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Proper Waste Management Leads To Alternative Fuel For The Future

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This is just not alternative at the time of rising fuel prices. It is also a way to “green”. To lessen our reliance on costly, polluting fossil fuels, a lot of new energy sources are being explored. Wind energy, hybrid cars, electric cars, hydrogen fuel cells, biodiesel and ethanol. You would find the world of alternative energy bizarre and erratic. That’s why we (Chemical Reaction Engineering Group) have been doing the research on developing new alternative and renewable energy over the past few years. The past decade, we have been focusing on transforming natural gas to gasoline using catalytic reaction process with the aid of zeolite base catalyst. Now our focus have shifted and we are looking at utilizing the waste produced around us…

Wood Waste, Sawdust and Empty Palm Fruit Bunch (EPFB)

This idea of generating enough sawdust to produce a useful amount of energy might sound weird. All the trash from industrial wood processing is generally redundant and thrown away. Some of it is reprocessed into particle board or into wood pellets for stoves, but there’s still a lot of unused waste wood out there. EPFB in the other hand is left just like that while small fraction of it is utilized for running boilers in mills. When left for a long time, the wood and EPFB will rotten, and this waste can be a potential hazard to the environment as methane is formed. Methane, as we know, is a harmful greenhouse gas.

With proper waste management, the sawdust and EPFB can be systematically collected and burned at a power plant designed for this purpose. The heat is used to generate electricity which can be used to run cars. The idea is more than feasible, it’s already in practice — a 14-megawatt wood waste power plant is being built in Nigeria.

Dirty Diapers

Dirty diapers sound disgusting. But used diapers are an excellent fuel source. The garbage can be transformed into fuel gas and fuel oil by using a process called pyrolysis. Pyrolysis is the chemical decomposition of condensed substances by heating that occurs spontaneously at high enough temperatures with catalyst and without oxygen.

The world has a lot of disposable diapers and babies constantly generate more. And it would be relatively easy to use special recycling bins to separate them from other garbage. Pyrolysis is best when it has been fine-tuned to the material being heated. Mixed garbage is full of all kinds of random materials, and you never know what sort of mix you’re going to get each day. We know what kind of the plastics and fabrics are used in their manufacture, and what is the waste material.

Conclusion

As conclusion, proper waste management is imperative and it can be integrated with process such as pyrolysis. From pyrolysis, fuel and energy can be obtained and this is indeed an alternative to the present fossil fuel which will last soon.

1st Annual World Congress of Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis-2010 (WCCAS-2010)

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The 1st Annual World Congress of Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis-2010
(WCCAS-2010) will be held from May 19 to May 21, 2010 in Beijing, China,
with a theme of ‘Create Bioactive Molecules Green and Economically’. This
is a focused event on Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis, it aims to stimulate
interactions among academia, industry and researchers in this field to
exchange up-to-the-minutes information and promote their novel
technologies. On behalf of the organizing committee of WCCAS-2010, we
cordially invite you as a speaker at Track 4-2: Asymmetric Synthesis of
Biocides or Pesticides to present and contribute your invaluable
experience.

Scope
WCCAS-2010 is expected to greatly contribute to the promotion of new
concepts for the development of efficient methodologies for catalytic
asymmetric synthesis and its practical applications. The topics will
reflect this general theme, placing emphasis on aspects that are common to
all areas of catalytic asymmetric synthesis and the type of reaction
involved:

Track 1: Novel Technologies for Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis

Track 1-1: Rational Ligand Designs and Novel Catalyst Screening
Technologies
Track 1-2: Microwave/Ultrasonic/Photo Assisted Asymmetric Catalysis  Track
1-3: Practical Chiral Catalyst Immobilization
Track 1-4: Nanotechnologies in Asymmetric Catalysis
Track 1-5: Non Air Sensitive or On-water Catalysis and Solid Phase Catalysis

Track 2: Organometallic Chiral Catalysts in Asymmetric Transformations

Track 2-1: Catalytic Asymmetric Alkylation
Track 2-2: Catalytic Asymmetric Additions
Track 2-3: Catalytic Asymmetric Hydrogenation and Reductions
Track 2-4: Catalytic Asymmetric Oxygenation
Track 2-5: Catalytic Asymmetric Carbon-Carbon Bond Formation
Track 2-6: Catalytic Asymmetric Epoxidation
Track 2-7: Catalytic Asymmetric Aziridination, Cyclopropanation and
Diels-Alder Reaction
Track 2-8: Catalytic Asymmetric Carbonylation
Track 2-9: Catalytic Asymmetric Amination and Introduction of Other Hetero
Atoms
Track 2-10: Catalytic Asymmetric Polymerization Reactions

Track 3: Enantioselective/ Diastereoselective Organocatalysis

Track 3-1: Chiral Lewis Base Organocatalysts
Track 3-2: Chiral Bronsted Acid Organocatalysts
Track 3-3: Peptide Based Chiral Organocatalysts
Track 3-4: Phase Transfer Chiral Organocatalysis
Track 3-5: Other Organocatalysis in C-N, C-O and C-C Bond formations

Track 4: Applications of Catalytic Asymmetric Synthesis

Track 4-1: Asymmetric Synthesis in Drug Discovery and Processing
Track 4-2: Asymmetric Synthesis of Biocides or Pesticides
Track 4-3: Synthesis of Chiral Unnatural Amino Acids and other Natural
Products
Track 4-4: Enantioselective Synthesis of Analytical Chiral Compounds and
Intermediates
Track 4-5: Asymmetric Synthesis of Optical and other Special Functional
Materials

Track 5: Biocatalysis for Asymmetric Transformations

Track 5-1: Mild to Extremophilic Enzymatic Catalyzed Transformations
Track 5-2: Enzymatic Catalytic Degradations of Biopolymers and Chemical
Polymers
Track 5-3: Microbial and Antibody Catalyzed Asymmetric Reactions

Track 6: Business Development for High Value Chiral Molecules

Track 6-1: Enabled Enantioselective Catalysts on Market
Track 6-2: Purification and Analytic Instrumentation of Enantio-pure
Compounds

Scientific Program
The scientific program will consist of plenary and keynote lectures,
approximately 30 sessions, exhibition and a poster session.
More program information can be found at:
www.bitlifesciences.com/wccas2010
Abstracts of the lectures and posters will be printed in the Conference
Proceedings, which participants will receive at the registration desk and
is included in the registration fee.

Location
The capital city of the People’s Republic of China, Beijing is a
fast-growing, dynamic metropolis that, while courting foreign businesses
and visitors, maintains a firm grip on its rich cultural heritage. Beijing
made history in 2008 with the first Olympic Games ever to be held in
China. The conference will be held in Beijing International Convention
Center (BICC) which is located within the magnificent Asian Games Village.
It is one of the Chinese biggest facilities specifically designed for
conferences and exhibitions, comprising 50 conference halls and meeting
rooms equipped to serve a wide variety of purposes with the capacity from
10 up to 2500 people.

Looking forward to seeing you in Beijing in May, 2010

Sincerely Yours,

Ryan

Program Coordinator
26 Gaoneng St., R405, Dalian Hightech Zone
Dalian, LN 116025, China
Tel: 0086-411-84799609-811
Fax: 0086-411-84799629
Email: ryan@webbitmail.cn
Website: http://www.bitlifesciences.com/wccas2010

1. Are you interested in delivering a speech in this congress? Which session?

2. Would you like to chair or co-chair any session of this conference?

Session details PS: http://www.bitlifesciences.com/wccas2010/program.asp

Congratulations to REFRAC (RM 2.5 million grants)

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Hope this can inspire CREG whom is also under Energy Research Group (ERA)…

ERA would like to congratulates Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Group (REFRAC) head by Prof. Dr. Md Nor Musa for their success to get Symbiosis UTM-MTDC grant awarded by MTDC amounted RM 2.5 million.

REFRAC is going to commercialize their product called ATCS (Advanced Thermal Control System) and this grant is meant to develop a spin off company to commercialize the technology from UTM.

Congratulations!!

Thank you.

Mohd Fadhzir bin Ahmad Kamaroddin
Research Officer,
Energy Research Alliance (ERA)
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
81310 UTM Skudai, Johor
Tel: 07-5537849/37833 Fax: 07-5537849

Website: www.utm.my/era

National Lab Training in Petaling Jaya, Selangor

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CREG members: Dr. Tuan Amran, Mahadhir, Zaki and Huda traveled up to PJ last Wednesday to attend a 3 hour workshop on control instrument and software – Labview which was provided by National Instrument. The workshop was very good but as usual it cost money to buy this equipment. Maybe, for the time being, we shall stick to manual control of our experimental rigs. However, when the budget is there, we shall fully automize our experimental rigs…

Searching for New Masters and/or pH.D student

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Great news!

CREG is searching for new masters and/Ph.D student for the coming semester. We are searching candidates with excellent academic results, strong computer modeling knowledge and impressive dedication.

If you are the person, you will join a dynamic research group consisting of numerous undergraduate, masters and pH.D students. Please explore this website to learn all about the potential research work that you can work on with.

For further information, please contact Prof. Dr. Nor Aishah Saidina Amin at:

07-5535588 (office) or 012-7165490 (hand phone) or email: noraishah@fkkksa.utm.my.

Premier Energy Redefining Energy

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At Premier Energy, you can talk of redefined energy providence wherever the company decides to venture. Premier energy Corp. is an international gas and oil company that is well-organized wielding apt standings under the laws of the United States, within the State of Florida. The company has its headquarters in Dallas, Texas in the United States, but maintains operational regional offices at the heart of the Russian Federation, depicting the spirit it has in the gas and oil sector and the desire to increase in revenue and operation.



Premier Energy corp. conceives to make sure it has captured all the emerging and rapidly changing energy and fuel markets. The operations of Premier energy have been crucial in depicting the fact that with proper goal oriented measures it is easy to become a global player in the energy realm just as it has done. This has been depicted by its initial focus in the priceless natural gas and crude oil production sector within Russia as well as distributing the products to consumers from different regions across the world.



The success of the Premier oil company represents the kind of opportunities that have been enabled by an extensive experience bourn in the energy sector for more than 75 years, courtesy of a superb management team and founders. With tremendous acquisition behind it, Premier energy has been involved in serious growth plans. It has an ambitious aim that it has been in constant acts of perfecting, so that it can soar as an integrated gas and oil company that has global operations in development, exploration, transportation, storage and marketing.



Premier energy also seeks to be a chief distributor of natural gas, crude oil, refined energy products and other fuels. The broad experience of the company and its well-established networks in the line of international trading in renewable and other convention fuels has made Premier oil energy Corp. to rise at a very admirable pace.



About Us: Are you looking around to find the best information about Premier Energy Corp or Premier Oil? Explore http://premieroilco.com and get all details first hand.

Attachment of Master Students from UPM

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Nur Shafizah bt Ishak and Nor Sharina bt Anwar are 2 Master students from Centre of Excellent of Catalysis Science and Technology  (COMBICAT) UPM. They has joined CREG for 16 months starting from 13th January 2010 until 13th April 2011. They will carry out their research using the high pressure reactor.

Electrical Wiring Job On the Way

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CREG Research Laboratory at N16 is currently undergoing massive electrical and wiring work. This is to systematically provide power to various equipments such as furnace, flow meters, syringe pump, computer, heating tape and others. The previous practice was not safe as improper power extensions and cables were used.

Today, halfway after the wiring job is done, all members which consists of phd, masters and bachelor students (with some help from 2 cleaners) are cleaning, organizing and beautifying the lab. The CREG lab will look drop dead gorgeous after this :) .

Sime Darby Visit to CREG

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CREG hosted a technical visit from Sime Darby Pulau Carey representatives today. The meeting commenced at about 10.15am and ended at 12.00 noon at CREG Meeting room in the lab. The meeting was a follow up after Profesor NASA and Linda visited them at Sime Darby Pulau Carey last December to discuss on a possible join venture project. From this meeting, we are going to collaborate in two projects which will be revealed soon. Currently, we are waiting for the feedback from them on our proposal. It was a fruitful meeting and the group was brought to tour our facilities and research activities as well.

Photos will be uploaded soon.

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