There’s a power of exciting battery news on our phones every day. But the big corporations and research institutions seize the headlines, drowning out the efforts of individuals. Radio France Internationale tipped us off about a quiet battery revolution brewing in Keyna. When we searched for Paul Waweru we learned the hero is a school physics teacher.
When School’s Out the Battery Revolution Continues
Paul Waweru is by all accounts a great teacher, who inspires the kids in his class to think. However, he also practices what he preaches. Euro News shares a remarkable story of what he did, when his imported electric motorbike stopped working.
The batteries packed in after a few months, and there was no local source for replacements. After a few iterations he turned to old laptop batteries, cluttering junkyards, repair shops and electronic waste dumps. A quiet battery revolution was brewing in his inventive mind.
These spent laptop batteries sold for around half a Kenyan shilling each – less than the price of a loaf of bread. Nobody seemed to have ideas for repurposing them, although Paul Waweru discovered they still held 70% of their power. He checked them carefully, and discarded those showing any signs of damage.
The physics teacher then taught himself how to break down the used laptop batteries that passed careful scrutiny, into individual cells and identify which ones were still serviceable. When he had his imported e-bike up and running on these repurposed batteries, he realized he had stumbled on another brain wave.
Converting Petrol Motorbikes to Quiet Battery Power
Paul Waweru did his homework. He discovered that he could halve the running costs of couriers and delivery riders, by persuading them to convert to the e-bikes he is now selling with driving ranges of 30 miles:
- He collects scrap petrol motorbikes from junkyards, repair shops and waste dumps.
- Then he removes the power units, and replaces them with repurposed laptop batteries and electric motors.
- His customers are delighted, especially when they recharge their batteries overnight with solar power.
“No noise, no smoke, just movement,” a happy customer told Radio France Internationale. “The customers do ask. They’re all surprised. They say, this came out of an old laptop?”
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