PENANG, 20 May 2024 – The 35th International Invention, Innovation, Technology Competition & Exhibition 2024 (ITEX’24) was held at the KL Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur on 16-17 May 2024. 

The participants shared and competed through their presentations, inventions and innovations, while ensuring that meaningful connections can be established among the great minds who attended the event with their ideas and visions.

Among the winners of the competition, held as part of the event, was PETRONAS Research Sdn. Bhd. (PRSB) and USAINS Infotech Sdn. Bhd., the commercial arm of USM.

Universti Sains Malaysia (USM) Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dato’ Seri Ir. Dr. Abdul Rahman Mohamed was the principal researcher leading the USM team, working together with the PRSB team on the innovation/invention “Catalytic CO2 Gasification of wastes for low-carbon syngas production (CO2SYN)” that won the awards.

The awards won were the ‘ITEX 2024 Gold Medal’, and the ‘Tun Lim Keng Yaik Award for Best invention in Technology Reversing Climate Change’ at the event.

Abdul Rahman led the 7 researchers (USM team: Dr. Khaled Ali Al-attab & Dr. Pooya Lahijani; PRSB team: Dr. Chan Yi Herng, Dr. Syarifah Nor Faizah Syed Abdul Rahman, Dr. Siti Hajar Khalit & Hazratul Mumtaz Lahuri) on this innovation, which concerns with finding an alternative method to syngas production.

Synthesis gas, or syngas, is a gaseous fuel mixture of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2), and it is an important resource for various industrial processes.

Current methods of syngas production would result in a high carbon footprint. The alternative method of CO2 gasification process to produce syngas could mitigate the high carbon footprint and reduce the impact on the environment.

PETRONAS has filed two patents for this technology, which relates to climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in particular SDG 13 (Climate Action).

The project has also been published in 13 high-impact factor journals.

As Asia’s leading invention, innovation, technology competition and exhibition event, ITEX’24 brought together a diverse and talented group of participants from leading institutions and industries, coming from different parts of the world.

The event was organised by the Asian Caucus of Invention Associations (ACIA), and co-organised by the Malaysian Invention and Design Society (MINDS). It is supported by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation Malaysia (MOSTI) and endorsed by MATRADE.

Source: Dr. Khaled Ali Al-attab & Nathalie Yong (USAINS Infotech Sdn. Bhd.)/Text: Mazlan Hanafi Basharudin/Photo: ITEX'24 official Fb page