts, which are environmental liabilities without an effective disposal policy,” explained Rogério Maniezzo from the State University of Maringá. “This way, we can transform them into a material that can be used in treating effluent water, absorbing dyes, heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, and other contaminants.”
The award was presented on Tuesday, the 22nd, at the closing of ABPI’s 43rd Congress, by the president of the BPTO, Júlio César Moreira, to Andrelson Wellington Rinaldi, Hugo Henrique Carline De Lima, Marcos Rogério Guilherme, Murilo Pereira Moisés, Pedro Augusto Arroyo, Rogério Dos Santos Maniezzo, and Vicente Lira Kupfer, on behalf of Ricardo Cardoso Costa Boclin, a member of ABPI’s board of directors.
Ricardo Boclin, ABPI’s Council member, is the coordinator of the award, created by ABPI in partnership with the BPTO.
This year, patents with applications contributing to social equality promotion competed for the prize.
