TVU students had many creative ideas for the environment

(TVU) – The contest “Green Creative Ideas” in Tra Vinh province, launched in March 2021, has received enthusiastic participation from many Tra Vinh University students. With the achievements of 1 First prize, 2 Second prizes, 3 Third prizes, and 11 Consolation prizes, the ideas were evaluated to be practical and highly feasible. Each idea expressed students’ creativity, passion for research, and responsibility for the community. Among the ideas, many simple ones have created green products for the environment.

Recycle organic charcoal from durian shells

Sharing with us, Thach Tuan, a student of Civil Law, course of 2017, said: “The biggest purpose of our group in this project is to create clean coal products from durian peel, taking advantage of waste resources on the trend of reusing waste to produce fuel, replacing traditional products such as honeycomb briquette, ensuring human’s health, reducing environmental pollution and creating new research directions on the alternative energy sources.”

Describing the project, Thach Tuan added: “The ingredients and volume for an organic charcoal briquette include 80% durian skin. The 20% remaining is mud, water, and salt.”

Probiotics with zinc oxide nanoparticles

Realized that the current fungi and bacteria control probiotics still have risks of being toxic to users, polluting the environment, and possibly affecting plants.

The group of students, including Nguyen Minh Chanh and Huynh Phat Tai, who is majoring in Veterinary Medicine A, course of 2020, came up with the idea of ​​” Probiotics with zinc oxide nanoparticles” to solve the major and urgent problems of agricultural pests and the effects of chemicals on humans, organisms and environment.

The authors hoped that probiotics containing zinc oxide nanoparticles would prevent fungi and bacteria on plants with this idea. The product was bottled with a capacity of 500ml.

Huynh Phat Tai, a member of the author group, said: “Probiotics with zinc oxide nanoparticles can prevent fungi and bacteria on plants thanks to their special properties of antioxidant activities and nanomaterials, ensuring non-toxicity for users, environmental friendliness with a unique process, and saving production costs.”

Producing textile from pandan leaves the fiber

The idea created by the group of students, including Nguyen Tran Ngoc Han, Phung Thi My Phuong, Nguyen Van Nhut Vinh, Ta Nguyen Yen Nhu, Huynh Thi Hong Tham, was evaluated to be feasible at the “Green Creative Ideas” contest in Tra Vinh province in 2021

The authors have learned that the cellulose content in pandan leaves was quite high, accounting for about 73.4% (Taylor & Francis). Pandan leaves are also an abundant source of raw materials with high biodegradability. Their fibers are extremely durable. The favorable characteristics of pandan leaves made the team think of the idea “Producing textile from pandan leaves fiber.”

It is a great solution to help farmers save effort to clean up pandan leaves after harvest, limiting environmental pollution and creating additional income for pandan growers and more jobs for local people. In particular, the textile production from pandan leaves fiber is a new idea in the textile industry. Creating a new environmentally friendly material will be a promising new step for developing the textile industry in the future.

Talking about the value of the idea of Producing textile from pandan leaves fiber,  Nguyen Tran Ngoc Han added: “Today’s natural fibers are highly appreciated for their popularity as well as their useful characteristics of being soft, lightweight, breathable, and durable. Fabric made from pandan leaves fiber has a few outstanding properties: having a natural origin, being biodegradable, and being environmentally friendly (without using heavy metal oxides or toxic chemicals for production).

The fabric production from plant waste will not require as much effort, water, fertilizers, and chemical drugs as lotus or silk fibers. Therefore, the price will be suitable for users.

The ideas such as “Food container made from coconut shell”; “Corn cob meal straws”; “Nanosilica material from rice husk”; “Recycling coffee grounds into unique drinking cups” were also considered wonderful that create many environmentally friendly products in the contest.

Tra Vinh province’s green idea contest in 2021 is only at the stage of finding the owners of excellent ideas, the practical application takes time, but it certainly won’t be too long.

My Nhien