Curtin Malaysia engineering students win I-CPEX gold and silver awards

Miri – 22 March 2024 – Students from various engineering disciplines from Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) recently won a gold and four silver awards at the International Final Year Project Competition & Exhibition (I-CPEX) 2023, organised by Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Institute of Information Technology (UniKL MIIT).

Final-year Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical and Electronic Engineering student Chee Lit Zhin won a gold award for his project submission titled ‘Non-Invasive Diabetes Detection using Gait Acceleration’, which was supervised by Dr. Saaveethya Sivakumar from Curtin Malaysia’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Chee’s novel project investigates diabetes detection through the acceleration of the hip, knees, and ankles, collecting data from wearable sensors using a lightweight deep feed-forward neural network (FFNN) model. In addition to winning the Gold Award, Chee was awarded the Best Project Award under the Data Analytics/Artificial Intelligence (AI) Applications category.

Winning silver awards were four teams of students, namely Jia Yi Lai, Hedges Zhi Chao Yeu, Wei Hang Lee and Kai Siang Chong in the first team; Tan Jia Qi, Alan Poon Tik Loon and Forrest Tiong Ing Poh in the second; Ivan Matthias Chin Zhen Hung and April Chee Ling Kwang in the third; and Stella Tan Jia Wen comprising the fourth team.

The first team’s project was titled ‘A Robust Scalable Interactive Learning Platform with Advanced Gamification Features using Phaser.js’, which was also supervised Dr. Saaveethya.

The project aims to enhance teaching and learning experiences through advanced gamification, inspiring learners to engage in learning, and increasing social interaction through a collaboration game mode. The web application the team has developed is an interactive learning platform built using Angular, Node.js, Phaser.js, and MySQL databases to ensure an optimal architecture prioritising modularity, security, and scalability.

The second team, supervised by Dr. Lee Yeong Huei from the Department of Civil and Construction Engineering, won for their project titled ‘Properties of Green Seawater Concrete with Machine Learning Algorithm.’ Their project investigates the development of prediction models for seawater concrete’s fresh and hardened properties using an artificial neural networks (ANN) method.

The third team’s project, supervised by Associate Professor Bridgid Chin Lai Fui from the Department of Chemical and Energy Engineering, was titled ‘Kinetic Analysis for Catalytic Co-Pyrolysis of Aseptic Carton Waste and Water Hyacinth Mixtures Using Thermogravimetric Analysis with Validation of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) Model’. The project involves applying a renewable catalyst known as water hyacinth hydrochar in the co-pyrolysis of aseptic carton waste and water hyacinth mixtures with the aid of ANN for validation results.

Stella Tan’s project, meanwhile, was titled ‘Feasibility Study and LCoE Analysis for Geothermal Energy Production from Depleted Oil Fields in Sarawak’. Supervised Dr. Ziad Bennour from the Department of Chemical and Energy Engineering, the project involves estimating electrical energy generated from two depleted oil fields, a sandstone reservoir and a tight carbonate reservoir using a thermal reservoir simulator known as CMG-STARS.

The I-CPEX 2023 aimed to provide a platform for talented students, innovators, academicians, and entrepreneurs to showcase their innovative projects. The theme of the competition was ‘Innovation Unleashed: Empowering the Future of Technology’. It was divided into various categories such as Decision Support Systems, Data Analytics, Edutainment, Internet of Things, Cybersecurity, Social Science, and Industrial Technology.

Associate Professor Chin, who is also the Chair of the Student and Alumni Relations Committee of Curtin Malaysia’s Faculty of Engineering and Science, said she was delighted with the students’ achievements in the competition.

“Such competitions motivate students to shape the future and build essential skills for their future careers. Students are able to showcase their innovative talents, demonstrating the immense potential and creativity present among today’s youth,” she remarked.

Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Science, Professor Tuong-Thuy Vu, also congratulated the students and their supervisors on their wins, saying, “We wholeheartedly support and encourage our students to participate in such competitions as part of their learning journey. These events offer valuable opportunities for reflection on their progress, development, and the impact of their studies.”

“I am convinced that the experiences gained from these competitions will enable students to expand their knowledge and elevate their skills to new heights. Furthermore, the topics presented underscore our faculty’s commitment to energy, bio-processing, intelligent and sustainable technologies,” he added.

Information on Curtin Malaysia can be found on its website at curtin.edu.my, or look for Curtin Malaysia on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Tik-Tok.

The award-winning students and their supervisors