2025-26 TECHNICAL BULLETTIN - DIGITAL

Understanding Student Experiences in Remote Learning Setup:Qualitative Analysis of Causes and Coping Mechanisms forWorkload, Stress, and FatigueThis paper explores the factors contributing to students’ perceived workload, stress and fatiguein the remote learning setup and their coping mechanisms. A semester long study wasconducted during the remote learning setup in the University of the Philippines Diliman where66 third year Industrial Engineering students participated. Atotal of 17 weekly online surveyswere administered to measure students’ perceived workload, stress and fatigue, as well as openended items asking what contributed to their experiences and how they coped. This paperreports on the qualitative data collected in the longitudinal study. Simple descriptive analyticsmethods were used to analyze the qualitative data. Initial results showed that the top mostfrequent factors that affect workload and stress revolve around the given academic requirementsas well as external events such as the national elections. As for fatigue, factors that were citedbystudentswaslackofsleep. Therewerealsoobservedtrendsontheresponses such that during thefirst few weeks, students were more concerned with student organizational work and completingtheir internships. Afterwards, these factors tend to decrease. Towards the end of the studyperiod, the academic requirements, exams, and finals week factors were observed to beincreasing.LAGRIA, RAYMOND FRETH A.ANTONIO AND LETICIA R. BELLO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN INDUSTRIALENGINEERINGRAYMOND FRETH A. LAGRIA is an Assistant Professor and the current Department Chair of theDepartment of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, University of the Philippines DilimanCollege of Engineering. He received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Industrial Engineering, majorin Information Systems, in UP Diliman.He specializes in the areas of Analytics Systems Engineering, Survey Operations Management, DataModelling, Data Warehousing, Information Systems, Business Process Improvement, and Discrete EventsSimulation.His research interests include Analytics Systems Engineering, Data Science, and applications of IndustrialEngineering in Disaster Risk Reduction and Management.101

Bacteriophage T4 Thermal Inactivation KineticsAntimicrobial resistance fueled the renewed interest in bacteriophages, viruses that specificallytarget and lyse bacteria. Studies on phage viability at various conditions is crucial for assessingits application in various industries as well as developing phage control procedures. In thisstudy the thermal inactivation kinetics of T4 phage was investigated at varying temperatures. T4phage samples were subjected to temperatures 55 °C, 60 °C, and 70 °C, and shaken at aconstant rate of 200 RPM. A first-order kinetic model best described the inactivation kinetics,was used to model the kinetic parameters, and determine the rate constant (k) and activationenergy (Eₐ). The calculated rate constants at 55 °C, 60 °C, and 70 °C are -0.004485 ±0.001466, -0.01323 ± 0.001546, and 0.05356 ± 0.01161 min-1, respectively. The experimentalactivation energy (Eₐ) of T4 is 151.92 kJ/mol, confirming its thermal stability within the testedtemperature range. High positive values of free energy of inactivation (ΔG) and negative entropy(ΔS) shows that T4 bacteriophage had structural and ordered thermo-stability. Overall, the studyrevealed significant thermal inactivation at elevated temperatures, with rapid inactivationoccurring at 70 °C. For future research, it is recommended to investigate the thermalinactivation of phages in different phage buffers and under pressurized conditions to moreaccurately simulate environmental conditions.MONTEALEGRE, CHARLIMAGNE M.FILADELFO PANLILIO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGCharlimagne M. Montealegre obtained his Bachelor's and Master's Degree in Chemical Engineering fromthe University of the Philippines Diliman. He completed his degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Chemicaland Biomolecular Engineering at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 2021. Hestarted teaching in 2011 as an instructor at the University of the Philippines Diliman. Dr. Montealegre iscurrently an associate professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering, the co-head of theBiochemical Engineering Laboratory, and the head of the Catalyst Research Laboratory. His researchinterests include applications of bacteriophages and antimicrobial proteins against antimicrobial resistantorganisms, bioprocessing, the application of chemical engineering principles involving biologicalcomponents, and Fluidized Bed Homogeneous Crystallization for the recovery of heavy metals and theircatalytic activity.102

Sodium Alginate/ -Carrageenan Blends as Potential FilmCarriers for Transdermal Drug DeliveryKTransdermal drug delivery films must have a balance between high swelling capacity for drugrelease and sufficient mechanical integrity for handling and application. This study investigatesthe potential of blended sodium alginate (ALG) and κ-carrageenan (KCR) films as carriers,exploiting the strong network links of ALG and high gel forming capability of KCR to maximizeswelling while preserving strength. A series of solution-casted ALG/KCR blend films wereprepared at various ratios (30/70, 40/60, 50/50, 60/40, 70/30 w/w). The resulting mechanicalproperties and SD of the films were generally intermediate between those of the pure polymers,with some ratios exhibiting synergistic enhancements. The 50/50 ALG/KCR blend offered thebalanced combination of modulus of elasticity (1.07 GPa), tensile strength (210.87 MPa),elongation at break (33%), and swelling degree (1500%). Conversely, the 70/30 ALG/KCR filmachieved highest swelling (2534%) but sacrificed mechanical properties, showing the lowestmodulus (0.63 GPa) and tensile strength (26.7 MPa). Moreover, physicochemical analysisconfirmed successful blending. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy indicated theformation of homogeneous films, while X-ray diffraction (XRD) showed an increase inamorphous regions. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) further supported thehomogeneous miscibility of the polymers. Collectively, these findings demonstrate thatALG/KCR blend films, particularly the 50/50 ratio, offer a promising balance of mechanicalstrength and high swelling capacity, making them a viable candidate for advanced transdermaldrug delivery systems.OYALES, MITCH-IRENE KATE G.PHILEX PROFESSORIAL CHAIR (1)Mitch-Irene Kate Galvan Oyales is a Professional Materials Engineer with a Ph.D. in Materials Science andEngineering from the University of the Philippines Diliman. She earned her BS and MS degrees in the same fieldfrom the same institution in 2010 and 2013, respectively. Currently, she serves as the Chairperson of the Departmentof Mining, Metallurgical, and Materials Engineering of the University of the Philippines Diliman.Dr. Oyales specializes in the synthesis, mechanical performance, and failure analysis of polymer nanocomposites. Herresearch has been presented at prominent international conferences and published in esteemed journals. Her workencompasses the impact of plasticizers on polymer composites, the characterization of nanomaterials such askaolinite clay and silica nanoparticles, and the fractography of rubber composites under environmental aging.Her recent research projects include incorporation of natural gums in the fabrication of bioplastics as alternative tosingle use food packaging materials, development of atlas of fractographs of rubber composites, and modification ofsilica and kaolinite clay as common reinforcement in composite materials.103

Mobile Detection of Macronutrient Deficiencies in LettucePlants Using Convolutional Neural NetworkAs lettuce is one of the most widely consumed vegetable crops, detecting its deficiencies inmacronutrients, nitrogen (N) and potassium (K), becomes an important task in ensuring itsproper development and growth. This project has implemented a mobile application that detectsnitrogen and potassium deficiencies in lettuce by utilizing lightweight Convolutional NeuralNetworks (CNN) models, specifically EfficientNetB0, MobilenetV3Small, and MobileNetV3Large,for the classification of macronutrient deficiencies. Additionally, the application includes amodule for image processing that separates the crop from the background to improveclassification accuracy. Furthermore, CNN models target low resource usage and can be usedon mobile CPUs without compromising the accuracy in classifying macronutrient deficiencies.The mobile application was 81 % accurate in detecting whether the lettuce plants were healthy,nitrogen-deficient, or potassium-deficient.PEDRASA, JHOANNA RHODETTE I.CESAR E.A. VIRATA - DAIKIN INDUSTRIES, LTD.UP CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIRJhoanna Rhodette I. Pedrasa is a faculty member of the University of the Philippines in Diliman Instituteof Electrical and Electronics Engineering. She received her PhD degree from the School of ElectricalEngineering and Telecommunications of the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Herresearch interest is in computer networks, Internet of Thing, and Smart Cities104

Kinetics and Isotherm Studies of Methyl Orange Adsorptionusing Metal Organic Framework-based Composite BeadsFunctionalized with PolyethyleneimineTo further improve the adsorption performance of our synthesized metal organic framework(MOF)-based composite beads, components with favorable functional groups are introduced. Inthis study, polyethyleneimine (PEI), a suitable polymer with plenty of amine functional groups inits structure, was incorporated to increase the number of active sites for methyl orange (MO)adsorption. The effects of operating parameters such as pH and initial MO concentration on theMO adsorption performance of our previously optimized beads composed of chitosan (CS),MIL-101 (Fe), and PEI were investigated. In addition, kinetic and isotherm modelling usingadsorption equilibrium data were performed using non-linear regression. High MO removal ofat least 93% was achieved across a wide range of pH, while kinetic data followed a pseudosecond order equation with a coefficient of determination (R-squared) of 0.981, suggesting thatchemisorption limits the rate of the reaction. Furthermore, isotherm studies revealed that theadsorption equilibrium data were best described by the Sips isotherm model (R-squared =0.993), suggesting MO adsorption on the heterogeneous surface of the beads. With amaximum adsorption capacity of 1253.44 mg/g, results showed superior performance of thebeads in removing MO from water. Finally, regeneration studies proved that the beads have ahigh regenerative ability, being able to maintain MO removal of over 98% throughout five cyclesof adsorption and desorption.PEREZ, JEM VALERIE D.FEDERICO E. PUNO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (B)Dr Jem Valerie Perez earned her BS, MS, and PhD degrees in Chemical Engineering from the Universityof the Philippines Diliman. She conducted and completed her dissertation on functionalized graphenebased nanomaterials in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University ofHouston (UH). Thereafter, she joined the faculty ranks of the Department of Chemical Engineering (DChE)in 2016. She visited Houston again in 2019 as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the UH Department of Chemistryand Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH, where she worked on exploratory synthesis of metalorganic frameworks (MOFs) and other novel compounds for energy and environmental applications.Currently, she is a Full Professor and the Graduate Program Coordinator at DChE, and she heads theNanotechnology Research Laboratory. Her research interests include (1) functionalized nanomaterials and(2) design optimization for water treatment applications.105

Evaluation of Wastewater Management Practices,Infrastructure, and Policies in the Batanes Tourism SectorThis study assessed the current status of wastewater management practices in the tourism sector ofBatanes, Philippines. Baseline data on wastewater treatment facilities were collected and evaluated inrelation to tourism-related water consumption and tourist arrivals. Information was gathered throughsurveys and focus group discussions, using 2018–2024 water consumption and tourist arrival records,along with an inventory of facilities from the municipalities of Basco, Itbayat, Sabtang, Uyugan, Mahatao,and Ivana. A total of 37 tourism establishments participated in the survey. Results revealed a moderatelystrong positive correlation (R = 0.73) between water consumption and tourist arrivals, particularly inSabtang, where usage peaked during local festivities and periods of high visitor inflow. During theCOVID-19 pandemic, residential water consumption increased by 15% in 2020 due to lockdowns, whilecommercial consumption rose by 41% in 2022 following the lifting of travel restrictions—reflecting thepost-pandemic recovery of tourism and economic activity. Existing wastewater treatment systems intourism establishments varied in scale and technology, including grease traps, septic tanks, sand filters,microfiltration, reverse osmosis, and chlorine dosing. All establishments were equipped with septic tanksfor blackwater, while greywater was often discharged directly into drainage canals. Survey responsesindicated a high level of awareness regarding the need for proper disposal of hazardous waste, yet actualpractices were primarily motivated by cost reduction rather than environmental compliance. The majorchallenges identified in implementing proper wastewater management were the high cost of treatmentfacilities, limited infrastructure, and inadequate technical capacity for system maintenance. The studyrecommends strengthening local governance on wastewater management through the formulation andenforcement of ordinances, actively monitoring compliance among the 6 municipalities. While awarenessof proper wastewater disposal is high among establishments, implementation remains largely motivatedby cost considerations rather than environmental compliance or sustainability goals. Addressinginfrastructure gaps, reducing treatment costs, and enhancing technical capacity at the municipal level arecritical to achieving effective wastewater management. Strengthened coordination among provincialgovernment, municipal government and DENR-EMB as well as sustained information, education andcommunication initiatives can empower local stakeholders to adopt more sustainable practices, to ensurethat the province’s tourism development remains both environmentally sound and socially responsible.RESURRECCION, AUGUSTUS C.MAYNILAD PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (3)Augustus C. Resurreccion is a Professor of Civil Engineering at the Institute of Civil Engineering,University of the Philippines Diliman, and currently serves as Vice President for Administration of theUniversity of the Philippines System. He earned his BS in Geodetic Engineering from UP Diliman, and hisMS in Civil and Environmental Engineering and PhD in Biological and Environmental Science fromSaitama University, Japan. A faculty member since 1997, he has taught foundational engineering coursesand mentored numerous undergraduate and graduate students. His research interests includegeoenvironmental engineering, water quality and groundwater management, solid waste management,and water treatment. He has received several distinctions, including Outstanding Engineering Professor(UP Diliman COE), inclusion among the 100 Asian Scientists (2017), and recognition as a PhilippinesPromising Star (2016). He previously served as Associate Dean and Director of the UP Diliman HumanResources Development Office, leading initiatives that earned PRIME-HRM Level II accreditation and theARTA Silver Award.106

Treatment of Poultry Processing Wastewater containing 17-??estradiol via anaerobic, aerobic and anoxic bioprocesses usingcarbonized materials as microbial immobilization matrixThe poultry industry continues to grow globally alongside the growing demand for poultry meat,as a staple protein source. The wastewater generated from poultry processing containshormones associated with those used in poultry production. For instance 17-? estradiol isfound in poultry processing wastewater (PPWW). Such hormones, considered endocrinedisruptors, cause abnormalities in the reproductive systems of humans and wildlife. Its removalin wastewater adds to the challenge of removing the high organic matter and nitrogen content ofthe wastewater. This study explores the treatment of such wastewater via continuous, anaerobic,aerobic and anoxic bioprocesses in series using carbonized materials as microbialimmobilization matrix. Model PSWW containing about 2,000 mg/L COD, was prepared and fedto the bioreactor system at an organic loading rate of 2g/L·d during the 30 days acclimatizationperiod followed by 52 days more of operation with effluent sample collection. The estrogen wasadded in the influent in the second phase of reactor operation at an initial concentration of92.75 ng/L. COD removal efficiencies for the UASB, aerobic, and anoxic reactors were found tobe 58.35 ± 8.79%, 27.00% ± 11.76%, and 24.59% ± 26.55% respectively. Average NH3-Nremoval efficiencies for the aerobic reactor was found to be 29.84 ± 23.22%.The presence ofEDC in the influent did not affect the total COD and the total NH3-N removal efficiencies.ROLLON, ANALIZA P.OSCAR M. LOPEZ PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERINGAnaliza Palenzuela Rollon obtained her BS and MS degrees in Chemical Engineering in 1985 and 1992 inUPD and her MS in Environmental Science and Technology degree in 1993 with distinction inWageningen University (WU) and International Institute for Infrastructural, Hydraulic and EnvironmentalEngineering (IHE Delft), The Netherlands. She received PhD fellowship from the Dutch Ministry ofEducation and research funds from European Cooperation for Environmental Ecotechnology, and obtainedPhD in Environmental Engineering in 1999 from WU and IHE Delft, The Netherlands. She has worked onwaste treatment systems with energy recovery, high-rate anaerobic digestion, biofilm-based bioprocessesfor removing nitrogen and endocrine disruptors in wastewater, water quality management, anddiagnostics for toxin or pathogen detection in water environment. She authored/co-authored fortypublished articles in international scientific journals and seventy presented papers in internationalconferences. She has been a training resource person in on Toxic and Hazardous Waste Management,Industrial Water Resource Management, Industrial Waste Management and Biological WastewaterTreatment in the National Engineering Center.107

Industry Transformation Map for the Biomedical Device SectorWith several innovation collaborations between the College of Engineering and the UP ManilaCollege of Medicine on biomedical devices, advancing these initiatives towards industrypartnerships and market launch requires a coordinate e ort and expanded networks. Thesenetworks should cover not only the research community and the innovation chain (e.g. clinicaltrial partnerships, safety/testing laboratories) but the industry supply chain (e.g. parts,manufacturing, distribution, reimbursement, maintenance/repair) for delivering value to thecustomer. In producing this industry transformation map, we draw on best practices andexamples from Australia’s Cooperative Research Center framework.To sustain the innovation initiatives in the long term, we also need to develop the researchcommunity - make it resilient to the regular turnover of students (as well as faculty/sta ), andprovide multidisciplinary diversity. An innovation curricular network addresses these challengesby utilizing the existing courses from various departments, colleges, and campuses, andidentifying how the skillsets and deliverables of these courses can support the innovationreadmap. For the innovation curricular network, we draw on our previous work with EDCOM2on industry-academe collaborations, particularly the taxonomy of the di erent types of courses:innovation courses, tech prototyping courses, technical project courses, and non-technicalproject courses.SISON, LUIS G.RECIÑAS-SIMON PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGLuis Sison is a professor at the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute of the University of thePhilippines Diliman, director of the UP system Technology Transfer and Business Development Office,and the program leader of the UPSCALE Innovation Hub. He was vice-chancellor for research anddevelopment of UP Diliman from 2006 to 2011 during which he established the Technology TransferOffice. He was awarded the Gawad Pangulo for Progressive Teaching and Learning by UP in 2015, andhis course on innovation and technopreneurship got the Silver Award for Teaching Delivery at the 2016Wharton-QS Stars Reimagine Education Awards. He was a visiting researcher at the University ofCalifornia Berkeley as a Banatao Fellow. He holds an MS and PhD EE degree from Purdue University anda BS EE degree from UP Diliman. His research interests are biomedical instrumentation and educationtechnology.108

From Alzheimer's Disease to Frontotemporal Dementia:Transfer Learning in EEG-based Diagnosis of DementiaTransfer learning in dementia research uses advanced techniques to generalize knowledgefrom, for example, Alzheimer's disease (AD) to frontotem- poral dementia (FTD) using EEGdata, potentially through transformer-based models to enhance this process. This studyexplores the feasibility and effective- ness of transferring insights gained from AD versushealthy EEG patterns to clas- sify FTD versus healthy EEG patterns. The transformer model'sability to capture complex temporal relationships in EEG signals is harnessed to adapt learnedrep- resentations to a different type of dementia. Our experiments demonstrate prom- isingresults in cross-domain transfer, where the model trained on AD-related features achievescompetitive performance in distinguishing FTD cases from healthy controls. Using only 10% ofavailable FTD sample, transfer learning from AD data yields a 17.16% error rate (F1 score:86.32) and increasing this further to only 30% significantly reduces the error rate to 12.29%(F1 score: 90.07). This approach may not only enhance diagnostic accuracy but also provide insights into shared and distinct neurophysiological markers across dementia sub- types. Thefindings underscore the potential of transformer-based transfer learn- ing to facilitate earlydetection and differential diagnosis of related neurodegen- erative diseases using EEG data.SORIANO, JAYMAR B.JARDIOLIN FAMILY PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (2)JM Soriano is a professor and former chair of the Department of Computer Science. In 2018, he earnedhis doctoral degree from Nara Institute of Science and Technology in Japan working on computationalmodels for brain activity, particularly for epilepsy. He also graduated with BS Physics and MS AppliedMathematics degrees from the University of the Philippines Diliman. He has advised and co-advisedseveral undergraduate and graduate projects under the Scientific Computing Laboratory. His fields ofinterest and expertise include computational science, neuroscience, mathematical modeling, agent-basedsimulation of complex systems, machine learning methods and applications of artificial intelligence.109

Exploring the Importance of Engineering Ethics in HealthcareFacilities ManagementThe right to health and well-being for all people is central to SDG 3 of the 2030 Agenda forSustainable Development. In order to achieve the sustainability goals for good health and wellbeing, research and development efforts of various organizations have identified key challengesin access to health care particularly in healthcare infrastructure systems, assets and facilities thatdeliver health services to communities to fulfil and support their right to health. This recognizesthe convergence of engineering design solutions and decision-making in health care systems toaddress these challenges. Healthcare facilities management has been increasingly focused onmaking changes and efforts in order to improve organizational, operational and sustainabilityperformance in the delivery of quality services leading to healthier, more productive lives foreveryone. However, in the search and selection of solutions in the pursuit of these goals,engineers and decision-makers encounter ethical dilemmas in healthcare such as patientrelated and operational/resource-related dilemmas. Management and engineering decisions inhealthcare infrastructure systems have far-reaching impacts on safety of patients, staff and thepublic, thus, a complex and challenging task is how to strike a balance in technical, economicand social factors to achieve desirable outcomes. In the most recent issues in the Philippinecontext, there is a need to address growing concern on ethical dilemmas and thereby the levelof public trust in healthcare infrastructure systems. As such, this study aims to identify andunderstand ethical dilemmas to healthcare facilities management in general and specifically inthe Philippine context. Moreover, this study seeks to identify the key challenges and limitationsin current engineering management decision-making processes regarding ethicalconsiderations. The research activities for this study include the review of various publishedresearch materials, online journals, case studies, as well as discussion forums from variousstakeholders on health care facilities. The conclusion of this study includes lessons on theimportance of the role and the need for fostering an ethical culture and leadership in healthcarefacilities management.SORIANO, VIRGINIA J.JOSE EDGAR MANRIQUE PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERINGDr. Virginia J. Soriano is Professor 12 at the Industrial Engineering and Operations Research Department,UP College of Engineering. She has over 40 years of work experience in teaching undergraduate andpostgraduate subjects (Industrial Engineering and Environmental Engineering), conducting trainings,consulting and managing projects on systems documentation, systems analysis and improvement forvarious organizations in the government, service and manufacturing sectors. Her research interests andexperiences include studies on productivity improvement, sustainable production systems, life cycleassessment. She worked as a project manager at the Development Academy of the Philippines. She holdsa Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of the Philippines Diliman, a Master ofEngineering in Industrial Engineering and Management from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailandand a Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering from the University of NewSouth Wales, Australia.110

Plasma-functionalized copper-based organic framework forelectrochemical detection of ciprofloxacin in aqueous mediaA composite made from a conductive polymer known as polyaniline (PAni ) and a copper basedmetal-organic framework (MOF) was synthesized in this study to evaluate its sensitivity againstciprofloxacin (CIP), an emerging pharmaceutical contaminant. The blending and integration ofPani into the Cu-based framework was assisted by plasma treatment using an atmosphericpressure plasma jet (APPJ) system. The incorporation of PAni into the Cu-based MOF wasconfirmed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The degree of oxidation of Pani wasmeasured using Raman spectroscopy, where the calculated quinoid-to-benzenoid Raman peakratio ( ?᭪ ?᭜−᭧+ ) is 1.36. The ratio denotes that the fabricated Pani is in an emeraldine state.The effect of plasma treatment was observed through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) characterization methods. The XPS profile of the PaniCuGA samples showed that the enhanced dispersion and coating of PAni was due to theincreased ḗ − ḗ∗ and N features of the composites after plasma treatment. LSV, on the otherhand, demonstrated a 3.74 ḓM LOD and 0.29 mA peak current for the plasma-treatedPAni/CuGA composite when interacted with CIP solution. Overall, these results show thepotential of the plasma treated PAni/CuGA composite for CIP drug detection.TAACA, KATHRINA LOIS M.APEX MINING PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN METALLURGICAL ENGINEERINGDr. Kathrina Lois M. Taaca is an Associate Professor at the Department of Mining, Metallurgical, andMaterials Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman. She earned her BS in Materials Engineering(2014) and completed her MS and PhD in Materials Science and Engineering (2018, 2024) at UPDiliman. Her research expertise centers on biomaterials and plasma-enabled materials, particularlyplasma-assisted hydrogels, colloidal drug delivery systems, and sustainable plasma applications. She haspublished extensively on biocomposites and plasma-based biomedical technologies while mentoringundergraduate and graduate students in biomaterials research. Beyond academia, she serves as atechnical speaker and panelist for science high schools and collaborates with institutions such as De LaSalle University, Silliman University, UP Manila, UP Los Baños, and international synchrotron facilities. Dr.Taaca is President of the Vacuum Society of the Philippines and Philippine Executive Director in IUVSTA,advancing plasma and vacuum science nationally. Her interdisciplinary projects aim to develop costefficient biomaterials for healthcare and sustainability.111

Aboveground Biomass Estimation of Rice Crops (Oryza sativaL.) Utilizing Parameters Derived From UAV-Based LiDAR AndMultispectral Satellite SensorsThis study investigates efficient, non-destructive approaches for estimating rice abovegroundbiomass (AGB), a key yield indicator. It integrates Unmanned Aerial Vehicle - based LightDetection and Ranging (UAV-LiDAR) sensor for structural data and multispectral satelliteimagery for spectral data (Martins et al., 2023) to develop individual and fused models aimed atimproving AGB estimation accuracy. Data were collected across three rice growth stages duringone planting season for National Seed Industry Council (NSIC) Rc 222 and NSIC Rc 160 ricecultivars, using UAV-LiDAR, PlanetScope imagery, and field-based AGB measurements, wherein30 samples were used for analysis. Multiple linear regression was used to model fused spectraland structural parameters for each variety. Results showed model performance depends on ricevariety. Through Leave-One-Out Cross-Validation (LOOCV) and the corrected AkaikeInformation Criterion (AICc), the spectral-only model for NSIC Rc 160 using Green NormalizedDifference Vegetation Index (GNDVI) performed best (R²=0.62, RMSE=5.16, rRMSE=1.85%,AICc=187.10). Structural data did not improve the model. For NSIC Rc 222, the fused modelcombining GNDVI, Normalized Difference Yellowness Index (NDYI), and canopy height achievedthe highest accuracy (R² = 0.82, RMSE=10.40, rRMSE=5.86%, AICc=165.60), indicating thatcombining spectral and structural data enhances predictions. Due to the small sample size,LOOCV was used, but larger datasets are needed to explore advanced machine learningmethods. These findings support modeling approaches per rice variety and highlight itspotential for precision agriculture applications in rice biomass estimation.TAMONDONG, AYIN M.DOMINADOR ILIO ENGINEERING CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIRAyin M. Tamondong is an Associate Professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman, serving asChair of the Department of Geodetic Engineering and Director of the Training Center for Applied Geodesyand Photogrammetry. She holds a Ph.D. in Global Engineering for Development, Environment, andSociety from the Tokyo Institute of Technology, specializing in remote sensing, GIS, and environmentalmodeling for Philippine coastal, terrestrial, and agricultural applications. She earned her Master’s degreein Remote Sensing and Bachelor’s degree in Geodetic Engineering from the University of the Philippines.Her publications advance the use of Earth observation for resource management, climate resilience, andsustainable agriculture. Beyond academic leadership, she leads and collaborates on national andinternational projects supporting environmental conservation, sustainable development, and geospatialcapacity building.112

Blend Optimization of Gum Arabic/Citric Acid Bioadhesive forWound Dressing ApplicationsBioadhesives provide a good alternative to traditional wound treatment for developing liquidbandages or self-adhesive wound dressings. In this study, a bioadhesive is developed byblending locally available gum arabic (Gum) and citric acid (CA), and the Gum-CA blendingformulation is optimized based on different properties: drying rate, swelling capacity, andhydrophilicity. A regression model based on the desirability function approach was derived fromthe obtained experimental data to determine the optimum blend ratio, which is then used tosynthesize a Gum-CA blend to validate the model. Results show that the optimal Gum-CA blendfraction ratio is 0.5131/0.4869 with an ideal drying rate of 0.0051 g/min, a swelling capacity of101.53%, and a water contact angle of 54.76°. It was also observed that the blending ratio isdirectly proportional to the drying rate and swelling capacity and inversely proportional to thewater contact angle. Moreover, the regression model validation shows that all the modelsoverestimate the data sets for the parametric analysis and validation experiments.TUMOLVA, TERENCE P.DR. MAGDALENO B. ALBARRACIN JR. UP CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN ENGINEERINGTerence P. Tumolva obtained his degrees in Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from theUniversity of the Philippines Diliman in 2003 and in Master of Science in Chemical Engineering in 2006,respectively. He then obtained his degree in Doctor of Engineering in Chemical Engineering from TokyoInstitute of Technology in Japan in 2011 under the Monbukagakusho (Japanese Government: MEXT)Scholarship. He is currently a professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University ofthe Philippines Diliman, where he has been part of the teaching faculty since 2003. He is also currentlyserving as Director for the National Graduate School of Engineering. In terms of research, his primarytopics of interest are on (1) design of eco-friendly polymer-based materials, (2) design of biomaterials fornovel applications (agricultural, biomedical, environmental), and (3) environmentally conscious polymerprocessing such as chemical recycling and formulation optimization.113

Fabrication of Plasma-reduced Silver on Laser-inducedGraphene for Contaminant Detection via Surface-EnhancedRaman SpectroscopyA sustainable and scalable route for developing surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS)substrates is demonstrated by decora ng laser-induced graphene (LIG) with plasma-reducedsilver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs). The process combines the direct laser scribing of LIG onpolyimide substrates. Silver nitrate (AgNO3) solution of predetermined concentration is droppedon the LIG and allowed to dry. A er drying, the surface is exposed an argon plasma dischargethat subsequently reduce ionic Ag to metallic Ag. This allowed the reduction of Ag without usingharmful chemical agents. This dual-process approach yields a conductive, porous carbonframework decorated with plasmonically active Ag NPs that amplify Raman signals throughlocalized surface plasmon resonance. The resulting Ag-LIG SERS substrates exhibit highenhancement factors, reproducibility, and stability, enabling the detection of trace organiccontaminants such as methylene blue. The approach underscores a low-temperature, masklesspathway toward large-area, eco-friendly, low-cost sensing platforms for environmentalmonitoring, pollutant tracing, and sustainable analytical technologies.VASQUEZ, MAGDALENO JR. R.DADO AND MARIA BANATAO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (3)Magdaleno R. Vasquez Jr. is a Professor of DMMME. He is also an affiliate faculty of the FMDS, UP OpenUniversity. He earned his BS ChE and MS MSE degrees from UP Diliman. He holds a Doctor ofEngineering degree from Doshisha University. He also received his MS in Innovation and Businessdegree from the Asian Institute of Management. His research interests include plasma engineering, ionsource development, and charged particle-material interactions. He is the Director of the UPD TTBDOand former Chairperson of DMMME. He was the past President of the Vacuum Society of the Philippines.He is a UP Scientist since 2018. In 2019, he was an Innovation Fellow of UP. In 2022, he was namedOutstanding Engineering Professor of the College of Engineering. In 2024, he was awarded the ProjectLeader of the Year from UP ERDFI and Outstanding Engineering Researcher from the College ofEngineering.114

Advancing Education, Advancing Education,Innovation, Innovation,and Engineering and EngineeringTHEME 04115

Computations on Spiking Neural P Systems with MatricesIn 2010, the matrix representation of one of the variants of SN P systems, that is an SN Psystem without delay was introduced. Several papers using the 2010 results of the proponentwere produced, especially in efficiently simulating in silico variants of SN P systems. In this talk,we look back at some of the results on computation of SN P systems as represented bymatrices and look forward to some possibilities for future directionsADORNA, HENRY N.ROBERT CHENG - URATEX PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (3)Henry N. Adorna is a full professor of (Theoretical) Computer Science and a Scientist at the University of thePhilippines, Diliman (UPD). He holds the Semirara Mining Corporation Professorial Chair for Computer Sciencesince 2012.HNA established the Algorithms and Complexity Research Laboratory at the Department of Computer Science in2007 and started the Membrane computing studies in the PH. He is active in the Membrane computing community.Since 2023, HNA heads the Logic and Computability Laboratory of the UPD, Department of Computer Science. HNAworks primarily on Membrane Computing; also on algorithmics for NP-hard problems; natural and unconventionalcomputing models; formal verification. His publications are in Google Scholars, DBLP, SCOPUS and ORCID.HNA is Section Head NRCP Division 2; Board of Director-Computing Society of the Philippines, (CSP:2004- 2028);currently with Editorial Board of: Science and Engineering Journal-PAASE; International Journal on Foundation ofComputer Science; Philippine Computing Journal.116

Bio-inspired multifunctional disruptors of calcium oxalatecrystallizationCalcium mineralization in biological and geological systems is often regulated by(macro)molecules enriched with anionic functional moieties. Relatively few studies haveexamined the effects of phosphate-based modifiers that are integral in calcification underlyinghuman bone formation and pathological diseases. Here we mimic posttranslationalphosphorylated moieties of a biologically-active inhibitor protein and demonstrate thatpolyphosphates and phosphonates suppress calcium oxalate nucleation, tailor solvate crystalstructure, and irreversibly inhibit crystal growth in ways that significantly deviate from commonlyinvestigated carboxylate-rich modulators of biomineralization. The most potent modifiers exhibitan uncommon dual mode of action, wherein nucleation is suppressed by altering prenucleationclusters and crystal surface growth is impeded irreversibly by inducing lattice strain. Oncecrystal surfaces are exposed to modifiers, recrystallization is severely restricted. Thisexemplifies the uniqueness and efficiency of phosphates wherein their multiple modes of actionare promising characteristics for designing de novo biologically-inspired molecules asmineralization regulators.ALAMANI, BRYAN G.CEZAR M. AZURIN, JR. PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGProf. Bryan G. Alamani is the Director of the Philippine Learning Center for Environment and SocialSustainability (PHILCESS) of the University of the Philippines. He is involved in projects on capacitybuilding on energy, social impact assessment, environment and social safeguards in partnership withdevelopment partners such as ADB, JICA, WB, and AIIB. His has conducted technical and policy studieson extended producer responsibility. He is the head of the Bioprocess Engineering Laboratory at theDepartment of Chemical Engineering in UP Diliman. His laboratory works on topics related to bioenergy,thermal energy storage, air and water quality, crystallization, materials assembly, and waste valorizationamong others. Dr. Alamani is a licensed chemical engineer. He received his bachelors, and master’s inchemical engineering from the University of the Philippines-Diliman, and his PhD in ChemicalEngineering from the William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at theUniversity of Houston (TX,USA).117

Delay Mismatch Optimization in Routing Dominated Multi-PathSystems: A Case Study on an IR-UWB Edge-CombinerTransmitter Front EndRouting-dominated multi-path architectures play a critical role in enhancing data throughputand resource efficiency in computing, communication, and RF systems. Hence, ensuringmatched point-to-point signal arrival is critical to minimizing distortion, latency, and datacorruption while managing increased routing density and interconnect complexity. In this paper,delay mismatch in routing-dominated systems is investigated while assuming negligiblemismatch within circuit blocks. A variance based framework is proposed to quantify andoptimize the delay mismatch components across multiple levels of abstraction: the system,block, and layout. To validate this model, systematic routing optimization techniques are appliedto an impulse-radio ultra-wideband (IR-UWB) edge-combiner transmitter front end (TFE)operating at 6.5-8.0 GHz center frequency. The TFE requires precise pulse widths in thepicosecond range, making it highly susceptible to interconnect-induced delay variability. Afteroptimization, the total variance of propagation delay was decreased by 94.37% based on postlayout simulations.ALARCON, LOUIS P.ANALOG DEVICES, INC. PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGLouis P. Alarcón received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of thePhilippines, Diliman, in 1995 and 2002 respectively and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and ComputerScience from the University of California, Berkeley in 2010. He has been a faculty member of theUniversity of the Philippines Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute since 1995, and is a facultyaffiliate and laboratory head of the Microelectronics and Microprocessors Laboratory. His researchinterests are centered on the design of very low energy integrated circuits and systems for resilient largescale sensor networks. He is also the holder of the Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI) Professorial Chair forMicroelectronics.118

An Energy-Aware Q-Learning for Cluster-Based WSNs Routingin WSNsAs sensor nodes are typically battery-powered or rely on energy harvested from heenvironment, recent works on the development and deployment of large-scale wireless sensornetworks (WSNs) focus on reducing power consumption to improve the network lifetime.Determining optimal routing for data to take the least energy path, or avoid non-responsive andenergy-depleted nodes improve the lifespan of WSNs. Thus, we explore routing algorithms withcomputational intelligence that consider routing distance and residual energies of neighboringsensor nodes, while remain energy-efficient. In this work, we present an energy-aware clusterbased routing protocol that leverages reinforcement learning. Our simulations show that using asimple Q-learning algorithm improves the energy efficiency of the network by more than 2x ascompared to a traditional clustering algorithm. By incorporating energy awareness into therouting decisions, the operational lifetime of the network is improved by 1.4x. However, thisleads to prioritizing routes with higher energy levels, which may not always be the shortest,resulting in trade-off in energy efficiency. This work demonstrates the potential of reinforcementlearning for developing energy-efficient routing protocols in wireless sensor networks.ALVAREZ, ANASTACIA B.MACARTHUR AND JOSEFINA DE LOS REYES ENGINEERING CENTENNIALPROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERINGDr. Alvarez is currently a full Professor at the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute where she isaffiliated with the Microelectronics and Microprocessors Laboratory. She finished her PhD in Electricaland Computer Engineering at the National University of Singapore in 2017. Her research interest is in thefield of digital integrated circuits, focusing mainly on energy efficient techniques for energy-limitedInternet of Things application. She is currently the project leader of the Energy-Efficient Machine LearningHardware Co-design project under the Center for Integrated Circuits and Devices Research programunder DOST.119

Controlling the Wireless Power Transfer Mechanism of theBoth-Sides Retrodirective SystemTo achieve efficient long-range wireless power trans fer (WPT), large antenna systems arenecessary, spanning lengths of tens to thousands of meters in one dimension. This creates anarray on the order of at least hundreds of thousands to billions of elements, making theimplementation of beamforming control a challenge. Various works focus on iterativeoptimization or channel estimation that require complex processing capabilities to maintain highefficiency in a time-varying environment. A simpler alternative is the both-sides retrodirectiveantenna array (BS-RDAA) system, where iterative optimization or channel estimation is notrequired. In a previous study, it was observed that this system achieves maximum WPTefficiency if the system is marginally stable. Thus, there is a need to regulate the system tomaintain marginal stability regardless of the transmission channel conditions. In this paper, wepresent a plant model for the system and design a control system to drive it to marginalstability. The result is a WPT implementation that is not dependent on complex processingcapabilities present in other established high-efficiency methods. We also confirmed the abilityof the proposed design to maintain maximum efficiency in a dynamic environment through theresults of an electromagnetic simulator and a time-domain simulator.AMBATALI, CHARLESTON DALE M.EDISON COSETENG PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERINGCharleston Dale M. Ambatali (Member, IEEE) received B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Philippines, in 2016 and 2017, respectively, and a Ph.D. degree from The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Japan, in 2024, supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency(JICA).Since 2018, he is a faculty member of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute, University ofthe Philippines, specializing in Microwave Theory and Wireless Communications. His Ph.D. dissertationtopic was on space-based solar power satellites looking into microwave wireless power beamingmechanisms.120

Evaluating ChatGPT-Generated Compared with Human-WrittenMultiple Choice Question Assessments (MCQs) in MiningEngineeringLarge Language Model (LLM) and AI chatbot use have become widespread in recent years and have numerousimplications in education and professional settings, including the generation of assessments such as multiple choicequestions (MCQs). Despite the availability of research in medical fields, evidence on LLM-generated MCQs inlicensure-style assessment for mining engineering remains limited. This study examines the quality, cognitive levelswith Bloom’s taxonomy, and psychometric properties of LLM AI-generated MCQs, compared with human-writtenquestions for a Philippine Mining Engineering licensure context.Sixty (60) questions, half of which are LLM AI-generated and the other half human-authored, were developed basedon the Philippine Professional Regulatory Board of Mining Engineering’s Table of Specifications, including Bloom’staxonomy outcomes. A mixed-methods approach engaged three participant groups: undergraduate students,examinees of the licensure examination, and faculty experts. All groups performed authorship-identification tasks,while a mock test was administered to the examinees. Eight faculty and subject matter experts conducted a rubricbased evaluation that assessed four areas: clarity and focus, cognitive level (Bloom’s Taxonomy), distractor plausibilityand functionality, and content validity and syllabus alignment. Classical Test Theory indices such as facility ordifficulty, discrimination, and distractor index were used for quantitative analysis.Results show that participants on average, correctly identified item authorship only 53.62% of the time, near chance,suggesting minimal linguistic distinction between AI- and human-generated items. Meanwhile, ChatGPT was onlyable to identify 45% (27 items) correctly. Experts rated AI-MCQs as acceptable for clarity and alignment, but weakerin distractor plausibility and cognitive targeting. Psychometrics showed lower discrimination indices for AI-generateditems (0.48) compared with human-crafted ones (0.63), indicating weaker differentiation between high- and lowperforming examinees. AI-MCQs tended to be less difficult than human-crafted ones (mean difficulty/facility index of0.7617 vs. 0.6633, respectively) with higher rates of non-functional distractors. While LLMs can generate seeminglystructurally well-formed and Table of Specifications (TOS)-aligned MCQs, often more rapidly compared with humans,AI-generated items should be treated as drafts that require systematic expert oversight, review, and piloting prior touse. A collaborative AI-human workflow is recommended to improve both efficiency and validity in educational andengineering licensure assessment contexts.ARRANZ, CHRISTIAN G.SEMIRARA MINING CORPORATION PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN MINING ENGINEERINGChristian Arranz is an assistant professor and currently serves as the Assistant Chairperson of theDepartment of Mining, Metallurgical, and Materials Engineering, as well as the Chief College InformationOfficer of the UPD College of Engineering. He earned his Mining Engineering degree in 2017, andcompleted his Master of Technology Management degree at the University of the Philippines Diliman in2023. His research interests lie in Mining, Minerals, and Sustainable Development, TechnologyManagement, and the Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation, particularly focusing on theExtractive and Mining Sector. He was also instrumental in the drafting of the DOST Romblon MarbleIndustry Roadmap. He previously received the UP College of Engineering Limcaoco Young InstructorAward for Teaching Excellence in 2020. He also actively serves as the incumbent Treasurer of thePhilippine Society of Mining Engineers (PSEM)-NCR Chapter and a member of the PRC CPSP-CATSCommittee for Mining Engineering.121

On-it: A Portable, Modular, Scalable, Distributed and Easy toDeploy Embodied AI Agent FrameworkWith the rise of AI agents, a plethora of frame works have been introduced to the community.Unfortunately, little emphasis has been placed on developing embodied AI agent frameworks forrobotics. Unlike agents designed for coding, research, or software-focused tasks, roboticspresents a unique set of requirements. In this paper, we propose On-it, an embodied AIframework that is robotics-first. On-it is portable: it can run even on a Raspberry Pi (RPi)device. It is modular: sensors, actuators, logic components, tasks, pipelines, prompts, personas,model serving, etc., can be easily integrated, modified, enabled, or disabled. It is scalable: it canbe configured as a simple voice AI assistant on an RPi device (similar to Amazon Alexa), or itcan serve as a robot’s “brain” on a GPU server or PC. It is distributed: tasks, models, actuators,and sensors do not necessarily need to run on the same machine, as they often have differentconstraints and hardware requirements. For example, low-compute tasks such as sensing mayrun on-board the robot itself, while compute-heavy foundation models run on a highperformance GPU server or in the cloud. Deployment of On-it is straightforward through asimple YAML configuration f ile. We demonstrate the versatility of On-it in experiments on bothan edge device and a mobile robot.ATIENZA, ROWEL O.SY LING CHAT PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGRowel Atienza is a tenured Professor and Scientist with a distinguished track record in higher education,and research. Author of Advanced Deep Learning with TensorFlow 2 and Keras and the author or coauthor of numerous research papers published in top-tier conferences in robotics, computer vision,artificial intelligence, and signal processing. Inventor or co-inventor of ViTSTR and PARSeq, state-of-theart scene text recognition models that have been integrated into Intel OpenVINO and PaddlePaddle.Notably, PARSeq has been deployed by NASA in the Astrobee robot aboard the International SpaceStation. Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Robotics from The Australian National University. Recognizedamong the Top 2% Scientists Worldwide (2025) based on the global ranking metrics developed byStanford University and Elsevier, and is one of the key contributors to the development of the first MEngand PhD AI programs in the University of the Philippines.122

Investigating the Effect of Surface Roughness on the SolarAbsorptivity andThermal Performance of Thermally Oxidized CopperThis study investigates the effect of surface roughness and thermal oxidation modifications, onthe solar absorptivity and thermal performance of copper substrates for solar-thermalapplications. Copper samples with varying groove geometries (V-grooves at 45° and 60°, andball grooves), groove depths, and oxidation states were fabricated. The samples were evaluatedunder real solar exposure and spectral absorptance testing to measure thermal efficiency andband-averaged absorptivity, respectively. Results demonstrate that shallow V-groove patternscombined with uniform CuO oxidation significantly enhance solar absorptivity achieving up to99% in the visible-to-near-infrared spectrum, and improve thermal efficiency. Correlationanalyses reveal that surface roughness parameters related to peak and valley heights and overallroughness amplitude strongly predict optical absorption, while thermal performance dependson a balance between light trapping and heat retention. The findings suggest that engineeredmacrotextures paired with nanostructured oxide layers can produce cost-effective, highperformance solar absorbers, with promising applications in thermal solar power technologies.BALBARONA, JUVY A.UP ME CLASS 1980 PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERINGDr. Juvy A. Balbarona is a Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering. She earned her B.S.and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering, and Ph.D. in Energy Engineering at the University of thePhilippines Diliman. Her research interests include energy conservation in the built environment, surfacemodification techniques for thermal systems applications, and nano technology. Her latest researchincludes surface functionalization for dropwise condensation, two-phase immersion cooling enhancementvia ultrasonic actuation, and solar thermal desalination. She is currently the laboratory head of theNanomaterials and Heat Transfer Laboratory at the Department of Mechanical Engineering.123

Development of a Design Procedure for a Constant-ForceCompliant Mechanism with Non-Guided Cantilevered MembersUsing a Chained Algorithm ApproachIn this research, a design procedure using a catalogue has been developed to assist indesigning constant force compliant mechanisms in the form of compliant grippers. The designprocedure involves setting a target force and displacement range, as well as the material of thegripper through its modulus of elasticity. Shape functions in the form of exponential, sinusoidal,and cubic functions are used to define the geometry of the beam. Given this information, acatalogue is generated, which shows how the shape function control parameters affect theperformance of the compliant mechanism. The catalogue also provides recommendations withregards to the width of the beam for a given shape function which will achieve the targetspecifications. Particle swarm optimization (PSO) was conducted to validate the catalogue byoptimizing an exponential beam. PSO matched with the catalogue down to a 0.95% error. It wasalso observed that the catalogue took significantly less time to create than using PSO. Thecatalogue also allowed fine-tuning of parameters when specifications change, unlike PSO.Further validation of the catalogue was done using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) via ANSYS andexperimental testing via a Universal Testing Machine (UTM). The same exponential beam wastested. Both validations had results that agree with the catalogue in terms of force and sloperequirements, with FEA results having a force error of 10.20% and with UTM results having aforce error of 3.68%.BALBIN, ERNEST WENDELL L.TOMAS PADILLA ABELLO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN MECHANICAL ENGINEERINGAssistant Professor Ernest Wendell L. Balbin, M.Sc., is a faculty member in the Department of MechanicalEngineering at the University of the Philippines Diliman with over five years of teaching experience. Hisprimary research interests lie in Additive Manufacturing and Compliant Mechanisms. Recently, his workhas focused on parametric studies in 3D printing, where he has advised research groups investigating themechanical properties of lattice strut designs in metamaterials and the permeability of acetone-treatedABS. A first-time PCA recipient, Assistant Professor Balbin will be presenting his paper entitled“Development of a Design Procedure for a Constant-Force Compliant Mechanism with Non-GuidedCantilevered Members using a Chain Algorithm Approach.”124

Modulo Sampling: Performance Guarantees in The Presence ofQuantizationIn this paper, we investigate the trade-off between dynamic range and quantization noise inmodulo analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). We study two modulo ADC architectures: (1) amodulo ADC that outputs folded samples along with an additional 1-bit folding informationsignal, and (2) a modulo ADC that outputs only the folded samples. For the first system, weanalyze a recovery algorithm that leverages the folding information to correctly unfold thequantized samples. Within the dithered quantization framework, we show that an oversamplingfactor OF > 3 and quantizer resolution b > 3 are sufficient to guarantee the successful unfoldingof the samples. Under these conditions, the system achieves a mean squared error (MSE) lowerthan that of a conventional ADC with the same number of amplitude quantization bits. Sincefolding information is typically unavailable in practical modulo ADCs, we also propose anorthogonal matching pursuit (OMP)-based recovery algorithm for the second system, whichrelies solely on the folded samples. In this case, we prove that the samples can be unfoldedaccurately if OF > 3 and b > 3 + log2(z), for some penalty term z > 1. For both systems, weshow that the MSE of a modulo ADC is in O(OF-3) when there is a sufficient number of bits foramplitude quantization. In contrast, the MSE of a conventional ADC is only in O(OF-1). Wefurther extend our analysis to the simultaneous acquisition of weak and strong signalsoccupying different frequency bands. Finally, numerical results are provided to validate thetheoretical performance guarantees established.BERNARDO, NEIL IRWIN M.ROBERT CHENG - URATEX PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (1)Neil Irwin Bernardo received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electronics and CommunicationsEngineering and his Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of the PhilippinesDiliman in 2014 and 2016, respectively. He then received his Ph.D. degree in Engineering from theUniversity of Melbourne, Australia in 2024. He is currently an Associate Professor at the Electrical andElectronics Engineering Institute of the University of the Philippines Diliman and is the head of the UPWireless Communications Engineering Laboratory. His research interests include wirelesscommunications, signal processing, and information theory.125

Enhancing the Philippine Pavement Management System: AStructural Assessment of Roxas Boulevard Using FallingWeight Deflectometer and Backcalculation MethodThe Philippine Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) oversees national roadconstruction and maintenance. Under its Pavement Management System (PMS), the agencyconducts visual condition surveys and road inventories to support asset preservation andnetwork development planning. Despite regular road monitoring, reports of sudden pavementfailures due to unforeseen poor subsurface conditions persist. This research study aims toaddress the gap in the structural assessment of roads by employing Falling WeightDeflectometer (FWD) and backcalculation method. The FWD measures deflection that is used tobackcalculate pavement layer’s elastic modulus or strength. As a preliminary analysis for thisstudy, three backcalculation programs—BAKFAA, CalBack, and ELMOD—were compared basedon their software characteristics and the consistency of their backcalculation results usingdeflection data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). ELMOD showed consistent andreasonable results, producing modulus values for each pavement layer material within typicalranges, and was therefore chosen to assess the structural strength of the rigid pavements alongRoxas Boulevard, Metro Manila. Sensitivity analysis of the backcalculated modulus valuesgenerally showed stable results across different seed values, particularly in trials using seedmoduli that align with typical values of pavement layers. The evaluated sections of RoxasBoulevard show a 0.955% to 37.2% deterioration in structural capacity within 2-3 yearsfollowing reconstruction, contrasting with the Visual Condition Index (VCI) of above 70.1, whichindicates good road condition with little to no maintenance required. This discrepancydemonstrates that while the surface may appear satisfactory, the underlying structural integrityis compromised. The research findings underscore the importance of integrating road structuralcondition evaluation into the Philippine PMS.BRONUELA-AMBROCIO, LEA B.PROFESSOR ALFREDO B. JUINIO, JR. PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN CIVIL ENGINEERINGLea B. Bronuela-Ambrocio is an associate professor at the Institute of Civil Engineering, University of the PhilippinesDiliman (UP-ICE), and simultaneously holds a research and extension fellowship at the UP National Center forTransportation Studies (UP-NCTS). She earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering degree from Chung-AngUniversity in Seoul, South Korea, in February 2019.Lea has specialized in horizontal structures, particularly in geometric highway design and the analysis of pavementstructures in highways, tunnels, and airports. Her research covers pavement response analysis using finite elementmethods, nondestructive testing of pavement structures, investigation of airport concrete pavement joint behavior,and studies on pavement management systems.She led the Prototype Automated Visual Survey Equipment (PAVE) project, a two-year project funded by theDepartment of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Researchand Development (DOST-PCIEERD), where they developed equipment in automating the detection of road defects.126

Interaction and persistence in spiking neural P systemsSpiking neural P sytems (SNP systems) are models of computation that are brain-inspired,parallel, and nondeterministic. Previous work equipped SNP systems with an input and output,known as SNP transducers (SNPTs), to interact with its environment in computing inf initesequences. Our work introduces persistence to SNPTs by allowing storage of some information,such that inputs from past interactions can affect future outputs. We introduce persistent SNPTs(PSNPTs) by first introducing an extension to register machines (RMs) we refer to as persistentRMs (PRMs). RMs and SNPTs without persistence represent the traditional way of computingby resetting to an empty state after an output is produced, and before a new input is received.By introducing persistence, we show that PRMs and PSNPTs have greater expressive powerthan RMs and SNPTs. Both RMs and SNPTs are Turing complete. Thus, our results continue theline of investigation of computing beyond Turing computability. We end our work withdiscussions and directions for further investigations on interaction and persistence.CABARLE, FRANCIS GEORGE C.UPAA SAN FRANCISCO AND MELY AND RICK REY FOUNDATIONPROFESSORIAL CHAIR Francis is a UP scientist 3 and a professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD), where hereceived his PhD in Computer Science in 2015. In 2014–2015 he visited the Research Group of NaturalComputing (RGNC) then headed by Prof. Mario J. Pérez-Jiménez, at Universidad de Sevilla, Spain. Hispostdoctoral work in 2016–2019 with Prof. XiangXiang Zeng et al at Xiamen University, China, and in2023–2024 with the RGNC led by Prof. Agustín Riscos-Núñez focused mainly on spiking neural Psystems, virus machines, and related bio-inspired models. His research interests include naturalcomputing and parallel computing. Francis is the head of the parallel computing research lab at theDepartment of Computer Science, College of Engineering, UPD.127

Real-time Hand Gesture Recognition for Computer InteractionsIn this paper we develop a vision-based Hand Gesture Recognition (HGR) system for real timecomputer mouse control by leveraging alternate deep learning techniques, post processingmethods, and dataset refinements. The goal is to enhance classification accuracy, reliability, andsystem usability for real-time applications. By integrating Google’s Mediapipe Hands for handtracking and incorporating dynamic gesture recognition techniques, the system extracts rawskeleton data for two main classifiers: a static hand pose MLP classifier for precise frame-byframe classification and a dynamic gestures classifier using late fusion temporal transformerswindow pre- diction of dynamic gestures mapped to computer mouse macro actions. Thesystem achieved an overall accuracy 85.86% and a Levenshtein accuracy of 73.86%, indicatingan optimized, more efficient, and reliable HGR system that offers improved functionality andenhanced usability in practical applications.CAJOTE, RHANDLEY D.CONCEPCION HIDALGO SANDOVAL MEMORIAL FOUNDATIONPROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGProfessor at the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute, College of Engineering UP Diliman. He iscurrently the lab head of the Digital Signal Processing Lab. His research interests includes: image andvideo processing, speech and natural language processing, computer vision and machine learningsystems.128

Virtual Field Trips: Enhancing Learning Access andEngagement through Immersive TechnologiesThere is accelerated demand for innovative, accessible learning modalities that address longstanding gaps in experiential education, particularly in developing countries like the Philippines.Field trips, traditionally essential for enriching classroom instruction, remain inaccessible tomany students due to geographic, financial, and logistical barriers. This study explores thepotential of Virtual Field Trips (VFTs) as a scalable, technology-driven alternative to enhancelearning engagement and accessibility in Philippine education. Using a mixed-methodsapproach, the research involved surveys with students and teachers, focus group discussionswith education stakeholders, and prototype demonstrations of VFTs covering social science,communications, and cultural content. Results indicate that VFTs significantly improve studentengagement, conceptual understanding, and access to otherwise unreachable learningexperiences. However, infrastructure limitations, digital divide issues, and the need for teachercapacity-building remain critical challenges. The study recommends strategic partnershipsbetween educational institutions, technology providers, and policymakers to support theequitable implementation of VFTs, particularly in underserved regions. The findings contributeto the global discourse on leveraging immersive technologies to advance inclusive, qualityeducation in line with Sustainable Development Goal 4.CARO, JAIME D.L.UPAE ENGINEERING CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIRDr. Jaime Caro is the UPAE Engineering Centennial Professor of Computer Science and heads theService Science and Software Engineering Laboratory at the University of the Philippines Diliman, wherehe has served for 39 years. He holds a PhD in Mathematics from UP Diliman and completed postdoctoralwork at the University of Oxford.He previously served as Assistant Vice President for Development of the UP System for 14 years and wasthe founding director of the UP Information Technology Development Center. He has also been Presidentof both the Computing Society of the Philippines and the Philippine Society of Information TechnologyEducators, and chaired the CHED Technical Panel on Information Technology Education and the TechnicalCommittee on Information Systems.Dr. Caro is co-Founder and Chief Academic Officer of Techfactors Inc., and Series Editor of its ICT andSenior High School courseware. His research covers Intelligent Systems, Virtual Reality, Data Analytics,ICT for Education, and Health Informatics. 129

Design Space Exploration of Precision- Scalable ConvolutionalNeural Networks Accelerator for Edge Device InferenceConvolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) deployed on edge devices must meet strict constraintson power, area, and performance, but their compute and data movement demands make thisdifficult. We present a precision-scalable CNN accelerator architecture with a novel MISO-FIFOfor edge inference, supporting 8-, 4-, 2-bit operations. We explore 200 design configurationsby varying three architectural parameters: memory bus width, systolic array size, and FIFOdepth. After pruning designs exceeding 3.75 mm2, 39 configurations are synthesized using 22nm FD-SOI technology. Our analysis shows workload-dependent trends: depthwise layers workbest with smaller arrays, shallow FIFOs, and wider memory buses, while pointwise layersperform better with larger arrays and deeper FIFOs. The best designs achieve 13.65 GOPS at26.74 GOPS/W and 5.83 GOPS/mm2 and for depthwise optimal, and 108.94 GOPS at 129.45GOPS/W and 35.57 GOPS/mm2 for pointwise optimal, running at 0.8 V and 300 MHz.Reducing precision from 8 to 2 bits provides a 1.41 times average compute speed-up, at thecost of reduced accuracy. These findings guide workload-aware accelerator design selectiontailored for edge-device constraints.CHUA, ADELSON N.VEA TECHNOLOGY FOR ALL CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIR Adelson Chua received the B.S. degree in Computer Engineering and the M.S. degree in ElectricalEngineering, major in Microelectronics, from the University of the Philippines Diliman in 2012 and 2014,respectively. He received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences from theUniversity of California at Berkeley in 2023, with a focus on integrated circuits, computer architecture, andmachine learning. He was a key member of several government-funded projects through the Departmentof Science and Technology (DOST), which include the implementation of an error-detecting andcorrecting microprocessor; creation of a vision-capable microcontroller; and design of a wide temperaturerange, powerline, energy harvesting sensor node system on a chip. He is currently an assistant professorand a member of the Microelectronics faculty at the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute,University of the Philippines Diliman. He currently specializes in advanced computer architectures andhardware accelerators for machine learning applications.130

Empirical Competitive Analysis of Online Algorithms withAdvice for the Online Facility Location ProblemIn this study, the online facility location problem is examined using historical data on 911 EMScalls in Montgomery County. K-means clustering and the offline solution to a past year’s dataare both explored as solutions to the online facility location problem and compared to existingonline solutions both with and without advice, and an ap- proximation of the offline solution. Onthe given dataset, the proposed solutions were found to outperform the existing solutions, withthe most optimistic solution having a competitive ratio of 1.005036. The proposed solutionsalso show better performance in terms of computation time and memory costs. However, theconsistency of the proposed solutions is yet to be fully tested as it may be largely dependent onthe similarity of data points between two timeframes.CLEMENTE, JHOIRENE B.JUAN JR. AND ROSARIO HALILI-QUINTOS PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGDr. Jhoirene Clemente is the recipient of the Juan Jr. & Rosario Halili-Quintos Professorial Chair. She isan Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of the PhilippinesDiliman. She currently serves as the Head of the Algorithms and Complexity Laboratory. Her researchfocuses on solving hard combinatorial optimization problems in Bioinformatics and online computationfor financial problems. She earned her PhD in Computer Science from the University of the PhilippinesDiliman in collaboration with researchers at ETH Zürich. Her dissertation is entitled \"AdditionalInformation in Computation: Reoptimization and Advice.\" Alongside her teaching and research roles, sheserves as the Assistant Department Chair for Research, Linkages, and Extensions, fostering academiccollaboration and innovation.131

Beamforming-based Conformal Patch Antenna Array Designfor Enhanced Community Cellular CoverageA beamforming-based conformal 4-element patch antenna array was designed to addresscoverage gaps in di- rectional antennas used for rural GSM applications. Operating at 900 MHz,the system integrates a Butler matrix for fixed- angle beam steering and employs inset-fedmicrostrip patch antennas on a flexible polyimide substrate. Various curvatures were tested, andthe 180° curved configuration achieved the best performance. It produced main lobes at -23.0°,44.0°, 18.0°, and -65.0° relative to broadside, with realized gains of around 3-4 dBi and 3 dBbeamwidths of around 30-50° — demonstrating promising applicability for enhancing coveragein community cellular deployments.CO, PAUL JASON R.GLOBE TELECOM INC. PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ELECTRONICS ANDCOMMUNICATIONS ENGINEERINGPaul Jason Co is an Associate Professor at the Electrical an Electronics Engineering Institute. His researchinterests include radio frequency, antennas and propagation, wireless communications and small satellitesystems.132

Steady-state Thermal Analyses of Battery ThermalManagement System’s Cold Plate for a Two-row PrismaticLiFePO4 BatteryBattery thermal management systems (BTMS) are crucial in maintaining the life of LiFePO4batteries used in electric vehicles. There are different kinds of BTMS based on the coolant used—air, liquid, or phase change material (PCM)—where liquid-based BTMS are commonly used.Computational simulations aid the process of designing BTMSs for optimizing cooling capacity.This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a serpentine-channel cold plate in terms oflowering the battery temperature to a certain degree. Three models of the battery modules weretested: no cold plate, initial design of cold plate, and design iteration of cold plate. To validateAnsys Workbench as software to perform Steady-State Thermal Analysis (SSTA), the no coldplate set up was both modeled physically for experimentation and through CAD for simulation.After verification of the software, SSTA was ran between the model for no cold plate and the onewith the initial design of cold plate. Results showed that a 0.84% decrease in the maximumtemperature was observed in the battery module because of the use of the cold plate for 0.25Cdischarge, while 1.4% for 1C discharge. Furthermore, the initial design was compared to adesign iteration to further enhance the cooling capability of the plate, as well as support thebatteries structurally. The maximum temperature further went down by 3.7°C for 0.25C and11.2°C for 1C because of the additional geometry implied. Overall, the maximum temperatureof the battery module was reduced by 9.8% for 0.25C and 18.33% for 1C discharge ratebecause of the applied BTMS.DALISAY, JON DEWITT E.TOYOTA MOTOR PHILIPPINES FOUNDATION PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN MECHANICALENGINEERINGJon Dewitt Enriquez Dalisay is an associate professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman, and isthe principal investigator of the Applied Mechanics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory (AMISys) of theDepartment of Mechanical Engineering. AMISys aims to be at the forefront of applied mechanics andintelligent systems research in the country, providing support and solutions for key sectors such asaerospace, maritime, automotive, and defense among others. Its current research activities includethermal management of electric vehicle batteries, vibration-based material characterization and damageidentification, mechanics and design of 3D-printed components, artificial intelligence and data-drivencontrol of unmanned vehicles, and mechanics of shape memory materials.133

Smart i-LAB: A Green and Hybrid-Ready InstructionalLaboratory and IoT TestbedThe Smart i-LAB, short for Smart Instructional LABoratory, is a redesign of an instructionallaboratory at the UP Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute (UP EEEI) of the Universityof the Philippines Diliman (UPD) as prototype of UP EEEI's vision of the future of EngineeringInstruction: green, future-ready, and smart. The Smart I-Lab is equipped with (1) sensors andactuators for energy monitoring, indoor air quality monitoring, and smart control; (2) a teleconferencing setup for remote or hybrid learning -- allowing UP EEEI to extend the scope ofcourse delivery to other classrooms as well as other institutions in the Philippines; (3) an IoTtestbed platform providing users the ability to interact with sensors and actuators for testing andresearch purposes; and (4) powered by a grid-tied 55kW solar PV system. With theseembedded and integrated technologies, the Smart i-LAB serves as a testbed for variousapplications such as the Internet of Things (IoT), data science, artificial intelligence, and energyefficient technologies.DE GUZMAN, JAYBIE A.AMBROSIO MAGSAYSAY PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGJaybie A. de Guzman is an Associate Professor of Electronics Engineering at UP EEEI. He works onvarious research areas including sensor networks, digital twins, smart systems, security & privacy, openradio access networks (RAN), and next generation telecommunication networks. He is the foundinglaboratory head of the Smart Systems Laboratory which was established in 2022, and has also recentlyestablished the Open RAN Laboratory this 2025. He currently heads the Next GenerationTelecommunications Research Group. And he has served as the Deputy Director for Students and AlumniAffairs of UP EEEI since 2021. He took his BS in Electronics and Communications Engineering and MS inElectrical Engineering degrees in 2011 and 2013, respectively, from University of the Philippines Diliman,and his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications from the University of New South Wales in2021.134

A Dual-Mode AZO-Based Surface Acoustic Wave TemperatureSensor in Single-Phase Unidirectional TransducerConfigurationThis study reports the development and characterization of a dual-mode surface acoustic wave(SAW) temperature sensor fabricated on a Si(100) substrate with a thermally grown SiO2 layerand an RF-sputtered aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) piezoelectric film. A single-phaseunidirectional transducer (SPUDT) with a wavelength of 72 μm was employed to enhance signaldirectivity and reduce insertion loss. The design targeted a Rayleigh-mode fundamentalfrequency in the 50–100 MHz range. The fabricated sensor was wirebonded onto a gold-tracedPCB and characterized using a vector network analyzer, revealing a fundamental mode at 76.76MHz and a higher-order mode at 5.48 GHz at room temperature. Thermal response testing wasconducted using a hot air source, with surface temperature monitored by a thermal imagingcamera. Frequency downshifts were observed with increasing temperature for both modes. Thefundamental Rayleigh mode exhibited a sensitivity of 77.5 kHz/°C, a temperature coefficient offrequency (TCF) of -1009 ppm/°C, and a non-linearity of 3.46%. The higher-order modeshowed a sensitivity of 800 kHz/°C, a TCF of -145 ppm/°C, and a non-linearity of 4.88%. Theseresults highlight the potential of AZO-based SAW sensors for passive temperature sensing inthermally dynamic environments and across various wireless communication bands.DE LEON, MARIA THERESA A.MANTARING-GERVASIO PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGAfter gaining nanofabrication experience during her PhD at the University of Southampton, Dr. De Leonhelped establish the UP Diliman Microfabrication Facility (UPDMF) through a CHED-PCARI grant. Hercurrent research interests revolve around (1) MEMS-based sensor device design, modeling, andfabrication, (2) analog and mixed-signal integrated circuit design, particularly for sensor interface readoutcircuits, (3) hybrid microfluidic systems for environmental and biomedical applications, and (4) design,modeling, and fabrication of silicon photonic structures. She has led projects using UPDMF to developnew materials and devices, including a DOST-funded project on MEMS-based temperature and pressuresensors and their interface circuits. She currently leads another DOST project exploring silicon photonicintegrated circuits for hybrid quantum computing. Building on these efforts and UPDMF’s capabilities, sheis pursuing collaborations on new device areas such as microfluidics and silicon photonics.135

Development, Implementation, and Evaluation of a MaterialsSelection & Design Course: An Undergraduate FacultyPerspectiveThe paper will explore one of the courses offered in the BS Materials Engineering (BS MatE) Program ofthe University of the Philippines – Diliman entitled MatE 194: Materials Selection and Design. The paperwill be divided into 3 main parts, the development, implementation and evaluation of the course.For the development part, the paper will explore how the course evolved from its predecessor courses ofMatE 195: Materials Selection, MatE 196: Product Design, which were part of the previous BS MatEcurriculum. This will encompass the initial conceptualization of the course as it was approved by theuniversity as well as the development of the course materials, assessments and learning strategies priorto its first offering.For the implementation part, the paper will look on how the instructors handled the course. Specifically, itwill showcase the course’s take on problem-based learning and collaborative learning, where studentgroups take on a real-world problem that they must develop a product prototype as a solution. To providelearners with the structure to develop their products, the flipped classroom approach was utilized inwhich classroom time was used to perform activities related to their chosen topics. Each activity wasdesigned so that performing them will guide the students on how to systematically develop their product,from ideation to the development of a low-fidelity prototype.For the evaluation of the course, feedback of students and instructors on the course will be collected andanalyzed. This feedback will include the grades of the students who took the course, Student Evaluation ofTeaching (SET), Student Course Effectiveness Evaluation (SCEE), and the responses of previous studentsto a developed evaluation survey. The goal is to see the impact of the course on the attainment of thedesigned learning outcomes for the course as well as the program. The perspective of the faculty will alsobe explored, detailing the challenges and insights that the faculty had during the development andimplementation of the course and how it shaped their teaching practices and beliefs. Lastly,recommendations on developing and implementing a real-world problem-solving curriculum will begiven from the lessons learned from teaching, offering and implementing MatE 194.DE LEON, MARK JEFFRY D.APOLONIO P. AND LORNA L. YSON PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN CHEMICAL ENGINEERINGMaterials engineer by training, educator by profession. Jeffry is currently an assistant professor in theDepartment of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering in the University of the PhilippinesDiliman.Jeffry also dabbles in extension and research work in engineering education. Currently, he is particularfocused on introducing materials science and engineering to Filipino teachers and students throughdifferent trainings and workshops.136

Moisture Sensitivity of Choline Chloride–Ethylene Glycol DES:A Challenge in Electroplating ApplicationsDeep eutectic solvents have been established as feasible metal electroplating solventalternatives over traditional toxic aqueous plating baths. However, water, either addedintentionally or unintentionally, can significantly influence the solvent’s physical properties andperformance, thereby hindering its industry application. In this study, the hygroscopicity, or theability to absorb moisture from the environment, of synthesized ethaline (1:2 cholinechloride:ethylene glycol) was investigated. The kinematic viscosity, electrical conductivity,electrochemical window, and water content of ethaline were monitored over a 2-week period.Karl Fischer titration tests showed that ethaline exposed to the atmosphere displayed significanthygroscopicity compared to its unexposed counterpart. 1H NMR spectroscopy revealed thatwater vapor was readily absorbed at the surface due to the hydrophilic groups present in theethaline molecule. Water uptake resulted in the decrease in viscosity, increase in electricalconductivity and narrowing of the electrochemical window of ethaline. Solution heating at100oC removed the absorbed moisture and allowed the recovery of the solvent’s initialproperties.DELA PEÑA, EDEN MAY B.PHILEX PROFESSORIAL CHAIR (2)Prof. Dela Peña finished her bachelor’s degree in Materials Engineering and a master’s degree inMetallurgical Engineering from the University of the Philippines. She obtained her Ph.D. from theUniversity of Strathclyde in Scotland, UK with a degree in Chemical and Process Engineering. She iscurrently a tenured faculty in the DMMME and the Director of the Office of Extension Coordination -OVCRD. As part of her extension works, she is the president of the Institute of Materials Engineers of thePhilippines (IMEP) Inc., member of the Bureau of Philippine Standards Technical Committee onNanotechnologies, and member of the Dean of Engineering Advisory Board of UPLB.She has excelled in surface coatings technology, wastewater treatment research, corrosion, andbiomaterials. She was the recipient of the UP Alumni Engineers Citation of Merit in Materials Engineeringfor 2020, the 2024 Gawad Tsanselor para sa Natatanging Guro and 2025 Outstanding EngineeringProfessor.137

Synthesis and Characterization of Low-Melting Sn-Bi-In-ZnAlloysThe constant drive toward miniaturization and densification of computing power necessitates theuse of advanced low-melting solders. Recent research has shifted to high-entropy alloys (HEAs)and medium-entropy alloys (MEAs) due to their unique and superior characteristics imparted bytheir high mixing entropy. This study investigates the synthesis and performance of two lowmelting alloys – an HEA (29Sn-21Bi-24In-26Zn) and an MEA (39Sn-26Bi-30In-5Zn). Thealloys were synthesized by dry mixing high-purity Sn, Bi, In, and Zn powders, followed bymelting and homogenization at 450°C in an electric furnace. Samples were cast, waterquenched, and subsequently soldered and reflowed onto copper pads to evaluate theirperformance. Material characterization included etchant optimization, macro- andmicrostructural analysis, and thermal analysis. Results show that 2% Nital offered optimalcontrast for phase and layer identification. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) determinedthe melting point of both alloys to be 80°C, which is well within the low-melting solder class.DSC also indicated that the HEA exhibited increased thermal stability when compared to theMEA. Moreover, both HEA and MEA demonstrated superior intermetallic compound (IMC)thickness compared to traditional PbSn solders. However, the HEA showed poor andinconsistent contact angle measurements, while the MEA performed comparably to the PbSnalloy in this regard. Overall, these results confirm the promise of both synthesized alloys foradvanced, high tech solder applications.EJERA, STAN KRISTIAN G.DON BENITO YAO METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING CENTENNIALPROFESSORIAL CHAIREngr. Stan Kristian Ejera is an assistant professor of the UP Department of Mining, Metallurgical andMaterials Engineering (DMMME). He has been actively part of the faculty roster since 2013. He attainedboth his bachelor’s and master’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering from UP Diliman. His research workand interest are predominantly centered around physical and adaptive metallurgy. He has also hadnumerous involvements in failure analysis, quality management, and industry standards/policy-making.He currently handles the Adaptive Metallurgy Laboratory of UP DMMME. Lastly, to further his growth, heis currently pursuing a PhD degree in Artificial Intelligence (AI) to explore the emerging use of AI inmaterials science.138

A Framework for the Development of Digital Spatial Weightsusing Social Media Data: Methodological Foundation and InitialAnalysisSince most phenomena occur in both physical and digital spaces, a combined representation ofboth may provide a more accurate model. Overall, the comparisons reveal the differencesbetween digital and physical spaces in terms of matrix structures and weight maps. It isrecommended to further explore spatial weights in the context of modeling implementationsand the integration of both spatial representations.ELAZEGUI, ERICA ERIN E.PHINMA FOUNDATION PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGErica Erin E. Elazegui is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Geodetic Engineering, University ofthe Philippines Diliman, where she teaches remote sensing, mathematical methods, and geostatistics.She holds an M.S. in Geomatics Engineering with a major in Geoinformatics and graduated magna cumlaude with a B.S. in Geodetic Engineering from the same institution. Her research focuses on spatialanalysis, digital geography, spatial data mining, data visualization, and the integration of social media datawith geospatial technologies. She has advised numerous undergraduate research projects and publishedin reputable international journals and conferences, including IEEE and ISPRS. She brings extensiveexperience from multidisciplinary projects in smart cities, hazard mapping, ecological services, andagricultural monitoring using satellite data. She has served as speaker and module developer in varioustechnical training programs, advancing knowledge exchange in geomatics and remote sensing across theregion.139

Optimizing University Course Scheduling through a StudentCentered Mixed Integer Programming ModelEnsuring that students can enroll in all the subjects they need within a semester is a persistentchallenge in academic scheduling, especially in programs that adhere to a tightly sequencedcurriculum. This study develops an optimization model that determines the number andallocation of course sections in a way that maximizes the probability that students can enroll intheir complete basket of required subjects for the semester. The model incorporates keyresource constraints such as classroom availability, faculty teaching loads, and subject-roomcompatibility, while also trying to respect faculty preferences for specific subjects andschedules. Unlike traditional university timetabling models that focus primarily on resourceallocation, this study emphasizes student course acquisition as a significant metric for a qualitysolution. The resulting Mixed Integer Program (MIP) determines the optimal configuration ofsections that balances student enrollment feasibility with faculty satisfaction and resource limits.The model is tested on actual data for undergraduate courses of a university engineeringprogram, demonstrating significant improvements in the likelihood that students complete theirintended subject requirements for a semester compared to current course timetabling methods.The results of this study can be used as a decision support tool to help academic units plan theschedules of its course offerings to best ensure that all of its students are able to secure thesubjects they need for the semester with little additional adjustment from an initial allocation ofcourse enlistments.ESPENILLA, LEONARDO NESTOR F.JESUS FERRER PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGLeonardo Nestor F. Espenilla is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering andOperations Research at the University of the Philippines Diliman, where he currently serves as theAssistant Chair for Academic Affairs. He earned his BS in Industrial Engineering from UP Diliman in 2015and completed his MS in Operations Research at Columbia University in 2018.His research focuses on discrete optimization, vehicle routing, and matching algorithms, translatingadvanced industrial engineering and optimization techniques into practical, real-world solutions.140

Analyzing Fluctuations and Sustained Interest in theBS Geodetic Engineering Program at UP DilimanThe Bachelor of Science in Geodetic Engineering (BSGE) program of the University of thePhilippines Diliman (UPD) is the country’s leading academic program in geospatial education.The program plays a crucial role in producing professionals skilled in land surveying, geospatialtechnology, and spatial data management, fields that are increasingly vital for nationaldevelopment and sustainability. However, shifts in educational trends and emergingtechnologies have influenced student preferences and perceptions toward science andengineering fields. This study aims to assess the current popularity of the BSGE program in UPDiliman and examine how various factors, including institutional promotion and technologicalrelevance, have affected enrollment and student interest. The methodology involved thecollection and tabulation of historical records of the UP College Admission Test (UPCAT) fromthe UP Office of Admissions and actual enrollment data from the UP College of Engineering.Trend analysis and descriptive statistics were performed to identify changes in studentapplicants’ preferences and enrollment over time, compute average growth rates, and detectanomalies or significant variations. Comparative analysis was also conducted with studentpreference and enrollment patterns in other engineering programs to assess BSGE programattractiveness. Interviews with key stakeholders are included to complement the quantitativeanalysis of historical enrollment and applicant data. Results indicate that BSGE preference inUPCAT and enrollment has experienced significant fluctuations over the 25-year period, withmarked peaks during AY 2003–2004 and AY 2015–2016, and a gradual decline in the years (AY2020–2025). However, the program’s enrollment remained relatively stable compared to otherengineering disciplines, suggesting sustained interest driven by the growing demand forgeospatial professionals in infrastructure, environmental, and urban planning sectors. Thefindings of this study provide valuable insights for the department’s academic planners indesigning responsive recruitment, curriculum, and retention strategies to sustain and enhancethe competitiveness of the BSGE program within the country’s evolving engineering educationlandscape.GALEON, FLORENCE A.CRISTY R. HERNANDEZ PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGRenz is a licensed Geodetic Engineer and ranked top 3 in the 1990 Geodetic Engineering Board Exam. Hegraduated with BSGE from UP Diliman and MS Remote Sensing from the University of New South Wales(UNSW) in Sydney, Australia. He is a faculty member of the UP College of Engineering and served asChairman of the department. He also served as Director of its training arm, TCAGP.His research interest is in the fields of geomatics, spatial technology applications and land valuation. Heworks, on limited engagement, as consultant of Aviso Valuation & Advisory, doing JICA-funded projectsin property market studies. He is an academe member of the Philippine Real Estate Appraisers and theGeodetic Engineers of the Philippines. He is a proud member and long-time faculty adviser of the TauAlpha Fraternity. He also served as a member of the UPAE Board of Trustees from 2018 - 2021.141

Thermodynamic Optimization of Heat Exchanger Circuitry viaGenetic ProgrammingIn this study, an evolutionary thermodynamic technique was developed for the optimization ofheat exchanger circuitry. The proposed technique is capable of handling the unrestrainedimplementation of genetic operators while ensuring circuitry feasibility and basicmanufacturability. The optimization tool was used to clarify the optimal heat transfer features inrelation to the characteristics of the refrigerant and to provide a thermodynamic interpretation ofthe optimization results to extract general design guidelines. Evaporator circuitry optimizationwas conducted under given cooling capacity, superheating degree, and boundary conditionsrepresentative of air-conditioning applications. The consistency between the minimum entropygeneration and the maximum coefficient of performance (COP) was demonstrated under thesesettings. Accordingly, heat exchanger configurations that take maximum advantage of thethermodynamic benefits of each refrigerant are proposed by optimizing the distribution offriction and heat transfer irreversibility. Consequently, the evaporator outlet pressure increases,thus lowering the compression ratio and maximizing the COP. The developed optimizationmethod maximizes the benefits of low-GWP alternative refrigerants and shows that zeotropicmixtures may exhibit performance analogous to that of R32 and higher than that of R410A byapproaching a Lorenz cycle operation.GARCIA, JOHN CARLO S.CESAR A. BUENAVENTURA UP CENTENNIAL PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN ENGINEERINGJohn Carlo S. Garcia is an Associate Professor and the Chairperson of the Department of MechanicalEngineering at the University of the Philippines Diliman.He earned both his Bachelor's (2012) and Master's (2017) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from UPDiliman, and his Doctor of Engineering (2022) degree from Waseda University, Japan.Dr. Garcia teaches courses on thermodynamics, power plant engineering, and heating, ventilation, airconditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC-R). His research interests lie in HVAC-R, specifically theoptimization of thermal systems and their components. His current project focuses on optimizing thegeometry and refrigerant circuitry of heat exchangers using evolutionary algorithms.Additionally, Dr. Garcia serves as head of the Thermal and Energy Systems Laboratory.142

Supermarket Shelves Measurement using AISupervisors of supermarket stores frequently perform a tiresome, repetitive, and timeconsuming task of measuring different object sizes and space that they take up on asupermarket shelf. An automated approach that could assist supervisors in measuring anobject's dimensions and area was proposed to address this problem. The proposal waspresented as an alternative approach to manual and traditional measuring techniques. The timesaved when measuring the dimensions of a product and the accompanying store shelf areaswas the primary key performance indicator (KPI) for this research. As a secondary KPI, theaccuracy of the object's dimensions and estimated store shelf area were evaluated. Theproposed methodology made use of fiducial markers, specifically ArUco markers in trying toautomatically measure shelf and product dimensions. The proposed solution was able toachieve a potential time saved of roughly around 2 hours and 46 minutes (41.24% time-savefrom the manual method) for a modern trade supermarket in Pampanga and approximately 2days and 21 hours (58.33% time-save from the manual method) for modern trade hypermarketstore in Metro Manila.JALAO, EUGENE REX L.DILIMAN INTEGRATIVE TECHNICAL CONSULTANCY, INC. (DITCI) PROFESSORIALCHAIR IN ENGINEERINGDr. Eugene Rex L. Jalao is a Professor of Analytics and Industrial Engineering in the University of thePhilippines Diliman, Department of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research. He is also theProgram Coordinator of the Artificial Intelligence Program of UPD. He specializes in Decision SupportSystems, Business Analytics Solutions, Data Mining, Optimization and Systems Simulation. He obtainedhis Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Arizona State University (ASU) in May 2013. Additionally, heobtained his Masters of Science in Industrial Engineering degree as well as his Bachelor of Science inIndustrial Engineering from the University of the Philippines Diliman in 2009 and 2007 respectively. Hisfifteen years of work and research experience are in the fields of business analytics both here in thePhilippines and in the United States of America, specifically in the Banking, FMCG, Manufacturing, RealEstate, Healthcare, Telecommunications and Information Technology industries. He is also a certified SAPERP Materials Management consultant, a Matlab computing associate, a Certified NVIDIA Deep LearningInstructor and an advocate of the R and Python Programming languages.143

InsightLab: A Lower-Barrier EDA Workflow using LLMs forInsight DiscoveryExploratory Data Analysis (EDA) is a critical, yet time- consuming, and labor-intensive process,especially for novice analysts who face a steep learning curve due to the high barrier to coding.Large Language Models (LLMs) have shown promise in reducing these challenges by enablingautomatic chart generation and insight discovery through natural language interfaces. However,automating too much of the EDA process risks removing the analyst from the loop, leading tomisaligned insights, and diminishing the analyst’s independent thinking. This paper introducesInsightLab, an interactive system that streamlines the EDA process by integrating its key stagesinto a cohesive workflow. InsightLab uses a modular approach that balances automation andhuman control, offering two workflows with varying levels of AI assistance. Through in-depthuser testing, we demonstrate InsightLab’s effectiveness in supporting users across experiencelevels while revealing that different degrees of AI assistance carry both benefits and risks. Inparticular, simpler tools building confidence for novices, balanced tools maintain user agency,and more generative systems surface deeper insights but potentially encourage overrelianceamong less motivated users.JUAYONG, RICHELLE ANN B.ROBERT CHENG - URATEX PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERING (2)Richelle Ann B. Juayong is an associate professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman and afaculty member of the Department of Computer Science’s Service Science and Software EngineeringLaboratory (S3Lab). She also serves as the department’s graduate program coordinator. She earned herBS, MS, and PhD in Computer Science from UP Diliman. Her current research interests include workflowmodeling, information visualization, and software development for health and educational applications.She has also conducted work in genome analysis, VR/AR for healthcare, GPU computing, and membranecomputing.144

Undefinability of Paths under Infinitary LogicIn this paper, we investigate the undefinability under first-order in- finitary logic of infinitarypaths using a model-theoretic framework. Given a structure M for a first-order language L = {<,s, t, . . . }, we define the notion of M-paths and strict M-paths given two special constants s andt. We arrive at the result that in the infinitary logic Lω1ω, if every model of a first-order theory Tof Lω1ω has a strict M-path, then the cardinality of the ordering < in every model of T iscountable. Otherwise, if there exists a model of T that is uncountable, then it has an ill foundedpart. We also define notions of recursive and recursively enumerable, which is (M)-recursiveand (M)-recursively enu- merable where M is a certain set of structures. We show that the setof strict M-paths for M ∈ M are neither (M)-recursive nor (M)-recursively enumer- able.LABAO, ALFONSO B.BENGUET MANAGEMENT CORPORATION PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGAlfonso B. Labao is an Assistant Professor of (Theoretical) Computer Science in the Department ofComputer Science, University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD).ABL is currently a member of the Logic and Computability Laboratory of UPD, Department ofComputer Science. He is working on applications of logic to computer systems using formal verificationmethods as well as on theoretical fields such as recursion theory.In the past, ABL has produced several journal articles on the field of reinforcement and machinelearning. His publications are in Google Scholars, DBLP, SCOPUS and ORCID.145

Smart Inventory for Small Parts: Advancing SME Productionwith Intuitive Weight-based AutomationThis study presents a semi-automated, weight-based inventory man agement system designedfor small electronic components, addressing the chal lenges faced by SMEs in maintainingaccurate stock levels. By integrating load cells, LED indicators, and a centralized control unit,the system streamlines in ventory audits while reducing reliance on manual counting. Theprototype demonstrates improved efficiency and responsiveness through real-time stock alertsand user-friendly interfacing. Though limited by scalability and some man ual steps, the systemoffers an accessible solution that bridges the gap between traditional methods and complexautomation technologies.MARTINEZ, IRIS ANN G.CESAR E. A. VIRATA PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERINGProf. Iris Ann Martinez, Ph.D., is Professor 12 at the UP Department of Industrial Engineering andOperations Research. A former department chair, she has spent over 27 years teaching in UPD andadvancing production, service operations, and supply chain systems across academia, government, andindustry—including food, personal care, healthcare, and utilities.Her research spans Technology Transfer, Production & Supply Chain Management, and recently,Engineering Education and Ethics, as she recognizes its importance in the future manufacturing andservice systems. She earned her B.S. Industrial Engineering (cum laude) from UP Diliman, M.Eng. fromTokyo Institute of Technology, and Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo. In 2023, she served as a visitingprofessor and research fellow at the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Frontier Sciences.146

Simulation of the Radiation Shielding Property of Mine Tailingsusing P-TReCK SoftwareMine tailings are fine particles containing gangue minerals of an ore. These are stored inTailings Storage Facilities located close to mineral processing plants. The typical mine tailingsconsist of silica, alumina, iron oxides, other oxides (calcium, magnesium, manganese, andphosphorus), and trace elements like Mn, Zn, Pb, As, Cu, Ni, P, Co, Mo, Y, and Rb. Sometailings also include concentrated natural radioactivity in mine tailings. In this study, we useWindows-based Montecarlo software called P-TReCK (Photon Transport and ResponseCharacterization Kit) to observe the photon transport of gamma rays through a theoreticalsample of mine tailings. The first case study involved mine tailings from a rare-earth elementmine with major constituents: quartz, magnetite/hematite, goethite/limonite, muscovite, annite,and illite. The second case study involved tailings from a lithium mine consisting of albite,quartz, microcline, muscovite, spodumene, and plagioclase (from highest to lowest percentmass). Using the individual component empirical formulas and their occurrences in masspercent as the input parameters, the properties of a radiation shielding material was built. Afterthe gamma ray was shot directly to the surface, the trajectory of unscattered photons, Comptonscattering, annihilation, and photoelectric effect of on mammalian tissue, wherein the theoreticalcharacteristics were taken from literature, were traced using Montecarlo/P-TReCK. The radialand axial dose distributions were determined as well as the total energy deposited on theshielding layer and the tissue layer. Several parameters investigated were shielding thickness,source to sample distance, and radiation power, and tailings properties. The effects on tissue interms of maximum dosage and dose maps comparison were also compared to absorbed andeffective dosage limits. MERCADO, CANDY C.PROF. EMMANUEL U. PORNILLOS PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN MINING ENGINEERINGDr. Candy C. Mercado is a Professor from the Department of Mining, Metallurgical, and MaterialsEngineering. Her field of specialization covers materials science, physical metallurgy,photoelectrochemistry, and optical spectroscopy. The research areas that are of interest are active mesonanomaterials with applications in photovoltaics, solar fuels, piezoelectric, and biosensor materials.Dr. Mercado graduated with a doctor of philosophy in Materials Science from Washington StateUniversity. She obtained her masters in Materials Science and Engineering and Bachelor of Science inMetallurgical Engineering from the University of the Philippines.147

Using Artificial Neural Networks for Automated LithologicMapping and Mineral Exploration in Mayantoc, Tarlac, and SanJuan, BatangasThe Philippine government emphasizes responsible mineral development, advocating forsustainable exploration and conservation of mineral resources [1]. Lithologic mapping plays avital role in identifying rock types associated with valuable minerals like nickel, gold, andcopper. Traditional lithologic mapping methods, however, are labor-intensive, costly, and timeconsuming, especially in remote or inaccessible areas [2]. This study evaluates a machinelearning approach utilizing Sentinel- 2 multispectral data to map lithologic units in Mayantoc,Tarlac, and San Juan, Batangas, regions with significant economic potential. The study employsa Multilayer Perceptron Artificial Neural Network with Backpropagation (MLP-ANN-BP) as thelearning algorithm to enhance spatial and spectral classification accuracy. The resultsdemonstrate the model’s robustness, even with low sample sizes. At 250 sample points perlithologic unit, the model achieved an accuracy of 80.72%, which improved to 89.29% with1000 points. Notably, even at smaller sample sizes, the model showed fair performance, withcertain classes. Hyperparameter tuning further optimized performance, raising accuracy to81.95% for 250 points and enhancing classification metrics across most classes. Whilechallenges remained in distinguishing specific lithologic units due to feature overlap, the modelproved effective in delivering reliable predictions with limited data. This study underscores thepotential of machine learning-based litho-logic mapping as a cost-effective and scalablesolution for sustainable mineral resource exploration in the Philippines, particularly in regionscharacterized by vast and geologically diverse landscapes.NAVAL, PROSPERO JR. C.SEMIRARA MINING CORPORATION PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN COMPUTER SCIENCEProspero C. Naval, Jr., Ph.D. is currently Professor at the Department of Computer Science, University ofthe Philippines Diliman. He is the Founder and the current Laboratory Head of the Computer Vision andMachine Intelligence Group (CVMIG) which he established in 1999. He leads a group of researchstudents focused on the application of machine learning to solve problems in healthcare, environment,and education. His current research interests include Underwater Computer Vision, Intelligent Control ofUnderwater Autonomous Vehicles, Swarm Robotics and Computation, and Deep Reinforcement Learning.Dr. Naval is the Founder of Fish-i Analytics, a university spin-off they launched in late 2019 whosemission is to address pressing problems in marine biodiversity preservation by providing AI tools forenvironmental monitoring, assessment and rehabilitation.148

Augmenting the Force-directed Layout Algorithms in DrawingAdjacent Transposition GraphAdjacent transposition graphs (ATGs) are useful in poset mining and related applications. Forcedirected layout algorithm (FDA) is one of the most commonly used algorithms to draw graphs.However, when FDA is applied to drawing ATGs, some inherent structural properties of ATGssuch as parallel edges and cycles are distorted. In this study, we derived some properties ofATGs and used them to create methods to augment FDA in drawing more readable ATGs thatadhere to their structural properties.ORDANEL, IVY D.DEAN MARINO MENA PROFESSORIAL CHAIR IN ENGINEERINGIvy D. Ordanel is an associate professor of the Department of Computer Science. She handles courses inDatabase Systems, Discrete Mathematics, Algorithms and Data Structures and Introduction to ComputerProgramming. Her primary research interest is on theoretical computer science with primary focus oncomplexity theory and algorithms.She holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from University of the Philippines Los Baños, a Masterof Science in Computer Science from Ateneo De Manila University and a Doctor of Philosophy inComputer Science from University of the Philippines Diliman.149

Synthesis and Evaluation of Self–Supporting Graphitic CarbonNitride/Carbon Nanotube (GCN/CNT) ORR/OER Electrodes inAqueous and Non–Aqueous MediaTo address the sluggish kinetics of oxygen reduction and evolution reactions, it is important tofocus on developing active and robust electrode structures. Herein, a GCN/CNT composite wassynthesized using a facile stepladder annealing method and evaluated as an electrode foraqueous and non–aqueous systems, wherein this combination provided storage sites for thereactants and products while facilitating electron transfer, as well as active centers for oxygenreactions, making this composite a bifunctional electrode. Different mass ratios of GCN/CNTwere explored to determine their effect on the catalytic properties of the electrode. Among them,the electrode with the lowest GCN content (18GCN/CNT) showed the highest activity andstability towards ORR and OER (ΔE = 1.07 V) in alkaline media, presumably due to itsconsiderable surface area, improved electron conductivity, and nitrogen content. Whenemployed as a Li–O battery cathode, GCN/CNT showed lower overpotentials and better cyclingstability than CNT due to the presence of GCN active sites. It delivered a discharge specificcapacity of 3796 mAh g at a current density of 100 mA g (0.1C) and 35 cycles ata limited capacity of 1000 mAh g . Moreover, the reversible formation and decompositionof the Li O product after cycling was confirmed in the SEM images and XRD patterns.2GCN/CNT−1cathode−1GCN/CNT−12 2PARAGGUA, JULIE ANNE D.R.JEROME AND MARY IRALYN CAINGLET PROFESSORIAL CHAIRIN CHEMICAL ENGINEERINGJulie Anne del Rosario Paraggua is a Professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering, University ofthe Philippines Diliman. She received her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering (2019) and M. Sc. inEnvironmental Science and Engineering (2013) from UP Diliman and Gwangju Institute of Science andTechnology, respectively. She is a co-founder of the Laboratory of Electrochemical Engineering in whichshe works on research focusing on developing energy storage and conversion technologies, synthesisand characterization of electrodes, electrolytes, and electrocatalysts for batteries, electrolyzers, and fuelcells. She currently leads the Project AIM-COR: Advancing Integrated Materials and Devices forElectrochemical CO2 Reduction.150