Students Develop Innovative Bottle Waste Recycling Project

Beverage bottles are becoming a growing segment of the municipal solid waste stream in Palestine and the world. While plastic, glass and paper bottles and containers offer convenience, they also create unnecessary waste in landfills. Recycling bottles, however, can positively impact the environment, reduce waste and use of energy and resources.A team of young engineers from Birzeit University has developed a machine that separates and reduces the volume of beverage containers, reducing the effects of waste on the environment and decreasing the amounts of solid waste caused by lack of awareness.Two mechanical engineering students, Antranik Emerezian and Nicola Shaer, and information technology student Mu’tasem Hidmi developed the Canbot project under the supervision of professor Simon Araj and the mechanical engineering department.This machine allows the user to easily reduce the volume of aluminum cans, plastic, glass and paper bottles and containers instead of adding them to other waste. Canbot not only grabs these beverage containers from the user, but also uses a smart control system linked to an efficient pneumatic system to separate different types of materials and reduce their volume by crushing them.The students expressed their excitement about the environmentally-friendly project. “We aim to kick-start the market of sustainable waste management,” Emerezian assured. “We seek to encourage Palestinian businesses and the community to develop waste minimization projects that are socially and environmentally responsible.”“Our project does not stop here,” Emerezian went on. “The next step will target institutes that are interested in saving the environment. They can help us improve and distribute the machine all over the country.”