Vietnamese engineer loves magnetic technology

Graduated from the electronics department of Ho Chi Minh City University of Technical Education in 2002, Mr. Le Trung Hieu, 47 years old, is in charge of the equipment management department for a Japanese beverage manufacturing company in Vietnam. In more than 10 years working at the company, Mr. Hieu has met many times with partners from Japan and the Netherlands to market the machine to treat scale in pipes and boilers on the production line using magnetic technology. This method will replace the use of chemicals, which accounts for about 5% of the factory’s operating costs.

Thinking “why can’t I do it if other countries can?”, he started researching and creating a “made in Vietnam” scale treatment device. After more than a year of research and dozens of failed PCB circuit designs, he finally found the right frequency, current and magnetic field strength for the device.

At the end of October 2016, when he completed the circuit, he bought lime powder and ran it through the model pipe. The turbid color of the water running through the pipe with magnetic coils turned into clear water, making Mr. Hieu jump for joy.

The operating principle of the scale treatment device is to create an electromagnetic induction field when winding the wire on the water pipe with a continuously changing frequency. At that time, the electromagnetic field inside the pipe will provide energy to separate water molecules, release electrons, causing the substances that cause scale in the water to precipitate, not stick to the pipe surface, so as not to create new scale but push it out with the water flow. When operating, the device also makes the scale and rust that previously formed on the pipe softer, peel off and is washed away by water. From the tests, Mr. Hieu assessed that the triangular electromagnetic wave has the best water treatment ability because this wave variation makes the hydrogen bonds in the water separate most easily.

He said that in fact, this technology has been commercialized by some countries for a long time. However, he wants to create a Vietnamese product that is more convenient for installation and maintenance when customers need it. In addition, his device can adjust technical parameters to suit the treatment of scale in different environmental conditions.

The product he created had the same power consumption as a night light bulb, while imported equipment consumed more electricity, equivalent to an electric fan. With the technology in hand, he decided to quit his job at a Japanese company with a salary of more than 2,000 USD to start his own business.

To date, he has manufactured and installed nearly 10,000 magnetic pipe scale treatment devices for domestic organizations and businesses, each device costs from several million to tens of millions of VND depending on its capacity. “The time working at the enterprise helped me see the market opportunities for this device,” said Mr. Hieu. In September 2023, he was granted a patent for a useful solution by the Intellectual Property Office for a method and equipment for treating water to prevent scale using electromagnetic technology.

Not only applied in industry, magnetic technology is developed by Mr. Hieu to serve agricultural products. He found that magnetic water containing copper ions helps to purify water and increase the ability to absorb nutrients of flowers, helping flowers stay fresh for about 1-2 weeks. Copper ion water is created by using two copper bars with water running through them. The two copper bars have an electric current that reacts with electrolysis to create its own ions. Water containing copper ions is mixed with glucose to make water for flower arrangements.

According to Mr. Hieu, copper ions with nanometer size have the ability to kill bacteria when penetrating, reducing flower root rot. Glucose in water provides nutrients for flower branches, helping them stay fresh longer. From this research, he mixed copper ion water with plant colors to help dye flowers.

His research on a copper ion generator for water treatment has been accepted by the Intellectual Property Office and is awaiting a patent. Currently, his flower care and flower dye products have been supplied to nearly 100 customers, including businesses and fresh flower shop owners in the country. The products are also exported to a number of markets such as Malaysia, Australia, Korea, Thailand, etc.

Hieu’s passion for researching magnetic fields began when he was in 9th grade. At that time, Hieu was very interested in making electronic devices. Without soldering tools, he used a small iron bar on his bicycle, heated it to melt the lead wire and glued the transistor to the circuit board to make a radio. More than 2 hours later, Hieu’s homemade radio was working, playing sound that filled the corner of the room. After finishing high school, Hieu studied electronics at a secondary school in Tan Binh district. Wanting to have deeper knowledge of electronics, Hieu passed the entrance exam to Ho Chi Minh City University of Technical Education in 1997. He said that electromagnetic waves and magnetic fields are used to transmit signals and communicate around the world. This interest made him passionate and “fated” with magnetic fields.

He plans to continue developing magnetic water in the farming industry, helping plants absorb nutrients better and fertilizers dissolve more easily when applied. Magnetic water can be used in the cosmetics industry to help substances penetrate the skin better.

For nearly 10 years of starting a business, he has believed that it is harder to succeed in researching what he is good at than in making products that the market needs. When making flower water, he had to learn about biological properties, the mechanism of nutrient absorption of plants… which are specialized knowledge. After many failed experiments, when successful, he tried to explain why to draw theoretical knowledge. “This habit helps me think of many new things,” he concluded. With his research achievements, Mr. Hieu was awarded a certificate of merit by the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee for having a typical agricultural product of the city in 2023.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hue, Deputy Director of the Center for Incubation of High-Tech Agricultural Enterprises (Ho Chi Minh City High-Tech Agricultural Zone), said that Mr. Le Trung Hieu’s startup project is one of the quite successful enterprises when incubated at the unit. She assessed that the flower care water and flower dye water that he researched are quite new products, increasing the value of flowers. “We organize training programs on market development and trade promotion to help the project reach customers and expand consumption channels,” Ms. Hue said.