Lord Wandsworth College student tackles a centuries-old killer
A sixth form student from Lord Wandsworth College near Hook has designed and
developed a way of heating water which could save lives.
17-year-old Thomas, together with a group of friends, created a parabolic solar cooker after watching news coverage of a cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe. The severe diarrheal infection is caused by consuming food or water contaminated with the Vibrio cholerae bacteria. Whilst many of those who contract it suffer mild to moderate symptoms, it can become lethal within hours.
'We decided to make a product that could boil water easily,' Thomas explained.
'Firewood is an unsustainable energy resource and because of deforestation, people in Zimbabwe often have to travel long distances to access it. Their electrical supply is unreliable and expensive and so we came up with the idea of designing a solar cooker.'
After the friends came up with the initial plans in the summer of 2024, they travelled to Zimbabwe to showcase their prototypes to villagers. '
Most of them had never seen a product like this and they were very impressed,' Thomas continued. '
We left them with the models we made, along with the blueprint for the designs. Now they can boil water a lot more easily than using more conventional methods.'
The cooker resembles an inverted umbrella and works by concentrating light via its mirrored surface onto a single focal point. This can then heat water to boiling point within 15 minutes and costs around £11 to make.
Since coming up with the initial model, the group has created a second, more efficient device using an aluminium frame and glass fibre. The friends have recently returned from a second trip to Zimbabwe, where they were able to demonstrate this.
'
We arranged for 100 solar cookers to be transported there,' Thomas revealed.
'We donated 25 of them to the National Council of Disabled Persons of Zimbabwe(NCDPZ) and 25 to three hospitals and two schools. The remaining 50 will support a ‘business to philanthropy’ framework; where local partners and government officials will work together to retail the cookers locally, using the income to sustain the programme in the longer term.'
For Thomas and his fellow budding engineers, the aim of the project is not financial. He admits,
'We have registered a utility patent for our designs, but we don’t want to make money from it. To me, this is about engineering and designing a solution to a problem. Engineering relates to real life and can help people. It can heal and provide better living conditions for those who also have big dreams.'
September 2025