Local solution to Vietnam 'bike oil recycling
A Vietnamese student turned lecturer has discovered a local solution to recycling motorcycle lubes.
Prize-winning HCM City University of Technology student-turned lecturer, Nguyen Le Truc, was keen to find a way of reducing pollution from the motorcycle lubes regularly dumped on the streets by garages carrying out oil changes.
Her research led to a local source - bentonite - an absorbent aluminium silicate clay which is found in abundance in the local Binh Thuan Tuy Phong District. In fact, reserves are estimated at around 7.5 million tonnes.
Instead of a high-temperature chemical process, the used oil is filtered through the bentonite at normal temperatures, with the clay absorbing impurities in the oil. According to Truc, the process produces 50-60% of re-usable lubricants from 100% waste oil, doubling the value of the waste product from 50c/litre to $1/litre for recycled lubes.
The bentonite itself also generates revenue, the residue including the impurities being turned into bricks or coal. Bentonite coal gives-off CO2 and water when burnt, thus having minimal environmental impact.
