Presenting Winners of the Singapore Energy Grand Challenge
23 Jul 2021
With the growing urgency to tackle climate change, there
is a need for greater sustainability as outlined in the Singapore Green Plan
2030. This will include the need to change the way we produce and consume
energy. The Energy Market Authority (EMA) is leading efforts to engage stakeholders,
including the industry, research community and the youth to co-create solutions
for Singapore’s Energy Story and build a more sustainable future. Details of
the Singapore’s Energy Story can be found in Annex A.
2 At EMA’s Energy Innovation 2021, Ms Low
Yen Ling, Minister of State for the Ministry of Trade and Industry &
Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, today announced the winners of the Singapore
Energy Grand Challenge (SEGC) for two categories – (i) Industry and Research
Community and (ii) Youth.The industry
and research community were invited to co-create energy efficient solutions to
benefit Singapore businesses, whereas the youth were
invited to share their ideas on how their carbon-free neighbourhood or schools could
be like.
a. SEGC (Industry and Research Community): The winners are Research
& Development projects from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and
the National University of Singapore (NUS) for their ideas to improve energy
efficiency in waste-to-energy plants and commercial buildings
respectively.
b. SEGC (Youth): Winners of the Junior Category comprising
lower secondary students:
- Champion: 3R Girls Team
from Raffles Girls’ School
- 1st
runner-up: Team Mighty Chondria from Nanyang Girls’ High School
- 2nd runner-up:
Team Proficient from Bedok Green Secondary School
Winners
of the Senior Category comprising upper secondary and junior college
students:
- Champion: Team Electrae
from Dunman High School
- 1st runner-up:
Team Energae from Dunman High School
- 2nd runner-up:
Team Goaty from Anderson Serangoon Junior College
3. EMA’s Chief Executive, Mr Ngiam Shih
Chun, said: “Everyone has a part to play in helping Singapore move towards a more
sustainable energy future. The SEGC is one way of co-creating solutions with
our communities, from youths to industry players and researchers. My heartiest
congratulations to the winners of the SEGC for their innovative solutions. I
look forward to our collective action to decarbonise our energy sector and make
Singapore a model of sustainability to the world.”
SEGC (Industry and Research Community)
4. SEGC (Industry and Research Community)
was launched in September 2020 to encourage the industry and research community
to work together and co-create innovative energy efficiency solutions to lower
Singapore’s energy demand, and enhance the competitiveness of businesses in
Singapore. This saw 31 proposals received from various teams.
5. NTU will develop a solution that uses sound
waves to pre-condition and accumulate pollutants in the waste exhaust from
industrial plants. This improves the efficiency of removing pollutants in the
filtering process and can achieve at least 10-15% in energy savings from fan
power and accompanying separation systems. With the SEGC grant awarded by EMA,
this solution will move beyond its current proof-of-concept into real-world
testing at the Waste-To-Energy Research Facility (WTERF) in partnership with JFE
Engineering Corporation.
6. To reduce our electricity demand from
air-conditioning and build a more sustainable Singapore, NUS will develop a
novel material to more effectively absorb moisture in the air and cool the air
efficiently. Waste heat from air-conditioning will also be tapped on to release
the moisture absorbed and restore the moisture absorbing material for
continuous use. The project will be piloted in commercial air-conditioning
systems in collaboration with Mitsubishi Electric. If successful, the solution
could improve the overall energy efficiency of air-conditioning systems by 30%
or more. More details of both projects can be found in Annex B.
SEGC (Youth)
7. The
second edition of SEGC (Youth) was launched in March 2021 to engage youth on
sustainability issues and garner innovative ideas based on the theme “How would
your carbon-free school or neighbourhood in Singapore look like in 2050?”. A
total of 87 teams across 29 secondary schools and junior colleges took part in
the challenge. Participants had to use Microsoft’s Minecraft: Education Edition
to create their ideal carbon-free world and showcase their aspirations for
Singapore.
8. A team
from Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary) clinched the championship for the Junior
Category with their holistic presentation of innovative low-carbon ideas for
Singapore in the year 2050. Their ideas included the use of hydrogen-powered vehicles
and Maglev trains to reduce overall carbon emissions as well as intelligent
solar-powered street lighting equipped with motion sensors. For the Senior
category, a team from Dunman High School was crowned the champion for their
innovative ideas such as the use of bioluminescent algae for lighting and
artificial intelligence to optimise overall energy usage. The team also received
the highest number of votes from members of the public. More details on the
winning teams can be found in Annex C.
9. The
judging panel for the SEGC comprised representatives from EMA, Infocomm Media
Development Authority, Microsoft Singapore, Durapower Holdings and Maxeon Solar.
10. Mr
Kevin Wo, Managing Director, Microsoft Singapore said, “As we address climate
change through the Singapore Green Plan, it’s great to see that our youths can
bring their carbon-free aspirations to life through immersive learning
environments from Microsoft like Minecraft: Education Edition. Through the eyes
of our youths, we too can draw inspiration from their ideas and take collective
action to build a sustainable future for our nation.”
11. The winning
teams for both categories each received a $5,000 cash prize and a Challenge
Trophy for their schools, while the 1st runner-up and 2nd
runner-up teams received $3,000 and $2,000 respectively. More information on
the next edition of the SEGC (Youth) will be shared in the first half of 2022.
Annex A: Factsheet for Singapore’s Vision to be a
Bright Green Spark
Annex B: Details of Awarded Projects Under the
Inaugural SEGC (Industry and Research Community)
Annex C: Information on Minecraft: Education Edition and
the Winning Teams of SEGC (Youth) 2021
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