The week was eventful for the Post Graduate and Doctoral degree students of Pan African University, Life Earth Sciences Institute (Including Health and Agriculture), University of Ibadan, as well as the engineering students of UI as they were taken through training on ‘Circular Plastic Economy Innovation Hub’ session between Monday, June 27 and Friday, July 1.
The showcase and training sessions on transforming waste plastics to wealth using 3D printer, funded by the British Council, held at the permanent site of PAULESI in collaboration with De Montfort University, Leicester; PAU Institute of Life and Earth Sciences; and Co-Creation Hub.
Adebukola Omotosho, a Senior Educator with STEM Café, a sister company to CCHub, said that the training sessions were on how waste plastic products, littering the environment, could be repurposed.
Omotosho said that “We are looking at ways of getting the plastics off the streets and using them to do something useful and meaningful. It is about recycling. We collect plastics, we grind and process them. We use them to create 3D filament which we use to create other things.
“We can put the 3D filament into 3D printer and use it to print out needs like basic components at home. For instance, if you break a cup, you can actually print another cup and use it. If components of your computer gets lost or damaged, you can print and replace it. You can take materials that could be hazardous to the public by causing flood or just polluting the environment and repurpose them. That is what this is about.
“Plastics are not bio-degradable. If you throw a plastic out there today, in 10 years time you would still find it there. It is not going to decay and that is actually killing the environment. This is one of the things that are causing environmental issues such as global warming. So, instead of littering the environment, we can collect and use them to create something useful like toys and components for electrical appliances.”
According to him, one can invest in it because 3D printers are no longer as expensive as they used to be when newly introduced to the market.
Elijah Gbogbo, a Mechanical Engineering student from University of Ibadan, described the training workshop as exciting, saying that he had lots of plastics wasting away and constituting nuisance for him at home.
He said, “But, I can now put the waste plastics into good use.
“The only thing now is the cost of the devices to use in repurposing the waste plastics. With partnership, we can get the equipments. This is a boost for the manufacturing sector in Nigeria.
“They explained the processes of creating 3D components from plastics to us. They also spoke about the software used for the design. Then, they talked about the slicer software with which one can chop the components into layers which the 3D printer would interpret to create the required items.”
The Director of PAULESI, Prof. Esther Titilayo Afolabi, said in an interview on the training that “The main aim of this British Council-Innovation for African Universities project is to see how Nigerian universities can foster innovation and entrepreneurship for the circular plastic economy. To do this, a lot of activities had been carried out, which include sensitization and ideation sessions that explored the theoretical aspect of the circular plastic economy.
“This training, therefore, presents a fantastic opportunity for the students to experience the practical aspect of the project and explore a method that can effectively transform waste to wealth.It also exposes students to the innovative concept that is 3D printing which many may not be aware of, thereby opening the minds of the students to possible entrepreneurship opportunities that can present itself through learning this art of 3D printing.
“The training is open to all categories of students – from primary, secondary to tertiary education students. The concept of 3D printing is one that is quite easy to grasp and as such, students at any stage of their education can benefit from this knowledge.
“We welcome UI students who are interested to come to the PAULESI building at any of the stipulated times to participate. We hosted a virtual session that allowed attendees from various other universities across Nigeria.”
On what it means for Africa, she said that “The entire project is immensely beneficial for Africa as it brings to light the menace of plastic waste, but also offers possible innovative and entrepreneurial opportunities, through universities. That will help to curb this menace.
“In the course of this project, funding has been awarded to a group of students in Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, who have a fantastic proposal that will help tackle this problem. In the hopes of achieving sustainability of this project, more funding opportunities can be offered, which will contribute to achieving the aim of a circular plastic economy in Africa.”
