UTAR on Green Approach for Wastewater Treatment

Jointly organized by Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Perak State Development Corporation (PSDC) and Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) Perak branch, a half-day seminar on "Green Approach for Wastewater Treatment - Bio Remediation and Energy Generation" was conducted at Perak Techno-Trade Centre (PTTC) on 27 July 2009.

The event marked the soft launch of the first initiative of joint projects between UTAR, FMM Perak, and PSDC formalized under the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 9 January 2009 . The significant tie-up provided the basis upon which UTAR, FMM Perak, PSDC and KPerak agreed to initiate joint projects involving collaborative research and commercialisation as well as consultancy and the sharing of expertise and joint development in research.

The event kicked off with welcome speeches by Ir. Professor Dato' Dr Chuah Hean Teik, UTAR President, and Dato' Gan Tack Kong, FMM Perak Chairman. This was followed by a keynote address delivered by YB Dato' Hamidah Binti Osman, Perak State Senior Exco, who represented YAB Dato' Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir, Chief Minister of Perak. Also present was UTAR Council Chairman, YABhg Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik.

In his speech, Professor Chuah said, "Today's seminar is indeed timely to increase environmental awareness of the need to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to combat global warming through the effective microorganisms and anaerobic technology. There is no doubt that in our drive towards environmental sustainability, we will face constraints and obstacles. I believe with collaborative effort and collective resolve, these can be overcome."

"I urge all of you to be proactive and to do our part for our planet and for our future generations. With keen respect for the environment, let us make a commitment to live in perfect harmony with our Mother Earth," added Professor Chuah.

UTAR academician and researcher, Associate Professor Dr. Show Kuan Yeow from the Faculty of Engineering, Science and Technology, UTAR Perak Campus, provided insights on the basic knowledge, features and development in anaerobic wastewater treatment. He shared on the concept of carbon credit derived from avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions through advanced anaerobic treatment systems, as well as the development and future trend in carbon trading.

Starting with an interesting introduction, Dr. Show enthused, "Anaerobic treatment of wastewater has been practiced for more than a century. History of anaerobic treatment can be traced back to 17 th century where "marsh gas" burning was performed on the surface of swamps. In 1861, Pasteur discovered anaerobic micro organisms and the use of anaerobic process for waste treatment has evolved from the earliest septic tanks to complex waste treatment systems involving modern technologies. Despite its proven significance and potential development, anaerobic treatment has not been as widely used as it might deserve in this part of the world mainly due to a lack of fundamental understanding and misconceptions of the process."

A concrete comparison between anaerobic vs. aerobic treatment in terms of treatment capacity, energy and sludge production was highlighted. Special features of anaerobic treatment included firstly, degradation of refractory or toxic contaminants such as those from pharmaceutical, brewery and alcohol production and chlorinated organics from pulp and paper mill wastewaters, secondly, elimination of air pollution whereby volatile organic contaminants such as acrylic acid and chlorinated solvents contributing to air pollution during aeration can be avoided and thirdly, conservation of energy through ecological and economic benefits accrued from methane yield and saving from doing away with aeration.

Dr. Show showcased an advancement in anaerobic treatment, that is, biogranulation technology which is a biological aggregation process in which microbial cells are organising themselves into dense and fast settling granules. An application of a full-scale Anaerobic Granulation Bioreactors for treatment of food processing wastewater in Singapore was presented.

Dr. Show deliberated, "For sustainable development, the best treatment selection must be the most environmental friendly method. Anaerobic biotechnology may well become the solution, making energy conservation possible with its related ecological and economic benefits. In addition, there is also a trend in combining anaerobic-aerobic processes for high strength wastewater purification which provides a greener and cheaper way to treat wastewater." A scenario on emission reduction for carbon credits based on a methane recovery and utilization in a palm oil mill effluent anaerobic treatment project was also presented. Development and future trend in carbon trading were also outlined.

Dr. Show has been actively involved in a number of Research and Development and consulting work in the field of environmental engineering specialising in water and wastewater treatment in Singapore . He has published over 130 technical papers in refereed journals and conferences, 53 research reports and short courses, 1 journal issue editorship, 9 books chapters and co-authored a book titled "Biogranulation Technologies for Wastewater Treatment". He has been awarded one US patent and one International Patent on biogranulation technology for wastewater treatment. His outstanding engineering achievements have earned him several prestigious professional awards including the National Technology Award in Singapore .

Besides Dr. Show, the stimulating session also presented two other speakers. Mr. Soo Lee Choo from EM AdminS, an authorised EM® Technology Consultancy Company, talked on the proven effective microorganism technology. Meanwhile, Puan Rohati binti Shafie from PIRSB Bio Tech Corporation Sdn. Bhd, a subsidiary company of PSDC, shared on the opportunities in biotechnology industries in Perak.

The seminar attracted good response from around 200 participants from various industries, policy-making bodies and academia including 50 UTAR staff and students from the Faculty of Science, Engineering and Technology, Perak Campus.

Caption: Left to right - Dato' Gan Tack Kong (FMM Perak Chairman), Ir. Professor Dato' Dr. Chuah Hean Teik (UTAR President), Tun Dr. Ling Liong Sik (UTAR Council Chairman), Dato' Hamidah Osman (Perak State Senior Exco), Dato' Shamsudin Hashim (CEO of PSDC), and Tan Sri Nuraizah Abdul Hamid.

Caption: UTAR academician and researcher, Associate Professor Dr. Show Kuan Yeow