OLEOTRAP: oil filter for drains

Various initiatives, including recycling centres and public awareness campaigns, have been introduced to lessen the discharge of oil into national sewage systems. However, persistent Fat, Oil, and Grease (FOG) accumulation continues to cause long-term drain clogging, particularly at the household level. This innovation aims to develop a practical, low-cost filtration mechanism that captures oil at the source before it enters drainage systems. The product features a two-stage filtration design comprising a stainless-steel mesh layer for coarse particle retention and an oil adsorption keratin-based fibrous layer. Waste cat fur and human hair were collected, washed, dried, and needle-felted into round porous felted discs, which were then enclosed within a mesh and into a flow-stabilising base with vertical channels for water drainage. Experimental testing using oil-water mixtures demonstrated that both materials effectively adsorbed visible oil while allowing water flow. Quantitative analysis revealed that at a density of 0.08 g/cm³, cat fur achieved a high adsorption of 63 mL at 80 mL oil input, outperforming human hair by approximately 25%. Furthermore, density variation showed that lower-density cat fur (0.05 g/cm³) displayed the highest adsorption ability (79 mL), while higher densities reduced performance by 20%. For human hair, adsorption increased with increasing density. These findings reveal the importance of structural porosity in optimising adsorption performance. Overall, the developed mechanism shows strong potential as a sustainable, low-cost household solution for FOG management, with promising scalability and commercial applicability in domestic and small-scale food preparation settings, fulfilling SDG 12 and SDG 14.