Thinking of a sustainable alternative for society and minimizing environmental impact is what led to Juan Eduardo Centeno, CEO of Re-ciclasto devise a bicycle that contains PET bottles.
Re-ciclas is a company with environmental practices and is part of the Recycling Laboratory, in Quito. Three years ago, according to Centeno, this possibility was studied and a few months ago he created it.
And that is how with 300 PET bottles he made the frame of a bicyclewhich is a fundamental part of this means of transport.
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“This was born due to the issue of contamination that people discard everything in the garbage and do not separate. That goes to rivers, seas… so trying to find a solution we decided to recycle PET bottles, like water in general, and with those we obtain the frame of a bicycle”, explains Centeno.
The process to create a bicycle frame takes three hours. First, the bottles are washed and sorted. Then, they are crushed to form very fine pieces to melt. Then, pigment and chemicals are added to this melt to give it greater resistance and UV protection.
All this mixture is deposited in a machine that injects the material at high pressure into a mold. After four minutes the injection process concludes and the frame is removed to cool. After a few hours that frame is ready to finish assembling the bike.
“We want to promote the idea so that all of Ecuador recycles and does not throw away the bottles with the rest of the garbage,” says Centeno and He adds that there is an incentive for this, which consists of collecting 1,000 kilos of PET bottles in order to obtain a bicycle.
”This is aimed at schools, colleges, neighborhoods, municipalities, and so on. When we say 1,000 kilos, people get scared, but the truth is that we generate a lot of plastic every day, ”she points out.
According to data from Re-ciclas, every year the world produces 300 million tons of plastic waste, of which more than eight million end up in the sea.
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And within single-use plastics, the local industry has managed to reuse about 80% of plastic bottles that go on the market, according to the Ecuadorian Plastics Association. The plastics industry in the country is made up of 600 companies, 500 importers and its production generates $2.1 billion a year.
This 26-rim bike, which weighs 17 kilos and resists up to 150 kg. Centeno says they hope to raffle one every month.
To participate, people can collect 1 kilo of PET bottles, which is equivalent to 25 containers. These are received at the Recycling Laboratory, located in front of the Shyris grandstand, in Quito. There they will receive a digital ticket.
”Bicycles are friendly to the environment because they don’t need welding, they don’t rust. They are biodegradable”, highlights Centeno.
Each bicycle is raffled when 1,000 kilos of PET bottles are collected. At the moment they own five bicycles. ”The bike lasts for life and is newer than carbon because carbon is expensive”mentions Centeno, who adds that 27 people have joined the initiative.
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For those who live in other cities, Re-ciclas has several partners where they receive PET bottles, such as Loja, Ibarra, Guayaquil and Riobamba.
Meanwhile, Centeno clarifies that in the raffle you can also give only the frame if the people require it. “We give the frame and the rest of the components to assemble it is already to the taste of the people”, indicates Centeno and adds that they aspire to create a bicycle with 100% recycled components. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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