Two Junior Certificate students from Blackwater Community College in Lismore, Waterford, have won one of the Best Project Awards at SciFest 2011 and will go on to represent Ireland at the International Science and Engineering Fair in the US next year.
Eoghan Flynn and Ruairí O’Neill’s project, entitled “Polydiesel – a novel solution to fuel shortages and disposal of ELPs”, shows how end-of-life plastics can be converted into crude oil in a simple and inexpensive way. The project potentially solves two major global challenges: a looming fuel shortage and a growing waste problem.
The Waterford students will travel to Pennsylvania in May 2012 for the international fair, where 1,500 second-level students from around the world will compete for prizes that are collectively worth more than $4 million, including the Gordon E. Moore prize, which is worth $75,000.
To learn more about these competitions, visit the SciFest website and the International Science and Engineering Fair website.
