BKKPOST : Immersed in innovation
Dr.Samai Jai-Indr
Immersed in innovation
Personal happiness is another by-product of the process of developing practical solutions to advance fuel conservation
- Published: 19/10/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Outlook
Nuwong Chollacoop, an engineering scientist who has just received a Green Talent Award from the German federal government, may strike you as resembling more of a corporate hotshot than a man of the laboratory.
In a crisply-ironed white shirt, pointy shoes and a student's crew cut, the 33-year-old engineering scientist is likely to remind you of a young finance analyst or computer wizard rather than a scientist who spends years in a laboratory improving the quality of biodiesel.
But he is proof that judging people from their appearance is scientifically incorrect. Nuwong is a man of science through and through. This year, this senior researcher on bioenergy at Mtec, a national research arm that conducts research on alternative energy, is one of the 15 scientists who won an award for environmental technology given by Germany's Ministry of Education and Research. Awards are presented to promising scientists in five fields: cleaner production, contaminated-land management, resource efficiency, water and renewable energy.
Perhaps it is the clear economic data he cites to describe Thailand's energy sector that gives rise to the perception that he is a corporate-world personality.
"We are having a glaring diesel and benzene consumption mismatch. Our country consumes a lot more diesel than benzene. Most of our imported crude oil is to satisfy the local demand for diesel. So, if we want to reduce oil imports, we must try to reduce diesel consumption," Nuwong said as he took 'Outlook' on a tour of the offices of the National Metal and Materials Technology Centre (Mtec) in Pathum Thani province.
Following Nuwong around in the laboratories, anyone will be convinced that he is a man of science. Nuwong is fascinated with rationality and how things work. He never gets tired of explaining how laboratory equipment and machines work and the reasons why problems occur and how to solve them.
"We are trying to improve the quality of palm oil by controlling its pH level [the acidity/alkalinity scale] to an appropriate figure because a higher pH level may be more harmful to diesel engines," Nuwong said, explaining why Mtec has to use chemical processes to adjust the basic chemical components of palm oil.
"If we promote biodiesel while its quality is not up to standard, consumers will have negative sentiments towards biodiesel and may then reject biofuel as a whole," said Nuwong.
At Mtec, Nuwong - an expert on material science - was appointed to co-supervise two laboratories: A biofuel testing lab and an automotive and alternative-fuel lab. The first lab focuses on researching palm oil at molecule level and tries to find new refinery technology that can save energy and reduce waste.
The second lab works on testing truck engines and other machines, to make sure they can run on biodiesel without technical problems.
Both projects are geared towards widening the usage of biodiesel in rural areas in equipment including transportation trucks, farm tractors and simple machines such as water pumps and simple industrial engines, all of which are major consumers of conventional diesel oil.
"Biodiesel is not a new thing in Thailand," said Nuwong.
Alerted by the oil shortage in 1984, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej initiated a small research project at Chitralada Palace, where gasohol and diesohol - made up of 14 percent ethanol (alcohol derived from fermented sugar-containing plants) and 86 percent diesel - were used to fuel the palace's fleet.
The monarch has long been a proponent of the use of fuels blended with alcohol from agricultural waste by-products, in an effort to reduce the country's dependence on petroleum imports.
In 1992, HM the King received an official patent for palm oil diesel - after years of experimentation.
State researchers and local farmers also developed their own biofuel to save on costs.
For instance, for over 10 years Captain Samai Jai-in, an alternative-energy specialist at the Royal Thai Navy, has been producing biofuel to power the navy's fleets. In 2001, Yuthachai Wiwatkulthorn, a farmer, opened a biodiesel service station in Thap Sakae district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. He had been trying since 1983 to convert coconut oil to power his farming machines.
The government's policy has been conducive to, and consistent with, the birth of green fuel.
In 2001, the government introduced E10 gasohol - a blend of 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent octane 95 gasoline - on a commercial scale. The percentage of ethanol in currently-available gasohol is as high as 85.
The production of B2 - two percent extracted palm oil blended with diesel - became mandatory in February last year.
Last year, government agencies opened a biodiesel hub in a former tangerine orchard in Rangsit. With its palm oil extraction machinery, a refinery and a palm oil plantation, the hub operates with technical assistance from Mtec.
Currently, Mtec, with Nuwong as one of key researchers, is working with state agencies and universities to help in the development of simple refinery kits and test kits to help locals produce better biodiesel. The latest project is an Mtec palm oil pressing machine. Mtec's model will reduce water consumption and produce less wastewater, according to Nuwong.
At Mtec, Nuwong and other researchers work mostly in the laboratory. Some projects take years to achieve results. His work seems humdrum, but Nuwong said he finds peace and happiness in conducting scientific experimentations: "I am comfortable with laboratory life. Controlling all laboratory kits and chemical substances comes easily and naturally to me. Everything that happens in the laboratory is relatively straightforward and rational. Everything happens according to theory," he said.
Born in Phuket and educated there until middle school, Nuwong was a maths whizz-kid, excelling in physics during his high school studies at the academically-outstanding Triam Udom Suksa School. Sponsored by a government scholarship to pursue a degree in the US, he holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from Brown University and a doctoral degree in materials engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
During his bachelor's degree studies at Brown University, Nuwong also studied economics as a minor. While many of his mathematically-proficient friends have switched to the finance world, Nuwong prefers lab surroundings to business activities. "Perhaps business and other professions are not in my blood. I'm happy with science. I love that my work is recognised and is being put in to use."
About the author
- Writer: ANCHALEE KONGRUT
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Dr.Samai Jai-Indr
Energy Standing Committee
House of Representatives