By Oluwadara Adebisi,Samuel Obour

Copyright yen

An ATU student has developed a solar-powered mobile fridge to help vendors preserve yoghurt and ice cream outdoorsHe used a Peltier device and battery-solar combo to keep items cold without using traditional refrigeration componentsHe has appealed to the government and investors to support technical education and scale his solar fridge prototype

A student from Accra Technical University (ATU) has made his school proud with his newly developed mobile refrigeration system that is powered by solar energy.

During a street interview, the student, identified as Dairich, disclosed that he designed and built the innovative solar-powered machine to help street vendors in their business.

According to him, vendors selling yoghurt and ice cream can make use of the mobile refrigeration system to prevent their products from melting under the sun.

The system is a compact wheeled unit equipped with solar panels.

“This is a mobile refrigeration system, right? We took inspiration from our yoghurt vendors. You see those people, it’s only the cart that their stuff is inside. So when they go out there and the sun shines, it melts it. They don’t have any means to keep the energy.”

“We thought, why don’t we bring an innovative idea that will help them in their business? So we decided to use the solar.”

ATU student innovates mobile solar refrigerator

According to Dairich, the mobile refrigeration system operates using a combination of solar power and battery storage, making sure it remains functional regardless of weather conditions. Instead of having traditional refrigeration components like a compressor, it makes use of a Peltier device.

A Peltier device acts as a thermoelectric cooler that creates a temperature difference, keeping the inside of the box cold while expelling heat to the exterior.

Theophilus explained that he and his team developed the prototype with very limited resources. He is now making a passionate appeal to the government and potential investors to support and invest in technical education and innovators like himself.

He stated that with proper funding, they can scale up this project and develop more solutions to local problems.

Watch the video of his innovation below:

Reactions to ATU student’s mobile solar refrigerator

YEN.com.gh has collected reactions below from Ghanaians who watched the trending video on X.

@EfyaBerlin said:

“Herrr, this guy’s mind is working. Never thought of this, but I pray this idea don’t go waste.”

@evils_only wrote:

“This is really good, but can they fix the solar panel into the basket or container rather. The solar will be inside or fixed inside somewhere. Cus this one de33, the solar is tooo exposed… too exposed.”

@kkooffi commented:

“We have normal ice chests that keep things cold for 12+ hours, basically making this innovation unnecessary.”

@selXwin suggested:

“Nice idea. I’m happy he said they learn on the job and improve. Make he patent am before one big company go steal the idea.”

Ghanaian man builds helicopter from scrap metal

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that a Ghanaian inventor built a helicopter using scrap materials to address healthcare delivery challenges in remote areas.

The aircraft is designed as a faster alternative to ambulances, reducing travel time to hospitals in hard-to-reach areas, with netizens reacting positively.

Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh