The Hitachi Global Foundation Asia Innovation Award 2022 has officially announced the winners of this year’s ASEAN region scientists. University of Technology-VNU-HCM is honored to have 2 scientists who won this award, including a female scientist who won the Special Award for Best Innovation in Asia. Assoc.
The awards include the following categories: 1 Best Innovation Award; 03 Outstanding Innovation Awards and Consolation Awards (Encouragement Awards).
The female scientist of the university, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Thi Kim Phung (Director of the Center for Refining and Petrochemical Technology) won the Best Innovation Award with the project “Advanced Bio-based Aerogels from Agricultural Waste for Water Treatment – Fabrication of advanced materials Aerogel from agricultural waste for water treatment.” The award is worth 3 million yen, equivalent to about 540 million VND. This award honors the research of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Thi Kim Phung and colleagues for developing a technique to produce high-performance cellulose aerogel materials from agricultural waste towards environmentally friendly and economically viable production.
Aerogel is known as the lightest material in the world, has high performance and is applied in many fields. What makes the product unique is the composite aerogel material with both cellulose fiber reinforcement and binders such as hemi and lignin that improve mechanical properties and are of biological origin. The improved freeze-drying technology saves production time and energy, improves material performance, can be upgraded to industrial scale, and does not use chemical solvents like current technologies. Cellulose aerogel products have superior density, porosity, ability to adsorb heavy metals, organic solvents, and color compared to other products on the market.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Thi Kim Phung shared: “Currently, the process has been developed on a laboratory scale and pilot scale, and a patent has been registered. With this award, the project will develop applications on wastewater industry”.
Also, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Xuan Thanh (Head of VNU-HCM’s Key Laboratory of Advanced Waste Treatment Technology) won the Outstanding Innovation Award with the research topic “Wetland Technology on Earth” Wetland roof (WR) system for domestic wastewater treatment and sustainable cities”. The prize is worth 1 million yen, equivalent to about 180 million VND.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Xuan Thanh said: “This is an improved technology from the traditional wetland wastewater treatment system (constructed wetland), which can only be used to treat wastewater in rural areas, where there is a large area of land, and this system uses treatment plants such as sedges, reeds, etc. The technology is US patented”.
The Wetland roof system developed by Assoc.Prof.Dr. Bui Xuan Thanh and his colleagues is an improved system that uses thin layers of materials (~10 cm thick), lightweight, and plants that are readily available in urban areas and are able to withstand roof conditions (resistant to sun, wind, rain). This system can both help to combine wastewater treatment after the septic tank of the building to meet discharge standards, increase urban green space, biodiversity, absorb exhaust gas, cool indoor air, etc. In addition, Wetland roof technology can achieve sustainable development goals such as clean water and sanitation (SDG6) and urban sustainability (SDG13).
The Hitachi Global Foundation Asia Innovation Award is launched in 2020 to promote science, technology and innovation to contribute to solving social problems and realizing a sustainable society in the ASEAN region. This award recognizes individuals and groups who have served the public benefits through research and development in the fields of science and technology. This includes scientists’ vision of an ideal future society.
Source: hcmut.edu.vn
