Youngster lights up the future for thousands
The compassionate grade six pupil was inspired when she saw thousands of people in the rural community outside Lydenburg still living without electricity.
LYDENBURG – Zanri Hanekom is well on her way to become the Thomas Edison of Lydenburg.
At age 12 she has invented solar bottle bulbs that may help thousands of people worldwide living without electricity. This young bright spark came up with a simple and cheap solar bulb that will literally light up the future of households.
The aim of her project is to help those who still do not have electricity by installing these and empowering residents to start making their own ones to sell. Not only will this provide much-needed light to houses without electricity supply, it will also single-handedly save lives by preventing fires which are caused by candles.
This invention comes at a critical time when South Africa faces an electricity crisis, and might yet be the answer in saving thousands of rand. The compassionate grade six pupil was inspired when she saw thousands of people in the rural community outside Lydenburg still living without electricity. “When I saw the difficulties the children had to go through in order to study at night I thought of helping them solve the problem without placing their lives in danger. Using a candle as a means to study is not safe,” she said.
She decided to use her knowledge for good by making this simple and effective solar bulb a school science project. “As part of my science expo project I decided that I want to make a difference in our community because I have seen how some people are still living without lights in their homes.”
To provide those in need with light, this future engineer started installing solar bulbs and at the same time educated the community how to make their own.
Zanri has already installed six of these in households helping them become independent. She has also handed out six other bulbs to families to install themselves. “I give presentations at local institutions and soon I will visit schools. My plan is to make sure that I teach others how to make it themselves so that they can teach others. My vision is to have lights in all houses, regardless of type or structure,” she said.
The application of the solar bulb is simple. It works by refraction of light rays because of different mediums, air and water. Normally only straight light rays come into the house when a hole is opened in the roof, a very small area is lighted but the other parts of the house are still dark. By reflecting light from the sun, it produces 360 degrees light in the room which is equivalent to the power of a 60 watts bulb. After installing it, light is reflected into the bottle. Because of the bottle’s round shape, light is reflected in different directions inside the house.”
The solar bulb is also extremely economical. “It can last for about five years without maintenance before the water has to be changed. To prevent the growth of micro-organisms and to maintain the clarity of the water she adds bleach and/or chlorine.
According to a resident of Mashishing, Thabo Shubane, the project will be very helpful in Mashishing for those who do not have electricity and also during load-shedding.
Zanri will compete during the science expo fair in Nelspruit on Saturday August 22. Last year she received a gold medal, the Eskom Best Energy Project certificate, the Best Intermedia Project and was the fourth top score in Mpumalanga. “This year I am hoping to come home with more than what I received last year,” she said. Like Edison said, “If there is a way to do it better – find it”, and that is exactly what Zanri has done.
