JAKARTA — Amanda Septevani, a young researcher of the Indonesian Institute of Science (LIPI), has managed to develop an anti-crack phone screen from biomass wastes of palm oil.
The phone screen, which is developed with the technology of nano-cellulose (transformation of contents in plants through the process of nano-technology), has many advantages if compared to the conventional screens.
“Actually, this research was inspired by activities that I used to do when I studied in Australia for my PHD. I also developed the same material, which is the nano-cellulose derived from wild grasses in Australia,” said the chemical expert, who graduated from Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology.
When Amanda returned to Indonesia, she thought the idea was not relevant and then decided to think about different applications.
“When I returned it was not relevant. Therefore, I was trying to find other applications,” Amanda was quoted by DW as saying on Tuesday, 29 December 2020.
The electronic appliance screen that is created by Amanda has substrate from biomass wastes of agriculture and plantations.
The waste that she used as the source of substrate is the empty fruit bunches of oil palm. But other agricultural wastes, such as corn cobs and kenaf fibres, are also potential.
Advantages
“Currently, the electronic appliance screens are dominated by substrate from glass, which is very easy to get cracked. The screen that we developed comes from nano-cellulose that we then made thinner,” said Amanda.
After that, she applied the ultrafiltration technique and hot-press. Then, it is dried to become thin layer that is more flexible.
“Due to its more flexibility, it will become anti-crack screen once it is applied into the electronic appliances,” said Amanda.
Environmentally friendly
Besides its advantage of durability, the electronic appliance screens created by Amanda are also sustainable and environmentally friendly.
“Despite many researches that are trying to find other substrates, all are still dominated by polymer substrates from non-sustainable resources. We are also assessing the possibility of using other wastes that are sustainable and available in Indonesia,” she noted.
LIPI support
Amanda’s research has economic value and innovative contribution in the chemical sector. Therefore, LIPI has fully supported the research of Amanda through its chemical research center.
LIPI Research Center Head Yenny Meliana said that LIPI is very supportive for youngsters to conduct researches.
“The research of Amanda on the nano-cellulose technology that is applied for electronic appliance screens was initiated by Amanda herself as her study was about nano-cellulose,” Yenny said.
She noted that Indonesia is abundant with empty fruit bunches. Amanda has managed to utilize the empty fruit bunches as the raw material to create economic value.
“We in LIPI support the researches conducted by youngsters like Amanda. We support them by providing supporting infrastructures,” said Yenny.
Source: liputan6.com | Featured image via koran-jakarta.com
