Overview
The 5th
International Conference on Energy and Sustainability took place in Putrajaya
near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, organised by the Wessex Institute of Technology,
represented by Professor Carlos Brebbia; Malaysia Research and Education
Network (MYREN), represented by Professor Hussain Al-Kayiem of Universiti
Teknologi Petronas and the Universiti Teknologi Mara, represented by Professor
Syed Zubir.
The
Meeting follows the very successful conference series which started in the New
Forest (UK), home of the Wessex Institute in 2007 and continued in Bologna
(2009); Alicante (2011); and Bucharest (2013).
The
Conference is reconvened to discuss the challenges affecting the modern world
in the field of energy. Modern society is highly dependent on the exploitation
of fossil fuels. Depletion of resources and environmental effects resulting from
the continuous use of those fuels has resulted in an increasing amount of
interest in renewable energy resources and the need for sustainable energy
policies.
The
changes required to progress from an economy mainly based on hydrocarbons to
one taking advantage of sustainable energy resources are massive and require a
substantial amount of scientific research, as well as the development of new
engineering systems and technologies. The effort also involves collaboration
across different disciplines in order to arrive at optimum solutions, including
building, energy networks, transportation systems, energy storage solutions, conversion
and recovery energy solutions, and many others.
Opening of the Conference
The
Conference was opened by Ms Liana Jaganatham, Programme Manager for MYREN which
is part of the Ministry of Education and Sponsor of the Conference. She
explained the objectives of her programme and the advances made in Research and
Education in Malaysia. The programme also covers networks supporting the whole country.
She ended by describing some of the future projects.
Professor
Al-Kayiem, Co-Chair of the Conference refers to the importance of the work
carried out at the conferences and, in particular, those organised by WIT,
which help to bring people together in a friendly environment.
Professor
Carlos A. Brebbia then described the work done at the Wessex Institute of
Technology. WIT, Carlos said, is fundamentally an organisation dedicated to the
transfer of knowledge. This is carried out by means of a variety of activities,
including conferences, seminars and courses.
An
important part of WIT activities relate to provision of knowledge and services to
industry. The Institute has developed over many years computer software
packages based on their own research on Boundary Element Methods. These codes
are now used by many companies around the world, particularly in the energy and
aerospace field.
WIT
Press, the publishing arm of the Institute, provides also a mechanism to
disseminate knowledge. The organisation publishes a series of books and
journals in digital and paper format. They are distributed throughout the world
by a substantial number of representatives and agents.
Carlos
ended by pointing out that the Institute aims to continuously improve the
infrastructure of its Campus; which is located in the New Forest National Park
in the South of England.
Conference Topics
The
papers were grouped into a series of sessions, as follows:
·
Biofuels
·
Energy
policies
·
Sustainable
energy production
·
Green
buildings
·
Energy
and transportation
·
CO2
capture and management
·
Energy
storage
·
Environmental
risk management
·
Processing
of oil and gas
·
Waste
to energy
Keynote and Invited Presentations
The
Conference Programme included a number of invited presentations by well known
colleagues, as follows:
·
“Synthesis
of novel catalysts for hydrodeoxygenation of bio-oil: guaiacol as a model
component” by Nader Mahinpey, Calgary University, Canada
·
“Sustaining
thermal power plant production in low water supply regions using cooling
towers” by Hussein Al-Kayiem, Universiti Tecnologi Petronas, Malaysia
·
“Sustainable
space optimization and function versatility through mass displacement” by Syed
Zubir, Universiti Teknologi Mara, Malaysia
·
“Dry
reforming of methane under an electro-catalytic bed: effect of electrical
current and catalyst composition” by Jean-Michel Lavoie, Université de
Sherbrooke, Canada
·
“Increasing
the selectivity of the hydrocarbon feedstock pyrolysis” by Elena Magaril, Urals
Federal University, Russia
·
“Cost-benefit
analysis of living wall systems on school building skins in hot climate” by
Mahmoud Haggag, UAE University, United Arab Emirates.
The
Conference was characterised by its friendly atmosphere and the many contacts
made by the delegates. As all WIT Conferences, it attracted participants from
many different countries. It also included the presence of many young
researchers, mostly recent PhD graduates, whose contributions presented new
ideas and original applications.
Conference Dinner
The
International Scientific Advisory Committee met over an excellent dinner hosted
by Professor Hussain Al-Kayiem to discuss the way in which the meeting could be
improved. The discussions centred on the topics covered and in particular the
challenge resulting from the recent fall in the price of oil and gas. These changes
will have a profound impact on some renewable resources systems and new
hydrocarbons extraction methods such as fracking with consequent new policies.
The Committee also discussed the need to appoint new members.
During
the Meeting the soon to be launched International Journal of Energy Production
and Management was also discussed. The importance of an early announcement is
crucial to the future of the Journal, as well as to attract papers by well
known colleagues. This will accelerate the inclusion of the Journal in the
search engines and appropriate databases.
The
Conference Banquet took place on board a boat that sailed along the Putrajaya
Lake while a guide explained the different buildings along the way. The new governmental
capital of Malaysia has been a major undertaking with a diversity of building
styles for the different ministries and state departments. It has several large
mosques and malls and an ever-expanding number of residential areas. The first
buildings were inaugurated as recently as 2001 but the city is now full of many
impressive buildings and has an excellent road and bridge system, together with
a fast train link to Kuala Lumpur.
The
excellent Malaysian food served during the trip and the good company made this
a unique occasion, helping the delegates to strengthen their links.
Closing of the Conference
The
Conference was closed by Carlos who thanked the delegates for making Energy and
Sustainability such a friendly and successful Conference.
He
mentioned that the Conference book is now archived in the Institute’s eLibrary
(http://library.witpress.com) where
they are accessible to the international community. He reminded the presenters of
the possibility of submitting extended versions of their papers to the
International Journal of Energy Production and Management, the latest WIT Press
Journal.
Carlos
invited the delegates to visit the Campus of Wessex Institute in the New
Forest, a National Park in the South of England, renowned for its beauty.
Finally,
he thanked the Co-Chairmen, Syed and Hussain, for their commitment to the
Conference and for making the Meeting such a success.
Conference Proceedings
The proceedings of Energy and Sustainability 2014 (Print ISBN:
978-1-84564-837-4; eISBN: 978-1-84564-838-1) are available from WIT Press.
Orders can be placed on the WIT Press web site at www.witpress.com or by
email:marketing@witpress.com, telephone: +44 (0) 238 029 3223 or fax: +44 (0)
238 029 2853.
Papers from the conference will also be hosted online a the WIT eLibrary as Volume 186 of WIT Transactions on the Ecology and the Environment ( ISSN: 1746-448X, Digital ISSN 1743-3541). For more details visit the WIT eLibrary at http://library.witpress.com
