Sangeetha Thangavel, an assistant professor and bioenergy researcher at National Taipei University of Technology (NTUT), has been granted a Plum Blossom Card by the National Immigration Agency.
The agency yesterday said that Thangavel, who is from India, had been awarded the special Alien Permanent Resident Certificate (APRC) for her efforts in cultivating biochemistry engineering talent in Taiwan and for her contributions to the research of bioelectrochemical systems for use in clean energy production.
Thangavel’s work on microbial fuel cells, microbial electrolysis cells, and bioenergy production methods related to methane and wastewater aligned closely with the nation’s renewable energy and environmental goals, the agency said.
Photo provided by National Immigration Agency via CNA
Thangavel’s research has been used in a wide variety of agricultural applications, such as removing heavy metal ions from soil and creating diluted seawater, it added.
Thangavel, who received her doctorate from Bharathiar University in Coimbatore, India, in January 2013, has worked at NTUT’s Department of Energy and Refrigerating Air-conditioning Engineering since 2017.
The agency said that it had issued a total of 244 Plum Blossom Cards since the program began in 2009, including 169 to specialized professionals, 48 for outstanding contributions and 27 for significant investments in Taiwan.
Plum Blossom cardholders can apply for citizenship in Taiwan without renouncing their original passports.
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