From “barefoot” worker to million dollar inventor

From an unqualified mechanic, Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang has become an inventor with 5 exclusive patents, creating products worth millions of dollars.

Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang, a "barefoot engineer" who only finished 6th grade, but with his passion, extraordinary self-study determination and a mind that constantly struggles with life's problems, has created a miracle with 5 exclusive patents, turning bold ideas into products serving the community.

Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang introduces the system of extraction lines for natural active ingredients. Photo: NTV.

Worry about burning medical waste, 5-star invention

The first invention that made a big splash and also the product that brought Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang's name beyond the provincial scope was "Incinerator and hazardous medical waste treatment system". This scientific work was granted a State Patent in 2012 by the Department of Intellectual Property ( Ministry of Science and Technology ).

This is the first incinerator in the world capable of processing dioxin, an extremely toxic substance that was once considered “impossible to decompose by conventional thermal methods”. Compared to similar imported products, Mr. Nang’s system can save up to 80% of fuel consumption.

Unlike traditional combustion technology using oil-based fuel, his invention applies continuous combustion technology, using the method of spraying fire directly into the burning object, significantly increasing the combustion efficiency. In the exhaust gas treatment stage, the furnace is integrated with closed nanotechnology, helping to completely decompose smoke, dust and toxic odors. The temperature at the core of the furnace can reach 1,800 degrees Celsius - a parameter that far exceeds many current industrial waste treatment equipment - helping to accelerate the decomposition and completely destroy toxic compounds.

Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang next to the control system of the medical waste incinerator. (Photo: Nguyen Trinh/Vietnam+)

With high practical efficiency and wide applicability in the field of hazardous medical waste treatment, Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang's incinerator system won First Prize at the Bac Kan Province Technical Innovation Contest in 2012. In the same year, the product was also recognized by the Ministry of Industry and Trade as a typical rural industrial product in the Northern region.

Nano curcumin chain, elevating Vietnamese medicinal herbs

If the incinerator affirmed Mr. Nang’s talent in the fields of thermo-mechanics and environment, his later inventions showed his unlimited creativity when he ventured into the fields of biotechnology and new materials. Realizing that Bac Kan turmeric was of good quality but was mainly sold raw at low value, he struggled to find a way to improve the value of his hometown’s agricultural products.

NSC, Businessman Trinh Dinh Nang meets with strategic partners of Lootah Group Dubai, UAE. Photo: NVCC.

“In 2012, 1 kg of curcumin essence extracted from turmeric cost up to 10,000 USD at the London medicinal herb market, while in Vietnam, fresh turmeric root costs only a few thousand VND/kg, making turmeric growers still poor,” he shared.

Determined to change that, he began his research. With the Ministry of Science and Technology providing him with access to documents, he spent all his time eating and sleeping at work, testing many extraction methods, including foreign technology. However, calculations showed that applying that technology in Vietnam would result in losses. Undaunted, he researched, improved, and designed his own technological line.

After 5 months of hard work from late 2014 to early 2015, Mr. Nang successfully created an industrial-scale production line for nano curcumin from turmeric. Notably, this technology can extract and convert up to 95% of the beneficial medicinal ingredients in turmeric into nano form - pure, easily absorbed and completely soluble in water.

The product was confirmed by the Department of Food Safety - Ministry of Health to be in compliance with regulations in 2016. At the same time, this product was also recognized as a typical rural industrial product at the provincial level (2016) and a typical agricultural product at the provincial level (2015) awarded by the Vietnam Farmers' Association.

Not only bringing economic efficiency, Mr. Nang’s technology also contributes to creating livelihoods for local people. His factory purchases thousands of tons of turmeric every month in Bac Kan, Lai Chau, Son La… creating jobs for thousands of people, increasing the value of turmeric and promoting regional economic development.

Not stopping at turmeric, this high-tech production line is also applied in the extraction of other medicinal herbs such as ginger, Solanum procumbens, Gac fruit... to produce high-quality functional foods.

An important difference in the curcumin extracted by Mr. Nang is that the turmeric oil – a compound that can cause irritation – has been removed. The finished product therefore has no turmeric smell, is easier to use and is safer for health. Currently, the product is exclusively distributed by Trinh Nang Healthcare Group Joint Stock Company.

Creating the “king of materials” from 4,000 failures

Not stopping there, Mr. Nang continued to conquer an almost unimaginable peak: manufacturing Endo-Fullerene (C60-C70). This is a super semiconductor material, known as the "king of materials" with potential applications in quantum batteries, new generation computer chips and nanomedicine. In the world, only a few advanced laboratories can produce it at an extremely expensive cost. Yet, Mr. Nang, with a simple mechanical workshop, was determined to do it.

Mr. Trinh Nang (middle) received the 3rd prize of the 2018 Invention Competition chaired by the Ministry of Science and Technology (the Intellectual Property Office is the Standing Agency), in coordination with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO). Photo: Department of Market and Enterprise Development, Science & Technology.

It was an arduous journey that lasted 5 years with more than 4,000 failed experiments. He had to study foreign documents and build his own plasma furnace and arc furnace to create an environment of extreme temperature and pressure. When the first batch of Endo-Fullerene was successful, he cried with joy.

“I was so happy that I cried when I was able to do such a difficult thing. Even though I didn’t go to university, I never allowed myself to give up,” he shared.

In 2018, the C60-C70 fullerene mixture production system of NSC Trinh Dinh Nang was granted a patent by the Department of Intellectual Property (No. 20192, issued on December 25, 2018).

This project also won 3rd prize in the 2018 Invention Competition chaired by the Ministry of Science and Technology (the Intellectual Property Office is the Standing Agency), in coordination with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO).

The metal-doped Endo Fullerene mixture is currently only produced on a very small scale in the laboratory in the world, with extremely expensive prices, up to hundreds of millions of USD per gram. This type of particle has the potential to be widely applied in many high-tech fields such as semiconductors, aerospace, defense, quantum energy storage batteries, super chips, quantum computers, quantum clocks, robots, solar cells, GPS devices, super hard materials... and even in medicine. This is considered the "material of the future".

The journey of self-study, from a "barefoot" worker to an inventor

What is special is that all of Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang's inventions did not come from school, but from the practice of a "barefoot engineer".

Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang was born in 1957 in Ninh Giang, Hai Duong. His father was a doctor trained during the French colonial period. Later, his parents were assigned to work at Bac Kan Hospital. After working in Bac Kan for a short time, his father was assigned to Hai Phong, and his mother and two children stayed in Bac Kan. After finishing 6th grade, he had to stop studying due to his family's financial difficulties.

He shared that at the age of 13, he single-handedly built a three-room house for his mother and three children. Even as a child, he knew how to calculate the structure, use levers to transport wood, and completed the house after more than a year of hard work.

Later, he worked as a worker at the Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Factory, then studied mechanical engineering, continued to study carpentry and worked at the Bac Kan Wood Enterprise. His love for machines led him to inventions, although at first the products had no chance to be applied.

After switching to the garment industry with his wife for a while, he returned to his passion for mechanics. He made his own edge press machine for motorbike repair, and his products cost only half the market price, bringing in a good income. From then on, he devoted himself to manufacturing machines to serve life and researching the separation of ores for gold and silver using new technology.

There were times when he made a lot of money, but there were also many times when he was on the brink of bankruptcy. Although he was considered "crazy", he remained steadfast in his ideal: when he saw an idea, he would start learning, do it himself, fail and do it again until he succeeded.

“I didn’t study formally, I learned and explored everything on my own. I spent many sleepless nights in the lab, my mind always absorbed in experiments, whether I was eating or sleeping,” he shared. For him, creativity is not just a job, but a passion for survival.

Mr. Trinh Dinh Nang's success lies not only in his patents or prestigious awards, but more deeply in his philosophy of doing science: science must originate from practice and must return to serve life. He is a living embodiment of the spirit of practical creativity, where the value of a project is measured by its application efficiency, not by scientific articles on paper.

His story has contributed to promoting a new perspective on innovation in Vietnam, affirming the important role of non-professional inventors, those who “can talk and do”, in line with the Government's spirit in Resolution 57/NQ-CP on encouraging forms of innovation based on practical results.

Source: https://khoahocdoisong.vn/tu-tho-chan-dat-den-nha-sang-che-trieu-do-post1546751.html