PowerWells: How a startup is fixing the twin downside of power poverty and digital waste

Now that the Cisco World Downside Solver Problem 2022 winners have been formally introduced, you’ll need to be taught extra about every successful crew and the story behind every innovation. The Cisco World Downside Solver Problem is an internet competitors that awards money prizes to early-stage tech entrepreneurs fixing the world’s hardest issues. Since 2017, the competitors has awarded $3.25 million USD to 78 start-ups from 25 nations.

We’re excited so that you can be taught extra concerning the 2022 successful groups addressing a few of the greatest challenges we face by means of technology-based options.

Meet PowerWells, a startup primarily based out of Australia that received a $75,000 USD Regional First Runner-Up Prize within the Asia Pacific, Japan and China (APJC) area. Their answer addresses the twin world issues of digital waste administration and lack of entry to primary electrical energy.

I sat down with Bradley Clair, one of many co-founders of PowerWells, who’s passionate concerning the intersection of digital waste recycling and power poverty options. He shared extra about how PowerWells is diverting batteries from landfills and the way they’re serving to individuals make the change from kerosene to scrub power.

What downside is your expertise answer attempting to resolve?

Brad: PowerWells is attempting to resolve the twin issues of power poverty and digital waste globally. We need to exchange individuals’s reliance on kerosene lanterns, which is horrible for the surroundings and your well being. A household sitting round a bit of kerosene lamp is equal to smoking two packs of cigarettes per day. On the similar time, in Australia, solely about 2 % of lithium-ion batteries are at present being recycled or repurposed. Ninety-eight % of these batteries are doubtlessly ending up in landfills. There’s nonetheless a lot life in these discarded batteries which might be remodeled into sustainable types of power for individuals who don’t have entry to a standard electrical grid.

We recycle lithium-ion laptop computer batteries by pulling them aside and testing them. We get the nice cells which are working, after which we use these cells to construct greater packs. We additionally use TV and pc screens, and we use the Perspex (a sort of acrylic) inside that and put that into the laser cutter to construct the battery enclosure. We primarily created a small-scale photo voltaic system that we are able to put into locations that don’t have entry to electrical energy so that individuals can cost their telephones and have mild.

At Substation33, the digital waste recycling facility we associate with, we most likely processed over 10 tons of lithium-ion batteries. Of that 10 tons of lithium-ion batteries, about 80 % of these batteries are nonetheless okay to make use of. So, meaning from the 98 % of batteries doubtlessly going into landfills, 80 % of them are usable. And as an alternative of permitting these batteries to finish up in landfills, we’d as effectively use them to supply energy to individuals with out entry to electrical energy.

Are you able to clarify how the answer works?

Brad: What normally occurs is we’ll have an entire heap of discarded computer systems right here at Substation. Then we’ll have individuals pulling aside the computer systems and finding out the totally different parts. One of many parts is the battery. Our crew will take a look at all of the cells, and these kind of batteries are just like AA batteries. There are about six of those AA batteries in these laptop computer batteries. So, we’ll have individuals testing all these cells, and it’s normally solely one of many cells which are useless, however you’ll be able to’t use the battery anymore when that occurs.

So, we get the nice cells which are working, after which they take a look at all of the cells that also work to find out if they’re any good. We grade our batteries, and the grade helps us decide the applying. If it’s a nice battery, we’ll put that into our energy system, and if it’s not an excellent battery, we’ll put it into one thing else.

After the batteries have been examined, soldered, and the Perspex enclosure assembled, we solder the circuit board, which is designed right here at Substation33. The sensible factor concerning the circuit board is that it reduces the capability of the cell to increase its life, so we don’t absolutely cost or discharge the battery. We’re solely utilizing about 50 % of the battery capability, and in doing so, you prolong the lifetime of the cells. So, it’s fairly totally different from what many different firms are doing.

We are able to additionally gather and seize knowledge factors like temperature, humidity, and power going out and in of the system, which provides us perception into how the techniques are used and if there are any points. And from a Company Social Accountability (CSR) perspective, whoever is investing in sponsoring these techniques can see the return on their impression.

After sending them abroad, there may be some ultimate wiring, they usually solder the batteries onto the circuit board and put the wrap over techniques. They exit to the totally different villages, and the techniques are put in in locations that want them. The households that obtain the system pay about 5 {dollars} a month to have entry to electrical energy, they usually pay that off over three years. It finally ends up being about 180 {dollars} to pay for the techniques.

What’s progressive about the way in which you’re fixing the difficulty? What units your answer aside?

Brad: So far as I’m conscious, I feel we’re one of many solely firms which are utilizing digital waste on this manner to supply energy to locations that don’t have entry to electrical energy. Our objective is individuals and surroundings first. We need to make our techniques simple to fabricate utilizing regionally sourced e-waste, and straightforward to keep up to make sure the longevity of the system and that we don’t contribute to the issue we are attempting to resolve. We’ve additionally included Pay As You Go expertise, to make it simpler for households to repay our techniques, and we seize telemetry displayed through an internet dashboard to visually display the impression of our techniques.

What impressed you to develop this answer?

Brad: Throughout a startup weekend at Substation33, we had been requested to resolve a social or environmental downside. We had a bunch member from West Papua, Indonesia, and he grew up in a village that didn’t have any entry to electrical energy. His mother and father nonetheless reside there, they usually don’t have any energy. So, we determined to deal with power poverty, utilizing our expertise working with repurposed batteries. We made a battery, put it right into a paint bucket, hooked a photo voltaic panel as much as it, and put some USB charging ports on it. One of many judges requested us if we needed to go forward and do it, and two weeks later, we raised a number of thousand {dollars}.

We flew over to Jakarta to check all of the assumptions that we got here up with throughout the startup weekend to see if it was one thing that will be worthwhile. We put in our prototype in a small village with out energy, and as quickly as we put it in there, all the children grabbed their smartphones and tablets that had been fully useless and began charging their gadgets. We examined all our assumptions inside a number of weeks of arising with the thought. We had been impressed to begin the enterprise as a result of we realized there was a necessity for it, and it was additionally attainable.

How will successful a prize within the Cisco World Downside Solver Problem enable you to advance your enterprise?

Brad: Cisco’s funds will assist propel us ahead; it provides us a possibility to go from pilot undertaking to scale. We need to create extra scalable processes, native manufacturing, coaching and employment alternatives for native groups on the bottom. This prize provides us an ideal platform to succeed in out to different organizations and photo voltaic distributors, who would profit from studying tips on how to repurpose digital waste to supply power to individuals in want.

Are you aware what you’ll use the prize cash for particularly?

 Brad: On account of COVID, we couldn’t journey abroad to fulfill new companions, and arrange manufacturing in Indonesia. We need to use this cash to start the method with our companions Sumba Sustainable Options, who’re at present distributing our techniques. We’re additionally desirous about the rise of electrical autos (EV) and want to put a few of that cash into creating our subsequent product, which contains used EV batteries.

 What recommendation do you’ve got for different social entrepreneurs?

 Brad: It’s a tricky journey. You’ve acquired to be keen to stay to it, even while you aren’t getting so much in return. However it’s wonderful when firms like Cisco again organizations like ours as a result of it means a lot, contemplating the quantity of time and effort you set into it. Preserve testing your entire assumptions, exit into the sector, and keep it up.

Keep tuned for extra articles in our weblog collection, that includes interviews with each Cisco World Downside Solver Problem 2022 successful crew!

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