Akinori Ito invents machine to convert plastic into oil

Humans. We are a pretty wasteful species aren’t we? Drink a bottle of water - throw it away. Get a take-away coffee - throw it away. Get a carton of beer with your mates on a Friday night – 24 bottles in the bin. Eat a packet of chips… the list goes on and on. It’s fair to say there has been an increase of awareness in the last 10 years but we still have a long way to go before we get our waste down to a manageable level. Thankfully though, there are people out there using their intelligence to create new technology in favour of the environment, rather then adding to the problem.

Enter Akinori Ito. He has developed a machine that converts plastic into oil. The machine comes in sizes that are suitable for both industrial and home use, transforming a kilogram of plastic waste into a litre of oil. Plastics numbered 2 – 4 (polyethylene, polystyrene, polypropylene) can be converted by using only 1 kWh of electricity, which costs less than 20 cents, compared to the average cost required to purchase a litre of oil, which is about $1.50. The machine uses electric heating rather then flames and no CO2 is emitted in the process. Check out this video:

Head to the Flixxy website for more info.

Have you heard of any other cool inventions that are helping to save our beautiful planet? Let us know about them in the comment thread below!