A/Prof Ernest Chua and industry collaborator Ecoline Solar conferred the ASEAN Outstanding Engineering Achievement Award

Associate Professor Chua Kian Jon, Ernest and his industry collaborator Ecoline Solar Pte Ltd were conferred the prestigious ASEAN Outstanding Engineering Achievement Award 2019 at the 37th Conference of the ASEAN Federation of Engineering Organisations (CAFEO) held from 10 to 14 September 2019 in Jakarta, Indonesia.  In August 2019, the collaborators also received the Prestigious IES Engineering Achievement Award 2019 at the World Engineers Summit 2019 for this game-changing cooling system.

The annual Prestigious ASEAN Outstanding Engineering Achievement Awards are presented to distinguished groups or individuals in recognition of an engineering achievement that demonstrates outstanding engineering skills and which has made a significant contribution to the progression of the field and the quality of life in ASEAN.

The collaborators’ winning project, entitled “Next Generation of Hybrid Air Conditioners for Tropics – Cooling with Heat”, entails the engineering of a new generation of highly innovative hybrid solar-thermal air conditioners: an unconventional electrical compression machine that uses heat from the sun and ambient surrounding to ease the electrical load of the energy-guzzling compressor. Accordingly, reduction in energy consumption spanning 30% to 55% can be realised, which means the hotter the sun, the more efficient the cooling system becomes, hence offering more savings for consumers.

The collaboration between Associate Professor Chua and Ecoline Solar clearly demonstrates how research done in NUS’s laboratories can immediately impact applications and help industries to become more competitive and value add to their customers. Moving forward, the collaborators are working to incorporate NUS’s patented membrane dehumidification technology to the thermal-based air conditioner to yield even higher energy savings.

Asst Prof Shin Sunmi named among Nanoscale 2023 Emerging Investigators

Assistant Professor Shin Sunmi has been named among the Nanoscale 2023 Emerging Investigators by the journal Nanoscale, highlighting rising stars of nanoscience and nanotechnology research. Her paper, Enhanced far-field coherent thermal emission using mid-infrared bilayer metasurfaces, was featured by the journal in a themed collection of research contributions highlighting “the very best work from researchers in the early stages of

[Business Times] Engineering Singapore’s green future

Countries have pledged zero emissions by 2050 but the means to get there are vague. Businesses need specific details on the decarbonisation of economies to align their own strategies, to raise and make investments, and to participate with impact. To read the full article by Professor Seeram Ramakrishna and Dalson Chung: Engineering Singapore’s green future

[Straits Times] Smart recycling boxes that reward residents for sorting waste have cut contamination rate

A trial in Bishan and Sin Ming to collect recyclables using smart boxes has managed to cut the contamination rate of their contents to just 5 per cent – far lower than the national average of 40 per cent. Professor Seeram Ramakrishna (NUS Mechanical Engineering), who chairs the Circular Economy Taskforce at the National University