A triumphant participation for the teams of the Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology at the International Innovation and Invention Competition through Exhibition 2024 (iCompEx’24), organised from 13 to 15 August 2024 at Politeknik Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah.

Held annually for young researchers, scientists and inventors to present their ideas and inventions that are beneficial for all and promote the country as a regional innovation hub, FEGT’s ninth participation this year saw the teams collectively earning three gold medals, four silver medals, and one bronze medal, along with certificates.

The gold medallists:

Syamimi’s team enthused, “We are truly overjoyed to be awarded gold, but more so, to be able to share our research with a wider audience. We are proud of our research study because the Microalgae Treatment Method is a potential wastewater treatment that can lead to the reduction of the carbon footprint of the wastewater treatment plant. The release of CO2 by bacteria can be avoided if after the Bacteria Treatment is being replaced by Microalgae Treatment.”

Kelvin Lee’s team expressed, “We believe our team managed to impress the judges because no past research has been done on the use of waste substitution in geopolymer synthesis. Our research showed that geopolymers reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and lower carbon footprints; unlike cement, which has high environmental and energy costs. It also promotes zero waste through circular economy, and aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by repurposing industrial by-products.”

Meanwhile, Toh explained, “This research demonstrates significant originality and contributes to the innovation for the future development of sustainable and environmentally friendly construction practices. This is because cement sand brick (CSB) is one of the environmentally friendly bricks. It does not undergo a firing process to increase its strength and durability compared to fired brick, and thus CSB reduces environmental impact and depletion of non-renewable energy resource.”

Silver medallists:

Koh’s team explained, “We are happy to present our research as there is limited focus on combining Spent Coffee Grounds (SCG) and Swine Wastewater (SW), two major wastes from the beverage and food industries, in composting. Both SCG and SW are rich in nitrogen, making them ideal for composting. The growing demand for coffee and pork has led to a significant increase in these by-products. By composting SCG, SW, and discarded vegetables, we found that this mix can be transformed into useful fertilisers, reducing both waste treatment costs and the need for synthetic fertilisers.”

Low’s team expressed, “This silver medal has made all our hard work worth it. We are happy to have our research recognised, and to be able to contribute to tackling environmental problems. This is because Photocatalytic fuel cell (PFC) is a green technology that converts organic waste into electric energy, offering a viable solution to the environmental problem and energy crisis. It can generate electricity by utilising renewable sunlight energy, without fuel combustion, thereby eliminating combustion-related pollution, and thus lowering energy costs.”

Goy’s team said, “To have our research won the silver medal is truly motivating because we have worked hard for this research. We wanted to highlight the need to transform agricultural waste into a valuable novel nanocomposite photocatalyst, which can help tackle environmental issues, a key challenge in today’s society. We are optimistic because this research can potentially address important organics and biological hazards as well as offer a promising way to harness clean solar energy for environmental remediation, which would greatly benefit Malaysia.”

Camelia Ng said, “I’m happy to be awarded silver because there are a lot of studies that use N-CD with GCN by using different methods. My method is similar to that of Jang Ng et al. (2020), which is the mixing method to couple N-CD and GCN. However, there is no relevant past research on utilising GCN/N-CD as a boosting agent for microalgae. This study introduces a novel approach that advances the innovation of manufacturing eco-friendly masonry units for future use.”

Bronze medallist:

Ho’s team enthused, “We are proud of the recognition received for our research. We know microalgae have been studied for their ability in wastewater treatment, and similarly, the removal of microplastics from water sources. However, our research uses an innovative approach, which is the unique combination of microalgae in wastewater treatment and microplastic agglomeration. This is an environmentally friendly approach to mitigate microplastics, compared to existing physical and chemical methods. Additionally, it is a sustainable method that will not produce secondary waste after the treatment process. The residue (algae biomass) can be reused as bioproducts.”

The competition aimed to encourage students to take part in the research and innovation field. It was an opportunity for participants to apply their science knowledge and skills, nurture teamwork, enhance their problem-solving skills, especially in the engineering and technical field, and improve interpersonal skills. The competition also supported the nation’s advancement through research and development activities in science and technology.

Previous achievements:
2023: FEGT wins two gold and one silver medals at iCompEx'23
2022: FEGT students bag gold, silver and bronze medals at iCompEx'22
2021: UTAR FEGT bags two golds and three bronzes in iCompEx’2021
2020: UTAR FEGT earns two silvers and one bronze in iCompEx’2020
2019: Big wins for FEGT at iCompEx'19
2018: Triple silver awards at iCompEx'18
2017: Double joy for FEGT researchers