Four Basic Engineering Related Trainings in October

October was a really hectic month for me. Not only that I'm hooked up with my research studies but also I attended four (4) Institution of Engineers, Malaysia (IEM) trainings. 3 of the trainings were categorized as mandatory training which I have to attend as demanded by Boards of Engineers Malaysia (BEM). It is definitely not an easy route or task to be a professional engineer in Malaysia, but that is a challenge all engineers in this country should dare to take. For the first 3 training mentioned below, I have to travel to Petaling Jaya in Klang Valley and stay a night there on each occasion. The 4th training was just in my vicinity, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai.

Followings are the trainings that I have recently attended in the month of October.

1. Engineering Code of Ethics (12 CPD hours) 4 & 5 October, IEM Building, PJ.

2. Engineering Management Practice (12 CPD hours) 19 & 20 October, , IEM Building, PJ.

3. Safety and Health at Work (12 CPD hours) 25 & 26 October, IEM Building, PJ.

4. Engineering Failure Analysis (7 CPD hours) 23 October, Faculty of Mechanical, UTM.

All of the trainings mentioned above have certain fees to be paid and that is part of the commitment to be and maintain ourselves as a professional engineer.

During the Engineering Failure Analysis training, on the tea break, I have a chat with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ir. Shuhaimi (who also is a committee member for the IEM Southern Branch) from Mechanical Engineering Faculty, UTM. He told me that an engineer chatted with him about him spending more than RM4000 already that year just to attend trainings to maintain his CPD hours and maintain his title as a professional engineer. The cost includes training fees, fees, food, accommodation etc.

Basically, this message shows that to maintain professional engineer status it requires certain amount of cash. It is very good that engineers attend training to strengthen and enhance their knowledge. It is also good that as engineers, we can learn other disciplines, information, field of engineering. On top of that, we can mingle around and do networking with other engineers.

I personally agree with the fact that all professional engineers need to attend trainings and courses, technical visits and tours. I can say this because I have personally experience it and felt the benefit. I am exposed to more engineering and industrial information besides learning some of it from Discovery channel!!!

I also managed to be friends with several dozens of engineers from various disciplines, background and industries when I attended those trainings. I have more contacts and I strongly believe that is beneficial for me. It is good for me to have new civil, electrical, mechanical and chemical engineer friends. Off course, we exchanged our name cards and other contact details.

Interestingly, with reference to the mandatory courses that I attended, I discovered that there were those of the age of 36 to 48 attending the course. These people, despite of their age, still have the desire to get an engineering degree (which obviously they earned it) and pursue their own quest to be professional engineer. I have full respect of them... These people still have the will power and desire to get themselves chartered and recognizable.

So, regardless of your age, get yourself chartered or have the professional engineer status if you still don't have it. If you are still young (just recently graduated), go for it. Get the right information, get yourself registered and follow all the necessary training program. Don't delay and hesitate. Time will not wait.

If you want to learn more about IEM, click here.
If you want to learn more on the trainings and courses organized by IEM, click here.
If you want to learn more about IEM Southern Branch, click here.
If you want to learn more about BEM, click here.


-------------------------------------------------------------------

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.

Bioenergy - Renewable Energy

Energy obtained from Biological Organisms Bioenergy springs from biological sources like wood, waste, and alcohol fuels. In a narrow way it's a synonym to biofuel; the fuel obtained from biological sources. In its wider sense it includes biomass which is the biological material used as a biofuel. This is a typical myth among masses, as bioenergy is the energy removed from the biomass, as the biomass is the fuel and the bioenergy is the energy contained in the fuel. Burning wood for heat is an excellent example of Bioenergy.

In more involved terms, bioenergy can be created by utilizing genetically changed bacteria to create cellulose ethanol. Though oil and coal are made of organic matter, they aren't thought to be bioenergy as they weren't living lately. Bioenergy utilized in real-world circumstances Liquid Bioenergy; Bioethanol and Biodiesel, may be used to replace existing petrol and diesel, with small changes to the engine.

Some major car producers already support this technology and it's getting more widespread. Sugar cane, beet and maize are generally utilized to supply fuel. Biodiesel comes from eatable plant oils. Waste cooking oil can create biodiesel. Biogas is produced from methane and CO2, and is produced from biomass, for example fertilizer, sludge, sewage, feedstock, and other biodegradable waste.Bioenergy is been thought of as a potential appropriate alternative for fossil fuels in some applications, although the technology available is not actually acceptable yet.

Bioenergy is good for using in locations where there aren't much access to fuel import.

Plants can be grown in particular be utilised an as fuel, and can be grown exactly where they're required, which seriously decreases the monetary and environmental costs and the safety risks linked with transporting and storing fuel. Advantages and downsides of bioenergy though by burning or conversion of biomass the pollution of atmosphere aren't totally reduce.

Nonetheless it have some major benefits.In many regions, biomass is more unvarying than solar or wind power. This is as, the wind and solar energy are done by made technology, while the energy in plants is caught and stored. An additional advantage is that bioenergy is produced by organic waste material which helps to save the environmental and commercial costs of their disposal.

Maybe the most significant benefit of bioenergy is it is a doubtless replenish-able natural resource that would help supply energy wants indefinitely. But there are some disadvantages to using bioenergy. Biomass has tiny energy content for bulk use than carbon-based fuels. Therefore the expenses of labor, transport, and storage are relatively higher. Maybe the major difficulty with bioenergy is with recycling. Folk won't demand bioenergy till there's a big cost saving in doing hence but there may not be much savings till there's a much bigger requirement for bioenergy, or the non-renewable sources become seriously costlier.

For more information please visite: http://www.dpfnd.org/

Image credited to livingenergy.co.nz/technical/2/what-is-bioenergy.aspx

.................................................................................................................................

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.

How to Make Biodiesel From Algae

While awareness of biodiesel and running diesel engines on vegetable oil is growing, you still have to get the oil from somewhere. The conventional choice is to buy vegetable oil, or take used vegetable oil from a restaurant. However, there is another possibility: Produce your own oil, with algae.

Algae

Algae are a form of "simple," photosynthetic, and aquatic organisms. The most complex forms of algae are commonly called "seaweed," though algae range in size and complexity from unicellular forms to this more advanced form. They are called "simple" because they lack many complex features found in land plants. The most useful feature of algae for our purposes is that algae produce significant quantities of natural oils. In fact, there are estimates that the yield from algae can be 200 times greater than that from a comparable area of other sources of conventional vegetable oils.

Algal Oils

Oil from algae is quite similar to oils produced by conventional oil crops and oilseeds. Chemists generally do not speak of oil, which is a common word for a vaguely defined group of chemicals. Biological "oils," or lipids, are chemicals called triglycerides, composed of a central glycerol unit with three fatty acids attached. Chemically, biological lipids are similar to petroleum to the extent that both groups of chemicals are based on carbon and hydrogen.

The main problem with using biological lipids as fuels is the fact that lipids are much more viscous (or resistant to "flowing," in layman's terms) than the refined petrochemicals which make up gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene, and other petroleum-based fuels. As a result, unrefined lipids will not be completely burned off in an engine, and leftover product which did not burn can accumulate in the engine.

Biodiesel from Algae Oil

The process of making biodiesel from oil is all about lowering the viscosity of oil by removing the glycerol; the process of converting algal oils is the same as that with any conventional vegetable oils. Chemists refer to this process as "transesterification," which in the case of biodiesel means splitting the triglycerides, separating the glycerol, which will settle, and converting the fatty acids into a solution of methyl esters, called biodiesel. This is done by mixing the biological oil with sodium methoxide.

Cultivating Algae

Algae can be cultivated at home using a device known as a "photobioreactor," or a bioreactor which includes a source of light. A basic reactor can be made from clear plastic tubes or plastic bottles or a plastic container of some sort. Algae need water, carbon dioxide, and light to grow; the reactor will contain water into which has been placed a culture of algae. Depending on the type of reactor chosen, algae can be cultivated continuously or in batches. The light source can be an LED, a phosphorescent bulb, or natural sunlight.

Getting Oil from the Algae

The making of biodiesel involves a number of separation processes, even more so in the case of biodiesel from algae: separating the algae from the solution, separating the oil from the algae, and separating the glycerol from the biodiesel after the reaction is complete. All of these separation processes can be done simply with a centrifuge.

Conclusions

While even biodiesel isn't quite a free lunch, getting biodiesel from algae can bring you one step closer. The product you get from algae-produced biodiesel is equivalent to that you get from other oils and the conversion of algal oil is the same as the conversion of any other oil; the algae are simply a renewable source of oil. Algae are quite safe, being commonly used in commercial products including food.

This article was written by Pamella Neely from bestlogcabinkits.com.

Image credited to: http://www.cincitdi.com/node?page=5

.................................................................................................................................

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.

Reduce Cholesterol By Lowering Your Trans Fat Intake

Before you read, I just want to let you know that there is no chemical engineering stuffs inside this article. I just posted this article as a reminder for me, my family and all of you. Let's live healthily.

Recently we can observe occasionally people died from heart attack. One of the main reason for this is due to the cholesterol inside the blood. I'm very much concern about this nowadays and have been taking some steps in further understanding what food to consume and which to avoid.

Believe it or not, much of the processed food that we eat today will have some form of trans fat in them. Trans fats give more taste to a food and act as a preservative to certain foodstuffs ensuring that they have a longer shelf life. Thus they appeal to the consumer and the retailer of foodstuffs and have been phenomenally successful in the food industry. It is only in the last 20 years that research has concluded that Trans fats have detrimental affects on our health and can lead to high cholesterol levels and cardiovascular disease. In many countries there are moves to limit or ban the use of trans fats in food. This article will discuss what trans fats are and how reducing them will lead to lowering cholesterol levels.

Trans fat was developed in the early 20th century by hydrogenating plant oil. Hydrogenation is formed by injecting hydrogen into oil to partially solidify it. This changes the characteristics of the oil, meaning that it has a higher melting point and does not oxidize as rapidly. Trans fat is easier and cheaper to produce than an equivalent fat that comes from an animals.

In terms of cholesterol, trans fat is thought to lower the amount of high density lipoproteins (HDL), sometimes referred to as 'good cholesterol'. Lipoproteins are responsible for transporting cholesterol through the blood stream. The 'good cholesterol' or HDL are thought to transport cholesterol to the liver where it is excreted as bile. If your HDL is lower, it cannot perform this vital function. Trans fat also raises your low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels or 'bad cholesterol'. This LDL is responsible for excess plaque buildup in your arteries which can cause decreased blood flow to the major organs and high blood pressure. Excess plague on the walls of the arteries can break free and cause blockages. A block in blood reaching vital organs like the brain or heart can lead to strokes or heart attacks.

You should avoid food that have trans fats in. Read the labels of all the foodstuffs that you buy. I do this whenever I do grocery shopping with my wife. Check out if they have trans fat in them. If they do not list the trans fat look for partially hydrogenated oil, that is another name for trans fat on food labels

Get to know the types of foods that contain or use trans fats. Popular food that use trans fats in cooking are cakes, biscuits and cookies. Other things include dough nuts, microwave popcorn and many deep fried foods from take aways.

If you have high cholesterol you will be advised to try to eat fresh food in your diet. The less processed food the better. It's tough because we are very much used to eating processed food but we need to try. I know this because I'm struggling to eat fresh food - fruits and vegetables. However, this should be applied to everyone not just people trying to reduce cholesterol levels. Eat more lean meats, fish, whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables.

Following a non-trans fat diet will help to lower your cholesterol. A positive by-product of following such a diet will be that you eat healthier and fresher food.

Let's live a better and healthy live... ;)

Image credited to: http://www.salmonellablog.com/2005/11/articles/salmonella-watch/vegetables-fruits-cause-more-food-illnesses/

.................................................................................................................................

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Manufacturing Engineering Jobs

The role played by manufacturing engineering is crucial for the functioning of any company or organization. They play a key part in production, planning and scheduling of the tasks and manufacturing of the key components. This stream of engineering is certainly a good stream to select for, as it enables one to get the coveted engineering degree in a slightly different specialization and there are several job openings in this field too. The entire production process is controlled by the manufacturing engineering department.

Qualifications:

The basic degree that one needs to get is a B.Tech or B.E in manufacturing engineering or mechanical engineering. The person often starts their career in the form of a GET (Graduate Engineer Trainee) and gains experience in the complete engineering cycle. This includes materials, inventory, analysis and production control. Then they become the Superintendent Engineer at the highest rung of the ladder. Several engineers enhance their career opportunities by doing higher studies in the stream of management subjects and moving on to a more strategic role in the Manufacturing cycle.

Demand:

The career prospects for manufacturing engineering is really bright. There is not much competition in this sector and the manufacturing industry is always is need of new engineers. Most of the companies, Small and Medium Enterprises and the Public Sector Units have a requirement for them. The industries in which the manufacturing engineers can find jobs in are food processing, pharmaceuticals, automobile manufacturing, aerospace, electronic and defense sectors. There is also a huge demand in the chemical engineering, heavy engineering, textiles and printing industry.

Future Prospects:
The job prospects are extremely bright for manufacturing engineers. Those who learn the subjects well can then move on to the consultation sector. Manufacturing jobs gives a career which is insightful and gives the opportunity to excel.

.................................................................................................................................

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.

Progressive Freeze Concentration Research

First of all, I would like to share this good news with all of you. My wife had passed her Ph.D VIVA just now. After the tense preparation few days before, she finally made it. She is now Dr. Mazura Jusoh, researcher in Progressive Freeze Concentration (PFC), a subject under crystallization which is the subset of separation engineering. It was not easy but it went smooth. I felt the tense and waited outside the room.

Before the VIVA starts

The VIVA started at 9.30 am. We arrived at the examination room at 8.30 am to prepare and set up all that are necessary. The VIVA session ended at about 12.15 noon and she passed her Ph.D with minor correction.



In case you are wandering what is this research all about, here is the abstract of the study. Maybe some of you who are interested can collaborate with Dr. Mazura or become her student to further develop the PFC technology which is the first in Malaysia.

Abstract : DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL DESIGN FOR PROGRESSIVE FREEZE CONCENTRATION PROCESS

Industrial wastewater may well be treated by freeze concentration, a process which freezes or crystallises out water content as pure ice crystals and leaves behind a highly concentrated solution in a smaller volume. In conventional suspension freeze concentration (SFC) where ice crystals formed as a suspension in the mother liquor, separation of the solid-liquid mixture is difficult and costly. The size of ice crystals is still very limited and the seeding process requires usage of scraped surface heat exchangers (SSFE), which is significantly expensive and accounted for approximately 30% of the capital cost. Progressive freeze concentration (PFC) invented later is believed to provide cost saving and simplify the subsequent ice-liquid separation as ice crystals are formed as a layer or a block on the cooling surface. Quest for a design providing convenience and good efficiencies continues, and in this study a helical structured copper crystalliser was developed and fabricated named Multi-wind Crystalliser (MWC). Effects of several operating conditions on the performance of MWC in context of wastewater treatment were then investigated including circulation flowrate, initial solution concentration, coolant temperature and circulation time. The performance of the design was evaluated by three dependent variables including the effective partition constant, K, calculated from the volume and concentration of the solid and liquid phase. Two other parameters were ice purity and solution volume reduction. A process optimisation was also performed thereafter employing STATISTICA to produce optimum conditions in favour of the stated independent variables. As the crystalliser designed involves heat transfer, the overall heat transfer coefficient was also calculated through temperature profiling subsequently generating a prediction model for ice crystal mass. At the end of the research, a new crystalliser design for PFC is established and an observation of how the operating conditions affect the performance of the system was obtained. Optimum operating conditions was determined by process optimisation and an overall heat transfer coefficients were also generated. Adequacy and reliability of the ice crystal mass prediction model produced was proven by error analyses revealing relatively small errors.

Now...It's my turn to complete my Ph.D... :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.

Good Luck for your Chemical Engineering Ph.D VIVA

The day has finally come...

After few years of tense research, agony to write and compile the papers/thesis draft and pain of waiting for the VIVA (Ph.D examination) date, finally the moment has come. My wife is currently making her final preparation before the battle begins tomorrow morning. She will be defending her Ph.D research/thesis in front of few renowned Professors in the field of separation technology. From what we know, nobody in this country is doing progressive freeze concentration research, a subject that falls under crystallization technology. She's the only one in this country doing it right now. She can be the crystallization expert.

I have accompanied her to the examination room just now and tested the computer and checked the presentation slide. This is just to ensure everything is smooth tomorrow. The room is just nice to fit the chairperson, 3 examiners and 2 of her supervisors.


I hope and pray that she will present her Ph.D research smoothly and awarded the prestigious doctorate degree in Chemical Engineering. Good luck to you... Mazura...

As for me, I'm still in my 3rd semester (just entered my 2nd year) of my Ph.D study. I hope everything will be smooth for me as well.

.................................................................................................................................

FREE Recommended magazines to get you updated with current engineering news

Have you downloaded my free "Choosing Alternative Fuel" Ebook? If not, then please download it here. It's Free and on top of getting the free ebook, you'll get eCourse on Alternative Fuel. It's a good and easy way to add more valuable information to yourself.