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16-year-old discovers catalyst to turn Egypt's plastic waste into biofuel
Egyptian teen calculates that her method could generate $78 million in biofuels for country annually.
Mon, Jul 23 2012 at 8:00 AM
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Photo: Euro
Azza Abdel Hamid Faiad is not your average 16-year-old. While most teens were delivering pizza or working on their tans this summer, Faiad was discovering a way to turn Egypt's plastic waste into roughly $78 million worth of biofuels each year.
The idea to use plastic as biofuels is not new, but Faiad, a student at the Zahran Language School in Alexandria, Egypt, has found an inexpensive catalyst that could make the process not only economically feasible, but economically profitable for her country. Egypt’s plastic consumption is estimated to total 1 million tons per year, so Faiad’s proposal could completely transform the country’s economy, while also handling their plastic waste issues.
Faiad says that her catalyst, called aluminosilicate, could inexpensively break down plastic waste while producing gaseous products like methane, propane and ethane, which can then be converted into ethanol. She calculates that her discovery could inexpensively generate about 40,000 tons of cracked naphtha and 138,000 tons of hydrocarbon gases per year — equivalent to $78 million.
The green teen has already won an award for her findings at the 23rd European Union Contest for Young Scientists, and she is currently looking into patenting her idea through the Egyptian Patent Office.
Source: The Green Prophet
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This will never happen in USA because of the big interest of the rich the %1.
While I commend her on her discovery, there's nothing green about this. This is taking existing (trapped) carbon and turning it into fuel - methane itself is a green house gas, and when burned it releases C02. Convert it to ethanol, burn it and you still get C02. This is a nice way to get at the locked energy of polymers, but it only increases carbon emissions. Not even a little bit green.
"Nothing green". Hmm. Plastic waste ending up in landfill, oceans etc and eaten by birds, animals fish etc or being turned into a fuel source the components of which can be readily repolymerized back into plastics. Yes there are definitely "green" aspects to the process. If it works with mixed plastics that are difficult to recycle it is certainly better than just throwing out!
I agree with you here... And plastics come from the same place that oil does. Even though it's recycling, we're still going to run out sooner or later. It's still coming from the same place, essentially. It's not accomplishing anything except for being able to reuse it for something different... Wonder what's going to happen when it all runs out from burning it all :/
Completely agree. How is that BIOfuel?
@ Jay We'll see if their new gov respects any rights for women or any minority at all. A perfect example of how society can benefit from an equal and pluralistic system.
Brilliant!
get the american patent and make way more!
Very smart the Egyptian Govt needs to listen to this young woman!!!!