Profession: Educator

Number of times previously entering contest: never

Online communities: www.cnt-nus.com

Inspired by: I was inspired after being challenged by a janitor at the NUS on what could be done with waste paper I threw out. The idea of using environmental wastes has come in my mind from this conversation. Recycling environmental waste can avoid several scenarios of environmental hazard, and saving our resources, including the raw materials and energy usage. Paper waste, textile/fabric waste and plastic waste are abundant, and I have wanted to recycle them. So my inspired idea is "Using environmental wastes to solve environmental problems and converting them into high-value eco-aerogels for novel engineering applications." Our developed aerogel technology can solve current aerogel technology problems by our cost-effective methods without using any toxic solvent. The eco-aerogels can be used to make a varied range of products, such as thermal insulating materials, packaging, winter jackets, reusable oil absorption products, first-aid plugs for wounds, and personal care products.