Dr. Legena Henry, a visionary from Trinidad and Tobago, is leading an innovative startup that transforms waste products into sustainable fuel. Her team has discovered a method to convert sargassum seaweed and waste from rum distilleries into an energy source that could power cars, an initiative branded as Rum and Sargassum.
Initially unsure if their idea would work, Henry and her team were met with an unexpected breakthrough, proving that necessity and ingenuity can drive remarkable discoveries.
The story traces back to Dr. Henry’s tenure as a professor at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus in Barbados, where she taught a course on sustainable energy. During one of her lectures, a student raised a crucial concern regarding the affordability of electric vehicles.
“One day in class, while we were discussing transportation, a student raised her hand and said, ‘I am seeing all these electric vehicles around Barbados, but I cannot afford an electric car’,” Henry recounted to the Trinidad Daily Express.
This statement struck a chord with Henry. She realized that the transition to electric vehicles, while beneficial, was not feasible for a large portion of the population due to high costs.
This prompted her to explore alternative energy solutions that could be locally sourced and economically viable.To address this challenge, Henry and her students began investigating Brazil’s successful ethanol fuel industry.
In Brazil, nearly two-thirds of all internal combustion engine (ICE) cars operate on a renewable fuel derived from sugarcane ethanol. The team initially believed that replicating this model in Barbados could be a viable solution.
However, after an intensive three-week study, they encountered a significant obstacle—the Barbadian sugarcane industry was in decline. The island’s current sugarcane production was insufficient to support large-scale ethanol production as Brazil had done. This realization forced the team to reconsider their approach.
At this pivotal moment, Brittney McKenzie, a UWI student, introduced a new idea—using sargassum seaweed as an energy source. Sargassum, an invasive seaweed that plagues the Caribbean’s shores, has been a long-standing issue for Barbados.
The government and resort owners spend millions annually to clear it from beaches, as its decomposition releases a pungent odor akin to rotten fish, deterring tourists. Given that tourism is Barbados’ primary economic sector, finding a use for this abundant waste material seemed promising.
Initially skeptical, Dr. Henry was hesitant to invest in the idea, but she chose not to discourage her students’ enthusiasm. Given that only three weeks remained in the summer research period, they decided to bypass the traditional preliminary literature review, opting instead to conduct an experiment directly.
Ordinarily, academic research would involve reviewing prior studies to determine whether sargassum had been tested for energy production and whether it could generate the level of energy required for vehicles. However, in a surprising twist, Henry and her students unknowingly avoided discouragement by not reading existing literature before running their experiment.
“So we did not read the articles. The journals would have told us don’t put sargassum in any biodigester because you are not going to get any energy out of it. But we didn’t read. We didn’t read so we went and did it and guess what? Energy came out of it—we got a biogas from sargassum, but it was mixed with rum wastewater,” Henry revealed.
The breakthrough came with the unexpected synergy between sargassum and rum distillery waste. The combination resulted in a biogas fuel that could potentially power vehicles. This discovery set the stage for further research and business development.
With a promising discovery in hand, Henry and her students sought funding from development agencies to expand their research. Their goal was to scale up the process and create a marketable fuel product under the Rum and Sargassum brand.
To make their fuel a viable alternative, the team is now studying sargassum’s growth patterns and distribution across the Caribbean, where it has become a widespread environmental issue. By understanding its movement and availability, they can ensure a consistent supply for fuel production.
Dr. Henry envisions a simple conversion kit that could retrofit ICE cars to use their new fuel blend, making it an attractive and cost-effective solution compared to purchasing electric vehicles. This alternative could allow thousands of people to transition away from gasoline without the high cost of adopting electric cars.
Beyond making fuel more accessible, Henry’s project has the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions. She estimates that if implemented on a national scale, the Rum and Sargassum fuel could eliminate approximately 103,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually in Barbados.
This initiative not only presents an opportunity for sustainable energy production but also addresses two major environmental concerns—excessive sargassum accumulation and rum distillery waste. By transforming these waste products into a renewable fuel source, Henry and her team are simultaneously solving ecological and economic challenges.
Dr. Henry’s journey from classroom discussion to pioneering an innovative biofuel is a testament to the power of curiosity, determination, and thinking outside the box. The success of Rum and Sargassum could revolutionize fuel consumption in the Caribbean, providing an affordable and sustainable alternative to gasoline while tackling pressing environmental issues.
Her work stands as an example of how scientific innovation and practical problem-solving can lead to groundbreaking solutions, proving that sometimes, not reading the rules can lead to the biggest discoveries.
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