First day!

Hello! We are Group 2 and we are currently doing a research shadowing programme with NTU School of Material Science & Engineering (MSE). We are using this blog as a platform to share our experience, thoughts, reflections, and feelings. Day 1 just ended and we shall start our sharing now!

Hello! My name is Alethea. The first day started off with introductory lectures. The supervisor, A/P Tan Lay Poh, welcomed us to the university and explained to us what is material science. It was quite an insigtful experience and new, as I had never heard of this field before. I only thought that there was environmental science, medical science, biology, physics and chemistry in the research field. Looks like I have lots of reading to do! Then, we met with our mentors, Dr Wen Feng and his team! They were really nice people, although it was very awkward, especially since it was our first time meeting them. They brought us around their lab, where I realised that there were many designated areas where we had to wear the goggles and lab coats. They really value the importance of safety! Hui Kian was our guide for the first two days. She explained to us about how to prepare the polymer(plastics) solution that is needed to mix with the cells. It is a really very complicated process. After making the polymer solution, you would then use it to make the polymer fibers. You have to note all the different factors for making the type of polymer fiber that you want. For example, the working distance, voltage and solution concentration. You just have to try many times until you get it! It really requires lots of patience, so I really admire that quality of researchers. She brought in a big bottle of dichloromethane(an organic solvent) and poured some in where the polymer would dissolve in. Their machines, like the weighing machine was really advanced! It was super cool! After preparing the polymer solution, the first day was finished! We would come back on the next day to do electrospinning(another cool but complicated process).

P.s. My senior, Yuh Harn is not here today due to exams.

Alethea

Hi! I am Alethea's group mate and my name is Karmen! I think its great that MSE have grouped us up in this programme. It is less lonely and I get to know Alethea! There is another group member, but she didn't come today because she is taking her A Levels today. We will all get to meet her tomorrow.
Alethea have already shared her experience, so its my turn to share any thoughts and reflections I have.
I came to MSE bright and early today, feeling excited about what is in store for the next two weeks. During the introduction session, I met A/P Tan and her words made me both disappointed and excited. Excited because she showed us the different possibilities that material science offer. Material science is a mixture of biology, chemistry and physics. It can be applied to many different areas such as biomaterials, nanotechnology, defence materials, sports materials and even for clean energy. With such a wide variety, how can one not be excited?! But I was disappointed when A/P Tan said that there will not be much hands-on activity in this programme... It is such a pity. (But later on, I realise there is still quite a lot of hands-on. It will be fun!)
As Alethea said earlier, safety is really important in MSE. We went through a lab safety briefing, where they showed us a 20 minute video about safety in the lab. The video thoroughly explained how safety in the lab can be ensured and what we should do in the event of any accidents or emergency. They really really emphasise a lot on safety.
After meeting Dr Wen Feng, Ajay and Hui Kian, we had a pretty inexpensive lunch. Hui Kian went through the trouble of printing out the materials we need for today. She even went through the risk assessment form with us, so that Alethea and I will be 100% clear about lab safety. (Safety is very important! Don't play play!) After explaining in detail how electrospinning is done in detail, Hui Kian showed us a demostration on how polymer solution is prepared. All this is done in a fume hood because the organic solvent required to dissolve the polymer could be a irritant. It was so cool seeing Hui Kian prepare it. No worries, we have pictures to share too! Hui Kian also let us do a bit of polymer film casting. We used this machine to spread out the polymer solution into a thin layer. I made a mistake and didn't get an even layer. :'( I will do better next time! The polymer was spread out so thin! I could barely see the polymer on the glass pane.
And that was the end of Day 1! Overall, I was very impressed by the facilities in NTU. There was even a special room to culture cells to prevent contamination. SO COOL! According the schedule, we will get to do electrospinning tomorrow. Electrospinning is the process where a drop of polymer solution is pulled out into fibres using voltage. We saw the machine operating earlier. I am looking forward to tomorrow!

Karmen

That was the end of day number 1. We will see you again!

Everything has to be done under the fume hood. 

CAN YOU SEE HOW BIG THE BOTTLE IS??? O.O

Very precise weighing. That is only 2 grams of polycaprolactone (PCL). The picture before is PLGA 80/20. 

They are different types of polymers. PLGA is used to make the polymer fibres, while PCL is used to make a polymer film to make frames.

The one on the left is PLGA, the other is PCL. Both are dissolved in dichloromethane. We put in a magnetic bar and placed the bottles on a magnetic plate. The magnetic bar inside would spin and stir the solution until all the solute has dissolved and the solution is homogeneous. 

This is the machine we use to cast the PCL polymer. The bar would move and push the a metal block (which will spread the polymer solution). It is not very clear but the polymer is already casted.