A STEM program at J.C. Booth Middle in Peachtree City gave Lara Ysabel Otico the inspiration for an award-winning idea.
“Our teacher wanted us to think about problems around us,” said the 14-year-old. “I thought about doing something with kudzu because it grows everywhere. It’s so invasive. I wanted to find a way to incentivize the use of the plant.”
Otico’s vision was to turn kudzu vines and leaves into sustainable, versatile products while also decreasing the amount of kudzu in the environment.
“I wanted to create a new matter that could be used in various ways, such as paper in various thicknesses or biodegradable plastics used in textiles and food packaging,” she said.
Figuring out the required details put Otico on an intense course of self-instruction that started with learning how to manufacture paper.
“I had never taken a chemistry course and didn’t know anything about chemical compounds, so I taught myself what I needed,” she said. “I also didn’t have a lot of equipment; I was boiling kudzu at home and drying it at school.”
Otico’s family got behind the project as well. “My two siblings and dad went with me to get the kudzu, and they put up with the smell that kind of stunk up the house a bit.”
After testing different chemicals and bleaches, Otico came up with a combination that gave kudzu the consistency of traditional paper. She named it plapper, a mix of plastics, paper and plants. She then submitted her idea to The Henry Ford Invention Convention Worldwide, a global K-12 competition that honors 25 student inventors for their creativity and ability to identify and solve a problem.
“I was really lost in the application process, but I wound up making a video to pitch my product,” said Otico. “In March, I learned I made it to the state competition and then went onto the nationals.”
In June, Otico presented her idea to judges at the national competition in Dearborn, Michigan, where she won second place and the Best In-Person Presentation award. In August, she was one of about 140 students who participated at the international level, where she won third place. That recognition has opened doors that could give her product a future.
“I’ve started the patenting process,” she said. “I also connected with several universities and professors who can help. One of the problems was I didn’t have the reactors needed to make this; I had to theorize how to do it. But eventually I got to go to Georgia Tech where they have the equipment.”
Otico, now in the STEM program at McIntosh High, continues to look for mentors and supporters.
“Initially, I didn’t know what was going to happen with all this,” she said. “Now because of STEM, I’ve gotten interested in its applications for health care. But I plan on trying other things before I decide exactly what I want to do.”
Information about the Invention Convention is online at inhub.thehenryford.org.
SEND US YOUR STORIES. Each week we look at programs, projects and successful endeavors at area schools, from pre-K to grad school. To suggest a story, contact H.M. Cauley at hm_cauley@yahoo.com or 770-744-3042.
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