Researchers come up with over 60 innovations to help tackle air pollution

By The Nation

 

Dr Adisorn Tuantranont, a senior researcher at the Thailand Organic

 

IN THE wake of the haze that enveloped Greater Bangkok as well as the North and Northeast, the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) has come up with over 60 innovations that can be turned into practical technology.

 

Academics also floated several ideas such as imposing additional taxes on vehicles and fuel, charging a fee for entering the central business district (CBD), introducing electric micro-buses and extending the use of an effective haze-sensing system to other parts of the country. 

 

TRF director Sutthipan Jitpimonmas listed the 62 innovations in his opening speech at a seminar on tackling haze technology and solutions in Bangkok on February 22. An accompanying exhibition presented details of the new innovations.

 

Sutthiphan said the TRF sponsored research into technology to deal with minuscule dust particles in the air – a long-standing problem in Thailand.

 

So far, the researchers have come up with an effective haze-sensing and GIS (geographic information system) network that is being tried out in the northern province of Nan, a portable device to read the air quality index (AQI) and PM 2.5 and PM10 levels, and a design for a lightweight electric micro-bus.

 

Hence, he said, the public and private sectors should invest in further studies so these innovations can be turned into more practical and large-scale technology and help eradicate the problem of air pollution. 

 

“The TRF is ready to support research, as this issue has been affecting people and the country,” he said, noting that between Bt100,000 and Bt1 million had been put to initially develop these innovations, which should be further funded to develop for practical use. 

 

At the same event, renowned economist Adis Israngkura na Ayudhya suggested that taxes be imposed on vehicles and fuel used by pollution-generators, as this will motivate people and organisations to use clean energy. He also said that imposing a fee on personal cars for entering the CBD area will lower the number of cars in downtown Bangkok, and urged related agencies to discuss the pros and cons of the idea. 

 

He also called on the government to improve the public transport system and encourage the use of clean energy for cars. 

 

Yossapong Laoonual, an engineering lecturer at King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, said he and the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority had conducted a study on the correlation between energy efficiency and speed, and had come up with a lightweight electric micro-bus.

 

He explained that this vehicle’s chassis will be made of composite material, will use a smaller battery and be suitable for distances of less than 300 kilometres. He added that the design met the requirements set by the Department of Land Transport and the United Nation’s ECE-R66 safety standard used in Europe, Japan and Australia.

 

Preecha Karin, a lecturer from King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, said PM2.5 particles from the exhaust fumes of diesel engines have been cited as a cause for lung cancer, so the government should require an automatic diesel particulate filter to be installed in all vehicles.

 

He also said that using bio-fuel will not only help lower the emission of toxic fumes from car exhausts by 50 per cent, but will also offer energy security and boost the income of farmers. 

 

Sanphet Chunithipaisan, an engineering lecturer from Chulalongkorn University, said he has created easy-to-use devices that read the intensity of PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 particles in the air as well as offer information on temperature and humidity. These devices, installed in Nan province in a pilot project, will help people monitor air pollution and take timely action. 

 

These devices – which are connected via Wi-Fi and send information to the Cloud system every five minutes – have been found to be as good as the devices used at air-quality measuring stations. Since this network also gets information from other provinces in the North, residents can keep track of the air-quality situation on http://cusense.net/ or via Twitter account @foonReporter, he said, adding that the government should look into installing these devices in other provinces as well. 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30364685

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-02-25

I think the ''flying car'' will arrive before Thailand gets serious about emissions

Edited February 24, 20197 yr by mok199

14 minutes ago, mok199 said:

And I have been waiting for the flying car since the popular mechanics 1955 edition...

Flying cars in Thailand, 

Shushh!! not talk. 

Ban all sales on matchsticks.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

Researchers come up with over 60 innovations to help tackle air pollution

Why not only ask everybody to blow in the air, Easy and free.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

TRF director Sutthipan Jitpimonmas listed the 62 innovations in his opening speech

Guaranteed to send the whole audience to sleep.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

60 innovations that can be turned into practical technology.

How about inventing a body of men trained to spot a column of smoke from a distance of several kilometres.  The men could have their own uniform and be given special powers to arrest the errant farmers.  They could name this elite force; THE POLICE.

Top of the list was.... Pissing off the top of high rise condos !  These people are useless. Stop burning the fields for months on end and phase out diesel vehicles. That will solve most of the problem. (My 5 year old kid came up with that idea ! )

3 hours ago, webfact said:

diesel particulate filter to be installed in all vehicles.

no  good  in an urban environment needs a  "run" to regenerate

1 hour ago, Borzandy said:

Why not only ask everybody to blow in the air, Easy and free.

turn the boat  props  up to blow  it  all away im mean thers  gonna  be no  flooding so they could be re  assigned and the minister owner could keep his  income

What seems to be missing is industry so here's my innovation. Stop taking big brown paper bags from industries that pollute the environment and fine them heavily. I believe this is what is called a pipe dream.????

1 hour ago, SoilSpoil said:

Ban all sales on matchsticks.

That is only a partial solution, rubbing two sticks or a boy scout and a girl scout together would overcome the no match ban. 

1 hour ago, mikebell said:

How about inventing a body of men trained to spot a column of smoke from a distance of several kilometres.  The men could have their own uniform and be given special powers to arrest the errant farmers.  They could name this elite force; THE POLICE.

So long as the uniform has lots of shiny buttons, parachute wings, plenty of gold braid, lots of highly coloured campaign decorations, and  of course a newly issued whistle. This will ensure the necessary authority and greatly reduce the level of pollution. 

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Researchers come up with over 60 innovations to help tackle air pollution

 

1 innovation would be enough:  get tough with people who burn

and it is not the diesel cars - they are around all year. Well they don't make it better but the smog comes only when the idiots start burning

Edited February 25, 20197 yr by sweatalot

Without reading it: how many included sacrificing a goat, making rain or fining farang for smoking, somewhere outside of a building?

 

Wonder what number 'power of prayer from high ranking officials' came

Life sentences for vaping, which is evil (it seems).  It's responsible for everything bad.  Also, ban farangs.

1. Get a new government that's serious about environmental protection.

 

2. Mandate and empower the PCD to actually do their job, including instituting a mandatory emissions inspection and certification program for all vehicles.

 

3. STOP THE OPEN BURNING!

 

After that, leave #s 4 to 60 to the researchers to have their fun...

 

 

 

5 hours ago, mikebell said:

How about inventing a body of men trained to spot a column of smoke from a distance of several kilometres.  The men could have their own uniform and be given special powers to arrest the errant farmers.  They could name this elite force; THE POLICE.

And hire a foreign organization to wake them up to do their jobs.

4 hours ago, Artisi said:

So long as the uniform has lots of shiny buttons, parachute wings, plenty of gold braid, lots of highly coloured campaign decorations, and  of course a newly issued whistle. This will ensure the necessary authority and greatly reduce the level of pollution. 

Im sorry isnt  that all those <deleted>'''''s  on big  posters  everywhere asking for you to vote for them.?? Looks  like  many belong in a morgue or an  asylum

1 hour ago, kannot said:

Im sorry isnt  that all those <deleted>'''''s  on big  posters  everywhere asking for you to vote for them.?? Looks  like  many belong in a morgue or an  asylum

that's them, as for reducing pollution - you've already seem the line up and you already know the outcome ...

7 hours ago, Artisi said:

So long as the uniform has lots of shiny buttons, parachute wings, plenty of gold braid, lots of highly coloured campaign decorations, and  of course a newly issued whistle. This will ensure the necessary authority and greatly reduce the level of pollution. 

They are as useless as they are decorated.

Maybe start a biofuel market and cut the cane instead of burning it willy nilly. 

18 hours ago, webfact said:

Researchers come up with over 60 innovations to help tackle air pollution

 

18 hours ago, webfact said:

and had come up with a lightweight electric micro-bus.

 

Just google “ways to reduce air pollution” hey, it works ????

 

Or, how governments can reduce air pollution ?

 

Wow, it works!

 

I didn’t see spraying water in the air?

Edited February 25, 20197 yr by Redline

19 hours ago, mikebell said:

How about inventing a body of men trained to spot a column of smoke from a distance of several kilometres.  The men could have their own uniform and be given special powers to arrest the errant farmers.  They could name this elite force; THE POLICE.

Fair go mate. Thai farmers have for a thousand years been burning rice paddies.

The majority of truly toxic fumes comes from vehicles and non efficient emissions from factories. And so on.

Clean up choking fumes from gridlocked Bangkok for a start. Make factories cleaner.

The farmers do need to learn about better ways and educate about composting rice, sugar and other agricultural products by composting.

But infra red satellite photos showed most fires were in Cambodia and that smoke was directed to areas such as Chiang Mai area.

 Farmers have always been the downtrodden in Thailand. Your post just fans the flames (pun intended)

They are a very small part of the problem but they are an easy target.

I think they need to concentrate more on wasting scarce water resources on trying to spray water higher.

That was surely a major innovation that did not work, but if you "pump" a few more funds, who knows