“BIOPLASTIC PRODUCTION FROM SHRIMP WASTE” Project is the winner of Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) award at THE 36th Engineering Design Exhibition

       
Eng. Basma Saad Mubarak, Fahda Zaher Al-Rashidi, Shouq Al-Mana’a, Dana Sabbah Al-Hajri and Sara Al-Da'aan from Chemical Engineering Department at College of Engineering and Petroleum-KU, participated in the production of (chitin) which is one of the most important components of the shrimps’ crust and convert it into chitosan in order to add it to PLA, which is a type of bioplastic, as to have an environmentally safe plastic decomposition that transforms into plant food within 21 days, in comparison to the plastics that decomposes after more than 400 years.
The project’s process is to collect crusts instead of throwing them away and allocate a factory for them, which is very beneficial for Kuwait, as the materials used in manufacturing are wastes that have no material value.
One of the advantages of the project is that shrimps in Kuwait have certain periods and seasons and do not require care or import from abroad, moreover, it is possible to develop the project in the future.
In conclusion, the students extended their appreciation to the project’s supervisor Dr. Bader Al-Busairi for his tremendous efforts and assistance.