Nanotech goes to the 41st NAST Annual Scientific Meeting
Nanotech goes to the 41st NAST Annual Scientific Meeting
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Three members of the Nanotechnology Research Laboratory presented their researches in the 41st Annual Scientific Meeting of the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) held last July 10-11, 2019 at EDSA Shangri-La Hotel, Mandaluyong City, Philippines.
The meeting, themed “Caring for the Country's Carrying Capacity”, focused on addressing three of the 17 Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the United Nations namely: SDG 4 (quality education): sustainable education, talent development, SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production): sustainable marine food security, and SDG 14 (life below water): plastic waste. The event is graced by the Department of Science and Technology Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña. Various academicians of the NAST were also present during the meeting.
Plenary sessions were conducted by invited resource speakers to exhaustively discuss the above pertinent issues to help in the formulation of suggested policies and legislation that the country should adopt to attain the said SDGs.
The challenges of plastic waste with respect to their management, regulation, and legislation, present and future research approaches for plastic waste mitigation, issues on the solid waste management programs, and the health impacts of plastic pollution were discussed during the plenary session focused on plastic waste. Meanwhile, the challenges in sustainable fishing, marine food security, and seaweed industry were discussed during the plenary session on sustainable marine and food security. Moreover, the issues on brain drain and inbreeding of Filipino scientists, the challenge on retaining Filipino talents, and overall status and management of human resources in the country were discussed during the session on sustainable education, talent development, and retention.
Poster sessions were also held to showcase the works of Filipino scientists across the country in various fields of science and technology including, but not limited to, biological sciences, engineering sciences and technology, health sciences, mathematical and physical sciences, and social sciences. Over 290 different posters were accepted during this year's Annual Scientific Meeting. The abstracts of the participating researches were published in the Transactions of the National Academy of Science and Technology.
Mr. Edgar Clyde R. Lopez presented his work on "Silver-doped Titanium DIoxide Nanotubes for Photoelectrocatalytic Degradation of Acid Orange 52". This project was done together with his adviser, Dr. Jem Valerie D. Perez, and his co-adviser, Dr. Joey D. Ocon. In this work, the effect of silver doping on the photocatalytic, electrocatalytic, and photoelectrocatalytic activity of titanium dioxide nanotubes on the degradation of textile dyes were investigated. The effect of silver dopant loading, current density, and light intensity were also studied. As the study concludes, this finds promising solution towards the sluggish catalytic activity of titanium dioxide in the visible light region and hence could lead to more efficient textile dye treatment methods.
Mr. Michael Angelo Zafra, a BS Chemical Engineering graduate, presented his work on the"Colorimetric Detection of Copper (II) Ions in Water using Humic Acid-Functionalized Silver Nanoparticles". This study was done together with Mr. Jon Nyner L. Gavan and Mr. Emil David A. Villena, both BS Chemical Engineering graduates, Engr. Edgar Clyde R. Lopez, PhD Chemical Engineering student, and Dr. Jem Valerie D. Perez, research adviser. Their work focused on tuning the sensing ability of their novel humic acid functionalized silver nanoparticles (HA-AgNPs) for the detection of copper ions in water. This finds promising applications towards point-of-need sensing of water pollutants such as copper ions without the need for expensive instrumentation and cumbersome analytical procedures.
Mr. Vince Aron F. Cleofe, a BS Chemical Engineering graduate, presented his work on the"Photoelectrocatalytic Degradation of Acid Orange 52 using Copper-doped Titanium Dioxide Nanotubes under UV Light". This study was done together with Mr. Kristoffer Francis F. Boado and Ms. Rio Ysabel A. Cañal, both BS Chemical Engineering graduates, Engr. Edgar Clyde R. Lopez, PhD Chemical Engineering student, and Dr. Jem Valerie D. Perez, research adviser. Their work focused on investigating the effect of copper doping on the photoelectrocatalytic performance of titanium dioxide nanotubes.
All these works are supported by the Engineering Research and Development for Technology Program (ERDT) of DOST-SEI, Advanced Materials and Engineering Laboratory Research Grant (ADMATEL-EPDC) of DOST-PCIEERD, and the Outright Research Grant of the UP Diliman Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development (OVCRD).
At the end of the Annual Scientific Meeting, a resolution was created which details the agreed recommendations of the National Academy of Science and Technology to address plastic waste, marine food security, and brain drain in the country. During the closing ceremony, awards were given to the Best Scientific Poster, Outstanding Scientific Paper, Outstanding Books and Monographs, The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Prize for Young Scientist in the Philippines, Magsaysay Future Leaders/Technologists Awards, NAST Talent Search for Young Scientist, and Outstanding Young Scientists. The newly-conferred academicians of NAST were also honored.
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