30-hertz sound puts out fire in seconds — gold medal for 17-year-old Mexican Ángela’s device
Photo: Collected
Mexico has won a gold medal at an international science fair with a device that can put out fires in just a few seconds using low-frequency sound waves. The prototype, named ‘Vortex Tech’, was invented by 17-year-old Mexican student Ángela Karime Venegas Hernández. The device came first at the international science and innovation fair held in Indonesia from 14 to 16 October.
Venegas studies at CETIS 78, a public technical institution in the city of Altamira in Mexico’s Tamaulipas state. In a video interview, she said the idea came to her from a video of a project by DARPA, the US defence research agency. DARPA had run tests on putting out fires with the force of sound waves using a four-metre-long ‘sonic cannon’. After seeing that, she set out to build her own technology.
How the device works
The ‘acoustic extinguisher’, or sound-based fire extinguisher, built by Venegas and her team has a 12-volt battery, a frequency generator, an amplifier, a horn and a converted barrel.
First, the device produces a low frequency of 30 hertz, that is, 30 vibrations per second. A special horn or speaker turns it into a powerful sound wave and sends it towards the mouth of the barrel. As it exits through the barrel’s round opening, the sound wave creates a whirl in the air, or a ‘vortex ring’. This fast-spinning air pushes oxygen away from around the fire, and starved of oxygen the fire goes out instantly.
Success on the fifth attempt
Venegas said that at first she struggled even to put out the flame of a small candle. After two months of continuous research and repeated failures, the desired result came with the fifth prototype. The whole work took about a year to complete.
Her main adviser on this journey was her maternal uncle, José Arturo Hernández Muñoz, who has himself represented Mexico at several science fairs. In Venegas’s words, ‘Reaching this point would not have been possible without my uncle’s patience, hard work and overall guidance.’ Posting photos of the medal and certificate on Instagram, she wrote, ‘This gold medal is not just a recognition; it is the result of never giving up, believing in my own idea and turning it into reality.’
An electronics student, Venegas wants to pursue higher studies in mechatronics or engineering in future. In Indonesia, she represented her country wearing the ‘China Poblana’, a traditional Mexican dress.
However, she said she has not yet received support from any private organisation or institution to improve the invention or bring it to market. To attend the fair, she received only travel costs and initial financial support from Altamira mayor Armando Martínez Manríquez and the local education ministry.
Sources
Original report: Ajker Patrika
