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Heritage High Students Create Alternative Fuel
alternative fuel, education, heritage high school, science project,
Who would have thought that school cafeteria waste could find new life as a source of engine fuel?
Strange but true, as proven by students at Heritage High School who have worked to create a viable, marketable bio-diesel fuel from kitchen grease.
“Our advanced-placement chemistry and small-engines teachers got to talking, and they thought it would be interesting if their students could collaborate on producing bio-diesel fuel,” explains Susan Dixon, director of career and technical education for the Evergreen Public Schools. “It was something that’s really a current issue, and was a great opportunity for work between various programs.”
Getting enough grease wasn’t a problem, and the students began working in small groups to build processors for the conversion process. Over the course of time, engineering students came in to work on the refining, and eventually business students came on board to look at marketing the final product.
“They’ve been working on this for about a year and a half, and a lot of partnerships have developed,” Dixon says. “It’s not so much that they’re creating a product, but that they’re engaged in authentic learning on something that’s relevant to the world at large.”
The finished product was professionally tested and deemed viable for sale. A group will travel to Washington this year to present their findings to a science subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Story by Joe Morris
