Philippine Science and Technology for the Filipinos

Alexander John Cruz

5^th year BS Chemical Engineering

University of the Philippines – Diliman nominee for the

2014 BPI DOST Science Awards – Best Project of the Year

Technology has been a significant and fundamental factor of a progressive society. It has always been inclined with the fast approaching era of the space age and is considered to be a commodity of every country. Today, people develop and improvise materials that make life easier from time to time: automated controlled devices, microchips, integrated operating systems, industrial machineries and even robotics—all for the benefit of human existence. Consequently, these advantages brought about by the scientific applications would not be possible without continuous improvement, development and prioritization.

Philippine’s energy is mainly attached on imported petroleum products, in which, nowadays, has been exponentially increasing its price in the world market. The phenomena is exhibited by which the primary sources are being depleted beyond the sustainable yield. Emissions from fossil fuel derived products do not only entail harm to the environment but also in terms of inducing additional costs for the facilities compliance with regulatory standards.

It was already an established problem, that the oil and petroleum products that we import have a reverberating effect to energy sustainability and poses threat to the energy supply and the environment. Consequently, different regions in the world resort in utilizing and developing renewable energy technologies to cope with the problems of fossil fuels. The ultimate goal of every development step is to discover a clean, renewable and viable form of energy. When I was in the penultimate year in my course, I have realized my purpose in life as a future Filipino chemical engineer—it is to be one of the frontrunners of young scientists who will establish a novel, Filipino-made system for a renewable energy source for the Philippines. As a young member of the scientific community in the country, what I can do for now is to always rekindle my goals and dreams, continue to envision myself as one of the leaders of these young technologists, developing mechanisms for renewable energy systems; and the same time, strive harder in my studies in the hope that one day, in the near future, I will be pursuing a career in energy engineering and the academe. Academe, because I want to share what I have learned in the beginning of my knowledge acquisition years and industry because I will use and apply the knowledge and experience that I will acquire in pursuing research on renewable and sustainable energy source for the Philippines. I have always been a teacher at heart and sharing these knowledge in instruction and academic research will definitely have a great impact not only in science education but also in terms of academe-industry linkage here in the Philippines and even in the global arena. As of the moment, available research, development and resources in the field of renewable energy systems are limited and have a long way to go through for large scale, practical applications, but I still believe that is not that impossible. In this fight, a challenging task remains in discovering and developing reactor systems that can handle and produce sufficient energy to cater the needs of humankind and my battle starts with this humble piece of work that I enter in the BPI DOST Science Awards. With the support of different agencies particularly the DOST and its arm in the academe, the SEI, encouragement and financial support will not be a problem. The project that we are conducting maybe on its bench scale but who knows, ten years from now, the technology that we are working on will be the basis of the novel mechanism in producing a reliable form of energy in our country. I hope that this renewable hydrogen generator systems will indeed be the fuel of the future.