The Metal Industries Research & Development Centre (MIRDC) organized Education Action Day with the theme “The Future of Hydrogen, Let Technology Take Root” at the National Science and Technology Museum today (September 16), inviting Chun-Hsien Kuo, Vice Principal of National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology (NKUST) and members of the Technological Alliance for Hydrogen Combustion in Industrial Applications and High-Pressure Hydrogen Storage and Transportation, including Liang Lian Industries Co., Ltd., Sorex Welding Co., Ltd., Bronkhorst, Tung Ho Steel Enterprise Corp., and Yean Hern Corp., to participate in the event. The event’s technology demonstrations, interactive experiences, and guided tours attracted elementary and junior high school teachers and students to participate. Students gained firsthand understanding of the preparation, storage, and application of hydrogen through a hands-on experience, making hydrogen energy more than just an engineering term, but a technology topic that students can participate in, ask questions about, and understand.
Wei-Hung Wu, Vice President of MIRDC, pointed out that MIRDC is focusing on hydrogen transportation and storage as well as industrial combustion under the Technology Development Program of the Department of Industrial Technology, Ministry of Economic Affairs, and is driving the development and application of key devices. The team led by Principal Investigator Hun-Yu Lin developed the first variable ratio mixed hydrogen burner that can flexibly adjust the hydrogen ratio based on industry needs. The burner is applied in boilers and industrial furnaces and helps the transformation of industrial processes to reduce carbon emissions. The high-pressure hydrogen transmission and storage technology developed by the team utilizes anti-hydrogen embrittlement welding and anti-permeability treatment technologies, and ensures that production lines and boilers continue to operate stably, safely, and without leaking under high pressure and high temperature. The team further transformed technology developed by MIDRC into teaching aids, which were donated to the National Science and Technology Museum. The donation ceremony today helped students understand applications of hydrogen energy, fulfilling the mission of technology translation and popular science education, and echoing the spirit of taking action to “Let Technology Take Root.”
Hsiu-Feng Lee, Director-General of National Science and Technology Museum, said that Education Action Day co-organized with MIRDC is an important practice of giving students a perspective of technology R&D. As a public education venue, the National Science and Technology Museum attaches great importance to letting energy issues become truly understood. Chun-Jern Pan, Assistant Professor of National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, was specially invited to provide an interactive device on hydrogen production and storage, allowing students to explore the principles and applications of hydrogen energy through a hands-on experience, learning about technology through a game, and understanding energy through the experience. The National Science and Technology Museum has always highly valued to make technology easy to understand and close to everyday life. Education Action Day has allowed hydrogen energy to become more than merely an abstract concept to students.
Going forward, MIRDC will work even closer with the industry alliance, and they will link materials, processes, equipment, and applications together, so as to carry out more field verifications and application demonstrations. At the same time, MIRDC will build on results of Education Action Day by developing a replicable and scalable hydrogen energy promotion model through collaboration between “R&D institutions + education venues + industry chain.” This will allow hydrogen energy technologies to be applied and extend from production lines into daily life, helping the public gradually understand and further participate in green energy, which will lay a solid foundation for Taiwan's transition to net zero emissions.