Ukraine Repurposing Vape Batteries as Power Banks
Credit: Lucitanija
A group of cyber specialists is repurposing batteries from used e-cigarettes into power banks for frontline soldiers in places like forests and trenches with no access to electricity.
Working in a generator-powered office just outside Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv, the volunteers work day and night to make the products that are in scarce supply, according to Channel News Asia.
“We collected electronic cigarettes (and) inside turned out to be a completely normal rechargeable lithium battery, which has its own cycle and even has a capacity higher than it says on the case,” said IT specialist Ivan Volynets, who founded Power Kit, the company producing the power banks.
“We were very surprised and decided that if we could keep collecting them, we could then make power banks and provide soldiers with these devices.”
Volunteers have so far collected more than five tons of used e-cigarettes for repurposing.
They are assisted by Ukrainian delivery service Nova Poshta, which ships discarded vaping devices to Power Kit for free.
IT specialist Dmytro said each power bank stores enough energy to fully charge a typical phone up to five times. “It also works for other equipment such as drones and radios,” he added.