The team **NBRaINS**, from the Argentine company **Benito Roggio ambiental (BRa)**, was selected by **NASA as one of the winners of the first phase of the LunaRecycle Challenge**. This is a global competition aimed at developing **solutions for recycling non-biological waste** during prolonged space missions.
## A circular proposal in lunar orbit
The challenge, framed within the **Artemis program** —which promotes the human return to the Moon and future missions to Mars— attracted more than **1,200 projects from 86 countries**. **[The Argentine solution](https://noticiasambientales.com/ciencia/argentina-se-corono-campeona-en-el-mundial-de-ingenieria-aeroespacial-de-la-nasa-en-estados-unidos/)** was **the only one selected from Latin America** and stood out for its ability to solve **real problems in closed environments such as lunar bases**, without depending on resupplies from Earth.
Winning in the **Prototype Build Track** category, the proposal consists of:
– Recycling **nitrile gloves (NBR)** and **polyethylene**, common in missions
– Converting them into **3D printing filaments**
– Manufacturing **useful objects directly at the lunar base**, such as tools or scientific components
## From Earth to the Moon: applied experience
“This recognition fills us with pride. We stepped out of our comfort zone and applied years of experience in terrestrial waste management to an unknown environment like the lunar one,” highlighted **Nicolás Escardó**, New Business Manager at BRa in a statement.
The multidisciplinary team at BRa was founded in 2023 with professionals in science, innovation, and sustainability. Their experience includes:
– Over **750,000 tons of urban waste collected per year**
– Production of **green energy** for 17,000 homes
– Over **165,000 tons of compost** from organic waste
The company, certified as a **[B Corporation](https://noticiasambientales.com/ong/colocan-el-primer-cheque-verde-de-una-empresa-b-en-el-mercado-argentino/)**, already had a pioneering **Research, Development, and Innovation (R+D+i)** department in the country, now applied to one of the most demanding challenges in environmental engineering.
## International challenge and the future of the competition
Although the monetary prize for this phase was reserved for U.S. companies, the Argentine team passed all technical filters of NASA and **[the University of Alabama](https://www.ua.edu/)**, which evaluated:
– **Energy efficiency**
– **Operational viability**
– **System scalability**
The next phase of the LunaRecycle Challenge will reward solutions based on **digital twins**, virtual simulations that allow testing processes in extreme environments without direct physical interaction.
## Recycling waste off-planet (and on-planet too)
The NBRaINS project is more than a technical system: it proposes a **circular philosophy for space environments**, where every gram matters and where waste can no longer be simply discarded.
“The NASA seeks to minimize waste in year-long missions with eight astronauts. From food packaging to textiles, everything must have a second life,” explained the BRa team.
Additionally, the space agency acknowledges that these technologies could **revolutionize terrestrial recycling**, inspiring solutions that improve the efficiency of current systems.
“This award showed us that nothing is impossible. With an environmental vision and collaborative work, we can contribute even to challenges beyond our planet,” Escardó concluded.
