MONDAY, 29 JULY – Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) moved a step forward through a collaboration with the Tokyo Institute of Technology (TITEC) to commercialise a joint research project in the field of nano technology through the production of nano fibres and nano fibre membrane.UMS Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Datuk Dr. Mohd Harun Abdullah headed the delegation to Tokyo to discuss further cooperation in the field of commercialising this technology while TITEC was represented by its Executive Vice-President, Professor Kiyoshi Okada. The result, UMS will be the research site for commercialisation whilst a company based on oil and gas in Malaysia will be the partner.
Nano fibre products will be used as an absorbent agent for oil spills in the oil and gas industry, while nano fibre membrane will be used for the distillation of sea water and industrial wastewater to produce clean water.
According to research facts conducted by UMS and TITEC, nano fibres are able to absorb up to 50 gram of oil for every gram of fibre in less than 30 seconds. The system will also be able to clean up oil spill at a rate of 1 ton per hour.
This technology is the first of its kind in the world introduced to the oil and gas industry. The nano fibre industry is expected to expedite the cleaning process of oil spills which will save many natural lives and solve the problem of oil spills during strong sea wave.
The use of nano fibre membrane in the distillation of sea water is expected to save energy costs by more than 50% compared to reverse osmosis and at the same time reduce blocked membrane.
Also present at the discussion were the Registrar, Datuk Abdullah Hj Mohd. Said; Dean of the School of Engineering and Information Technology (SKTM) who is also an expert in the nano technology, Ir Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rosalam Sarbatly and SKTM Senior Lecturer, Dr. Mohd Kamil Wan Ibrahim. – FL
Source: School of Engineering and Information Technology
Information and Media Section, Corporate Relations Division
