PyroTech - NRIC

NRIC

Novel Research and Innovation Competition (NRIC)

Objectives of this competition:

To support the ambition and anticipation of the nation to boost the nation’s development through the empowerment towards research and improvement in science and technology;
The value of sustainability in research outcomes for the better of future sustainability;
To give recognition to the innovation research projects done by the undergraduates, postgraduates and also the diploma, by the university;
To exclusively exhibit the winning products and innovations earned from a progressive research and development of the students from IPTs in Malaysia and international;
To encourage students to conduct researches and innovations thus creating their own career opportunities.
To exposure the undergraduate students to international research programs.

Official Website: http://web.usm.my/nric/2016/index.html, http://web.usm.my/nric/2017/main.html

2017

Project Title: An Eco-Friendly Palm Shell Carbon as Potential Water Filter, Gas Separator, and Electrical Conductor

Researchers: Phang Xue Yee, Chong Min Yee, Nam Wai Lun, Dr. Lam Su Shiung

Product Summary: Oil palm shell is constantly generated from the palm oil mill, representing a problematic waste that needs high cost for waste management and disposal. These wastes can be a useful resource to transform into valuable products such as high-quality carbon materials via microwave vacuum pyrolysis. We have thermally decomposed oil palm shell in an inert environment and performed an innovative microwave activation to produce Palm Shell Carbon. The Palm Shell Carbon produced is highly porous with large surface area (500-800 m2/g) and high pore volume (0.2 – 0.4 cm3/g), thus provides many adsorption sites to adsorb or trap particles. This enables Palm Shell Carbon can be used as the water filter to remove pollutants in water, as a gas separator to separate out pure gas molecules from the gas mixture, and as an electrical conductor to conduct electric for electrical appliances. It is a comparatively low-cost product to those applications since it is produced from a low-cost renewable resource (oil palm shell). Palm Shell Carbon can be a highly demanding product in the world especially in water and gas purification industries with the estimated market price about US$ 2.1 billion. Thus, it is a valuable product that is worth to be commercialized.

Award: SILVER Medal

Project Title: Microwave Pyrolysis – How Can Microwave ‘Cook’ Coconut Waste to Make Char as Drinking Water Filter Material

Researchers: Nam Wai Lun, Su Man Huan, Phang Xue Yee, Dr. Lam Su Shiung

Product Summary: Conventional mushroom cultivation method shows limitations of slow mycelium growth rate and low mushroom productivity which affects the profit margin of the mushroom farmers. Production of Pyrolite (carbon-dense material) as an innovative mushroom growth enhancer, representing a sustainable solution to the mushroom industries. Large amount of waste palm kernel shell (PKS) represents a sustainable feedstock to produce Pyrolite using microwave vacuum pyrolysis (MVP). The MVP creates localized reaction hot zone that thermally promotes pyrolytic cracking on the surface of PKS and formed a high surface area in Pyrolite that can adsorb the nutrient and water to increase the fertility of mushroom medium. Due to the enough nutrient supply, the mycelium can grow faster (28-30 days) and increase the mushroom productivity (500-600 g/baglog). We believed that the Pyrolite has the significant benefits to the present mushroom communities as it can increase the profit margin from the impressive mushroom productivity. Besides that, Pyrolite also an affordable (market price ≈ RM 0.50/kg) and easy to use product for the mushroom farmers. Therefore, the Pyrolite shows high commercial value and it can be a promising alternative to improve the mushroom cultivation.

Award: Second Runnner-up in Community Research and Innovation Competition (CoRIC)

2016

Project Title: Microwave Pyrolysis – How Can Microwave ‘Cook’ Coconut Waste to Make Char as Drinking Water Filter Material

Researchers: Elfina binti Azwar, Amir Haqim bin Shahidin, Dr. Lam Su Shiung

Product Summary: Coconut husk, a biomass waste that is abundantly available in Malaysia, was converted into char using a newly developed pyrolysis method incorporating microwave heating (termed “microwave pyrolysis”). A lab-scale pyrolysis system followed by an upgraded system has been developed to demonstrate its technical feasibility. This pyrolysis method offers a fast heating and short process time compared to that shown by other conventional pyrolysis methods. A char with high porosity was produced. The char also showed a high carbon content (78 wt%), representing a carbon-dense product with high resistance towards chemical reactions. Combined with a surface area of 51 m2/g, the char shows potential to be used as a filter material for drinking water, wastewater treatment, air and odour purification.

Award: GOLD Medal, Champion in Community Research and Innovation Competition (CoRIC)

Media: click here Sinar Harian and School of Ocean Engineering