A 16-year-old Indian-origin south African girl bagged a scholarship prize of$50,000 for developing a cheap "super-absorbent material" at the annual google science fair.
The Annual Google science fair sees participation from aspiring scientists between the ages of 13 to 18 who are invited to showcase their talents and aid in solving the challenging issues using science and technology
Kiara Nirghin, a student of 11th grade, made use of orange peel in her project named'No More Thirsty Crops' to decode the problem of retaining soil water. The goal of the was solving the severe drought issue prevailing in South Africa.
She used the usually discarded orange and avocado fruit peel to come up with a solution to tackle the drought plagues.
"I have always had a great love for chemistry since I was young. I vividly remember at the age of seven experimenting with vinegar and baking soda solutions in plastic cups," said Kiara
"M.S. Swaminathan has always been an inspiration of mine as he truly believed in the necessary movement of not only India but the whole world towards sustainable agricultural development," referring to the world renowned Indian scientist.
She went on to add "I hope to one day become a scientist specialising in agricultural science and also become a molecular gastronomist."
"These SAPs are not biodegradable, are costly and full of acrylic acid, sodium hydroxide, and other chemicals. During more research on the topic, I found that natural occurring polymers exist in most citrus fruits," Kiara said.
It took her a mammoth 45 days of experimentation to create a low-cost super-absorbent polymer out of discarded fruit peels. The polymer can keep the soil moist by retaining large amounts of water thereby improving crop growth by leaps and bounds.
Kiara Nirghin, the young scientist believes her mixtures will assist crop growth during droughts.
This biodegradable polymer might turn out to be a gift from God for the drought affected farmers.
