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Year: 2021

KNU student wins the IUPAC poster award at the International Polymer Analysis Forum

Posted on by Kyungpook National University ‏‏‎ ‎

Yu Jeong Bae, a master’s degree in Biofibers and Biomaterials Science at Kyungpook National University, received the IUPAC Poster Award from the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry at the POLY-CHAR 2020(International Polymer Analysis Forum 2020) held online from April 12 to 14.

Yu Jeong Bae won the award for her work titled “Structural characteristics and properties of silk/rayon webs and non-woven fabrics.” Natural silk/rayon nonwoven fabric was first developed in the world by Professor In Chul Um of Kyungpook National University.

In the poster presentation, Bae’s work was well received for identifying that natural silk/rayon nonwoven fabric has low manufacturing cost and high bio-friendliness, which is highly likely to be applied to medical and cosmetics materials.

Professor In Chul Um(Department of Biofibers and Biomaterials Science at Kyungpook National University) said, “It is meaningful that Yu Jeong Bae, the only Korean student who participated as a presenter, won the world’s prestigious IUPAC award.”

The International Polymer Analysis Forum (POLY-CHAR) is an annual international academic conference that has been held since 1992 to provide students and young scientists with opportunities for research presentations in front of renowned international researchers. It is supported by IUPAC and awards the IUPAC Poster Award to outstanding poster presenters.

Scanning electron microscope upgraded to operate faster

Posted on by Editorial Team

An ultra-high-resolution scanning electron microscope that is a part of the TPU Center for Collective Use, has been upgraded at the university. Using the microscope, it is possible to research the morphology and composition of structural elements of a wide variety of materials with resolution up to 1 nm. The renewal allowed reducing the research timing and increasing the quality of research findings.

The scanning electron microscope operates at TPU academic building No.10. The entire renewal conducted by the grant of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation has already been finished.

“In 2008, a microscope of Japanese manufacturing was purchased at TPU within the project of the Federal Target Program for Development of Nanoindustrial Facilities, however, it has remained the only equipment at TPU allowing to research problematic samples of nanostructural materials with nanoscale resolution.

“It is implemented due to two features: the unsurpassed homogeneity of a cathode ray and the capability of operation at extremely low acceleration voltages. The closest tool with the same parameters from the same producer is located in Moscow, while alternative models with similar characteristics are not already produced by this producer or its rivals,” Edgar Dvilis, Senior Research Fellow of the TPU Innovation Center for Nanomaterials and Nanotechnologies, says.

The microscope allows scientists to see what structural elements are present in the materials they create, how they are distributed on the surface and related to it and each other. Using the microscope, nanoporous ceramics and membranes, nanoparticles, nanofibers and nanotubes, nanocrystals in the coating films are studied at TPU. Moreover, simultaneously with morphological analysis of the material, elemental analysis can be conducted to find out what chemical elements form the material.

A focused electron flux interacts with the material during the analysis. The products of this interaction are secondary electrons or back-scattered electrons, which are captured by special sensors from every particular point of the sample surface when it is scanned by the thinnest electron flux. Based on it, a complete picture of the material surface is formed in the fixed area.

“During the renewal, a more modern vacuum system was equipped at the microscope that allows preparing the tool for operation faster thereby significantly reducing overall analysis time. The microscope was equipped with an infrared video camera as well. Using this camera, an operator can observe what happens in a sample chamber and does not manipulate the samples randomly having no impact on the analysis results.

“Furthermore, a sputter cleaning installation was purchased to clean the sample surface from carbon contamination essentially affecting the analysis results. The sputter cleaning installation is multipurpose as it is designed for sample preparation not only of a scanning electron microscope but also for sample preparation of an ultra-high resolution transmission electron microscope that is one more unique installation possessed by TPU,” Edgar Dvilis explains.

It is planned that the renewal of the scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope will be continued in 2021. Particularly, for the scanning electron microscope, it is planned to purchase a modern product system of high-resolution energy dispersive X-ray analysis improving the quality of analysis results and not demanding resource-consuming liquid-nitrogen refrigeration.

The transmission electron microscope is planned to equip with a new high vacuum system and a set of improved sample holders for expanding a list of materials appropriate for analysis.

UiTM ranks among top 150 in QS World University Rankings by 2021 Subject

Posted on by nurhidayati0955

Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) has been ranked among the top 150 in the Petroleum Engineering category in the QS World University Rankings by 2021 Subject  This achievement sees UiTM breaking into the top five Malaysian universities for the first time in this category.

UiTM through the Faculty of Chemical Engineering offers a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) Oil and Gas programme in 2008 specifically to accommodate the professional requirements of the upstream and midstream oil and gas activities. The expanded program scope allows more versatile and adaptable graduates to meet the oil and gas activities requirements.

In line with UiTM’s vision to produce professionals with world-class standards, the Faculty has extensively sought collaboration with industry partners to enrich student knowledge and equip them with the latest technologies for employability.

Recently, the programme has integrated several subsurfaces and surface software donated by Schlumberger (SLB), a leading oilfield services company. This software covers the subsurface and surface process in the oil and gas industry, including Petrel, Eclipse, Techlog, Pipesim, and Merak Peep.

Through the software, students are exposed to seamless learning experiences within the knowledge areas of production forecasts, reservoir optimisation, and other useful applications that assist them in developing a critical analysis of field and reservoir management.

The Society of Petroleum of Engineer UiTM Student Chapter (SPE-UiTM SC) has played a vital role in promoting the inclusion of our students into the world of petroleum engineers through collaboration with the wider SPE Student Chapter and Oil and Gas companies in Malaysia.

In Mac 2021, SPE-UiTM SC has organized SPE Student Chapter Malaysia Oil & Gas Convention (SMOGC2020), an international Oil & Gas Convention with other SPE Student Chapters in Malaysia from SPE UTM-SC, SPE UTP-SC, SPE UM-SC, SPE UCSI-SC, SPE HWUM-SC and SPE UITM-SC.

The theme of SMOGC2020 “Embracing Digital Transformation, Striving Toward Sustainability” aimed to expose young minds to green technology and digital transformation in the modern industry. 142 delegates from international and local students up to 4 countries – Poland, Scotland, Indonesia, and Malaysia participated in SMOGC2020. Besides, 37 school students from the Selangor district had joined the Young Engineers Day Competition, leading to a total of 179 participants.

SPEctrum – UiTM Webinar Series with Industry Player and International Professor is a monthly SPE-UiTMSC’s event opens to everyone and have been established since July 2020. This program aims to provide exposure and input on the latest development in the oil and gas industry to all participants.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the oil and gas industry, this might be a great opportunity for oil and gas player to redefine their purpose and sustainable strategies. More than 200 participants attended each webinar series, and due to this overwhelmed response, the webinar series will be continued in 2021.

In October 2020, UiTM has recently organized a NITUC (Japan) – UiTM (Malaysia) Student Leadership & Networking Seminar 2020 for 11 weeks in total. A total of 34 delegates joined this program where 17 inbounds were from NITUC, Japan and the other 17 outbound students were from UiTM, Malaysia.

This event served as a platform to connect students from two countries as it provides direct exposure for students to discuss and get to know Japanese culture while introducing UiTM and Malaysia to their counterpart.

Thammasat University wins prize from OIC InsurTech Award 2020

Posted on by Thammasat University

The fourth-year students from the Actuarial Science program, the Faculty of Science and Technology of Thammasat University have won a consolation prize (Top 5) from OIC InsurTech Award 2020 presented by the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC).

The winning innovation is “SHOPSURE YOU SHOP WE SAVE”, a risk assessment platform for safe and secure online shopping experiences which will indicate to customers the store’s risk level through colour tabs.

The innovation aims to help customers feel comfortable when making online purchases. Customers can feel more confident by using the extra service, online shopping insurance.

Miss Pantira Techapornsin, Miss Napasorn Wantasing, Miss Pornchita Wayalun and Miss Patcharida Chongharn was part of the winning team. Assistant Professor Dr Sangdao Wongsai was the advisor of the team.

Novel “Hydrogel” Carriers for Anti-Cancer Drugs Offer New Hope for Cancer Treatment

Posted on by Tokyo University of Science

Hydrogels are often used as drug delivery systems, but to be effective carriers for anti-cancer drugs, they need to be responsive to varied stimuli in the tumour microenvironment. Now, scientists from Japan have developed novel hydrogels to effectively deliver drugs to tumour sites in response to temperature and pH changes in the tumour microenvironment.

These multi-stimuli-responsive hydrogels can eliminate remnant cancer cells following tumour excision through controlled drug release, offering hope for effective cancer treatment.

A team of scientists, led by Professor Akihiko Kikuchi from Tokyo University of Science, reports the production of unique degradable hydrogels that respond to changes under multiple conditions in “reducing” environments mimicking the microenvironment of tumors.

As Prof. Kikuchi observes, “In order to prepare degradable hydrogels that can release drugs in response to changes in the tumor microenvironment, we prepared hydrogels that respond to temperature, pH, and reducing environment, and analyzed their properties.”

In their study published in the Journal of Controlled Release, Prof. Kikuchi—along with his colleagues from Tokyo University of Science, Dr. Syuuhei Komatsu, Ms. Moeno Tago, and Ms. Yu Ando, and his collaborator on the study, Prof. Taka-Aki Asoh from Osaka University—details the steps of designing these novel hydrogels from the synthetic polymer poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether and the sulfur-containing organic compound cystamine. In response to low temperatures, these hydrogels swell up while they shrink at the physiological temperature.

Additionally, the hydrogels respond to pH changes by virtue of possessing tertiary amino groups. It must be noted here that the pH of the tumour microenvironment fluctuates between 5.5 and 6.5 owing to glycolysis in the tumour cells. Under the reducing conditions of this environment, the hydrogels degrade because of the breakage of disulfide bonds and change into low molecular-weight water-soluble oligomers that are easily excreted from the body.

To further test their drug release properties, the scientists loaded these hydrogels with specific proteins by exploiting their temperature-dependent swelling-deswelling behavior and tested the controlled release of drugs under acidic or reducing conditions.

It was found that the amount of drug loaded onto these hydrogels could be controlled by changing the mesh size of the hydrogel polymer network by changing temperature, suggesting the possibility of customizing these DDSs for specific drug delivery. Besides, the hydrogel network structure and electrostatic interactions in the network ensured that the proteins were preserved intact until delivery, unaffected by the swelling and shrinking of the hydrogels with pH changes in the surrounding environment.

The scientists found that the loaded protein drugs were completely released only under reducing conditions.

Using these hydrogels and the traceability that they provide, doctors may soon be able to design “customized” hydrogels that are specific to patients, giving personalized medicine a big boost. In addition to that, this new DDS provides a way to kill cancer cells that are left behind after surgery.

As Prof. Kikuchi states, “The implantation of this material in the affected area after cancer resection may eliminate residual cancer cells, making it a more powerful therapeutic tool”.

As cancer tightens its vice grip around the world, treatment options need to be varied and upgraded for customized and effective therapy. This unique and simple design technique to produce multi-stimuli-responsive hydrogels for effective drug delivery to target tumour sites may just be one among several such promising techniques to mount an answer to the challenge cancer poses to humanity.

CityU wins 6 golds at Inventions Geneva Evaluation Days

Posted on by Editorial Team

Researchers from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) received 12 awards, including a Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury, five Gold Medals, three Silver Medals and three Bronze Medals at the Inventions Geneva Evaluation Days (IGED) 2021, a virtual edition of the International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva.

“An Energy-Free, Low-Cost and High Cooling Performance Passive Radiative Cooling Technology for Building Applications” led by Dr Edwin Tso Chi-yan, Assistant Professor in the School of Energy and Environment, received the Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury.

To provide a sustainable and energy-saving solution to the consumption of electricity in buildings, Dr Tso has developed a passive radiative cooling paint, using the universe as a cooling source.

Unlike traditional air-conditioning systems, the passive radiative cooling paint is an energy-free and refrigerant-free cooling technology that reflects incoming solar irradiance, while emitting thermal radiation to the cold universe and achieving sub-ambient cooling.

This self-cooling technology possesses many advantages, such as a simple structure, easy manufacturing, and low cost. Directly coating this paint on a building’s roof or exterior walls will reduce its surface temperature and save on air-conditioning energy. The technology can be used for cooling automobile, in self-cooling textiles and painting roads to mitigate heat from land.

The following projects by the CityU researchers also won the Gold Medal.

“Aquatic Animal Postmortem Multimedia Analysis Platform” utilises virtopsy techniques such as Computed Tomography, Magnetic Resonance Imaging and 3D surface scanning, to provide insights for the assessment of aquatic animal profiles and biological health locally and globally.

“Super Bamboo – Sustainable Structural Bamboo Materials with High Strength and Multi-function”- includes both mechanical and chemical treatments for densifying natural bamboo without destroying key internal microstructure that are critical for superior mechanical performance.

“Youth Sports Education and Management SaaS platform Based on AI & IoT” developed by AI Motion Sports”- uses advanced technology to digitalise K12 youth sports industry and define the standards of next-generation sports education.

“Damage-healable Antimicrobial Coating Made from Natural Materials”-development and applications of coatings with sustained disinfection abilities for long-term prevention of surface fouling.

“Development of new generation anti-metastasis drugs based on endosomal trafficking”- identifies 6J1/6J2 as potent endosomal trafficking inhibitors that can effectively inhibit tumor progression and metastasis in various experimental mouse models with little in vitro and in vivo toxicity.

These awards at such a high international level demonstrate the excellence of the research carried out at CityU.

UE receives FIBAA system accreditation

Posted on by Global University Systems

The University of Europe for Applied Sciences (UE) has received system accreditation from the Foundation for International Business Administration Accreditation (FIBAA) and thus the right to award the seal of the Accreditation Council itself for the study programmes it audits.

As such, UE joins the ranks of the few private universities in Germany that bear this seal of quality. The subject of the successful system accreditation is an outstanding internal quality assurance system of the university.

UE has established a comprehensive and convincing quality management system and has proven its effectiveness, according to the decision of the FIBAA Accreditation and Certification Commission.

Furthermore, the commission praised the strong dialogue approach of the QM system, which is coordinated and exemplified by the staff of the Office of University Development and Quality Management. They ensure a continuous flow of information in all departments, which forms the cornerstone of a living quality culture, the report continues.

Professor Dr Maurits van Rooijen, Rector of the University of Europe for Applied Sciences, was pleased about the award from the external commission and sees the UE University in an excellent position for the future. He said: “The system accreditation is a big step for UE towards establishing innovative study programmes. We are very proud to be among the few private universities that have managed to be awarded so highly for their quality.”

In addition to the qualitative confirmation of teaching, the university will now be able to react even more flexibly to the needs of the economy and the job requirements of
tomorrow.

“We are in close exchange with our practical partners from the economy and creative industries and can now incorporate new developments in the labour markets into UE study programmes even more quickly, thus equipping our students in the best possible way with
appropriate job skills and preparing them for their everyday working lives,” Rector van Rooijen explained further.

Along with the opening of the new Potsdam campus, UE Innovation Hub, the system accreditation is an important milestone for the university, which will thus further expand its
presence.

TPU creates an advanced system simulating emergency in electric power system

Posted on by Editorial Team

Scientists of Tomsk Polytechnic University have created a decision support system (DSS) for dispatching personnel of electric power systems (EPS). The system allows dispatchers to quickly test their actions on the management of the EPS, to control and evaluate their consequences using a digital simulator in a regime faster than real-time.

The article devoted to the research work is published in the IEEE Transactions on Power Systems (Q1, IF 6.074) academic journal, one of the most peer-reviewed journals in energy, energy technology, electrical engineering and electronics industries.

“An EPS is some kind of a living organism within that changes are permanently and continually taking place. In order for this organism to function properly and without any failures, it must be controlled. This extremely complicated task is carried out by dispatching personnel. Moreover, wrong or belated actions of a dispatcher can exacerbate an emergency,” Aleksey Suvorov, Associate Professor of the TPU Division for Power and Electrical Engineering, one of the authors of the article, says.

He adds that the DSS is a continuation of the research work for a multiprocessor system for real-time simulation of the EPS. For this development, a research team of young scientists from the TPU Research Laboratory for Power Grid Simulation, including Mikhail Andreev, Nikolay Ruban, Aleksey Suvorov and Ruslan Ufa, was conferred with the Russian Federation Government Prize in Science and Technology for Young Scientists. The comprehensive simulation system allows obtaining a huge volume of information on the operation of the EPS. The data are kept on the server. The DSS operates with these data.

“A DSS has been created based on a hybrid approach to EPS simulation that was developed by Alexander Gusev, Professor of the TPU Division for Power and Electrical Engineering. Its core lies in the combination of existing simulation techniques (analog, physical and digital) and the use of the best properties and capabilities of each of the techniques. Using a DSS, methodically accurate simulation is implemented in real time of the EPS of any scale and complication,” the scientist explains.

“The system is actually an alternative to a real EPS, its digital simulator. Furthermore, due to the properties of a hybrid approach, a simulation capability faster than in real time implemented. On the current element base, it was possible to speed up by five folds. It allows the operator to test several case scenarios, to choose the most effective one, to adjust a regime state and only after that to act in a real EPS, reducing a possible negative effect from his actions,” he continues.

All components of the system, including special software, are developed at TPU. The system effectiveness was tested at a real EPS of the Tomsk Region.

“The DSS simultaneously operates with the EPS and collects data from the operative-information complex (OIC). The OIC monitors a regime of the EPS, collects the data about voltage, power and controls how the system operates,” he says.

“To test the system, we created a special emulator simulated the OIC. Using the emulator, an emergency visible for the dispatcher and the system was simulated. The DSS software contains all required algorithms and case scenarios. The dispatchers possess very strict regulatory directions regarding what actions must be taken in any situation,” Aleksey elaborates.

“According to the occurred emergency, the DSS processes the incoming information and suggests patterns based on the direction. Besides, due to the fast simulation, the dispatcher possesses more time to control and take the rightest pattern.”

The effectiveness of the system operation was also experimentally tested jointly with scientists from the Indian Institutes of Technology (Roorkee).

Thammasat University students win awards at “X Campus Advertising Idea Contest”

Posted on by Thammasat University

Journalism and Mass Communication students at Thammasat University have recently received awards from X Campus Advertising Idea Contest 2020 for the video they created.

Mr Puree Yanawat, Miss Wipawee Thienwongsathien, Mr Thanakorn Reungkrit and Miss Thunchanok Chanfak won the First Runner-up and the Best Creative Award, and the Second Runner-up Award was received by the team of Miss Pornkul Buranabundit, Miss Natsurang Supkasemchot, Miss Napasorn Narapan and Miss Pobporn Umboon.

X Campus Advertising Idea Contest 2020 is a project that encourages creativity and hands-on experience outside the classroom among students in the production of advertising video that meets the customers’ new normal expectations aligning with the Digital Economy strategy.

In this year, a total of 4,588 students from 63 educational institutions throughout the country participated in the contest and 1,147 teams submitted their works, representing a 37% increase from the previous year.

Chulalongkorn University signs MoU to promote book culture and system for Thailand

Posted on by Chulalongkorn University

The Institute of Thai Studies, Chulalongkorn University, has signed an MoU with the Department of Cultural Promotion, Ministry of Culture, and the Book Studies Foundation to support book culture and book system in Thailand.

“Chulalongkorn University will take the lead in creating knowledge and innovation for society towards sustainable development.  The university’s missions are to benefit the public by developing people and creating a lifelong learning culture for a sustainable economy and society,” stated Professor Dr Chakkaphan Sutthirat, Vice President for Research Affairs.

He added, “Creating a book culture would help Thai people be more competitive globally, since reading books will create knowledge that leads to further thoughts, evolutions and change.   Moreover, books build quality people and strengthen the nation’s foundation. Although books and publications may have lost their lustre to some, reading is still an essential skill for social development.”

“Chulalongkorn University is, therefore, delighted to support this collaboration and hopes that this is a point of beginning for the book culture and the book system to impact Thai society”, concluded Professor Dr Chakkaphan.

Present to sign the MOU were Professor Dr Chakkaphan Sutthirat, Vice President for Research Affairs, Chulalongkorn University; Mr Chai Nakhonchai, Director-General of Department of Cultural Promotion; and Mr Makut Onrudee, Founder of Book Studies Foundation.  Mr Itthiphol Kunplome, the Minister of Culture, presided over the signing ceremony.