A team of 10 students from Makerere university have showcased the processes of recycling plastics through producing fuel.
The team showcased the whole processes of fuel making at the Makerere University Entrepreneurship Expo last week.
The invention started in July and based on the research on the reusable and efficient energy sources by David Ofwono, a science scholar.
Richard Kintu, the marketing manager, Alpha Investments Limited said that the innovation is purposed at providing eco-friendly fuel to Ugandans by putting plastic waste to good use as well as employment to the youth.
“The company seeks to transform plastic waste into commercial petroleum that can be used by households, transporters and industrialists at affordable prices,” said Kintu.
To begin with, you must have plastic waste of Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) and High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) because they are the suitable types for producing fuel.
Then weigh the plastic waste and place it inside the reactor drum for heating. Next, fix the upgrading unit to the reactor drum.
Seal any hole on the reactor drum with aluminum foil paper. Holes will allow in oxygen, which will react with hydrogen to producing water. This will in turn lower the temperature of producing the petroleum.
Heat the reactor drum using, say, firewood and leave the plastic to boil to up to 300°C, during which the plastic will be broken into compounds of carbon and hydrogen, hence producing vapour that is crude oil.
The entire process takes up to two hours.
The crude oil is then re-heated for 15 to 20 minutes on low heat to produce petrol as it is lighter than kerosene.
If you want kerosene, the heat must be moderate. For diesel, the heat must be high because it is heavier than petroleum and kerosene.
Kintu said that since theirs is a new innovation, they have not yet started selling the fuel. What they have done is to give it to some people to try it out and give them feedback.
The company is in the process of getting registered and is proposing to sell the fuel at a price lower than the respective market prices.
Samuel Begumisa, the chief executive of the investment, said the challenge they have now is buying an automatic electric reactor drum which can control the level of heat when heating plastic waste. He said it is expensive.
Right now, the group is doing this manually with a locally made reactor drum, which takes a long time.
Holding the bottles where the crude oil is channeled also makes the process slow.
They are appealing to Government to support their innovation. With financial support, Begumisa says that in the next four years, they hope to set up a fuel -producing factory from plastic waste.
Reporting by New Vision.
