A proud achievement has once again been made by Brawijaya University students, especially from the Faculty of Engineering, in the international arena. A cross-department student team won 1st Place (1st Winner) in the prestigious PETROLIDA 2025 Paper and Poster Competition, organized by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) ITS Student Chapter at the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS), Surabaya, on May 15–17, 2025.

This competition is part of the annual Petroleum Integrated Days (PETROLIDA) event series which has been widely recognized as one of the largest and most prestigious student competitions in the fields of energy, oil and gas, and sustainable technology. This year, PETROLIDA 2025 is on an international scale, with the participation of dozens of teams from leading universities in Indonesia and abroad. The Brawijaya University team consisting of Salma Hanandifa Aflanda and Sheila Sayu Viani Abidin (Chemical Engineering 2022 – Faculty of Engineering), and Safina Amelia Khansa (Biology 2022 – Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences), successfully brought honor to their alma mater through a scientific paper entitled “Optimizing Biogasoline Yield from Multi-Layer Plastic Waste and Corn Husk Co-Pyrolysis with Calcined Cement Kiln Dust Catalyst.”

This research raises important issues around waste management and sustainable energy transition. They offer a co-pyrolysis technology approach to convert multi-layer plastic waste and corn cobs into liquid fuel (biogasoline), with the help of a catalyst made from cement industry waste (Calcined Cement Kiln Dust). This solution not only answers the challenges of complex plastic waste management but also presents new opportunities in utilizing biomass and industrial waste as environmentally friendly alternative energy sources.

This work has succeeded in stealing the attention of the jury consisting of academics, researchers, and professionals from the energy sector, both from within and outside the country. The team was considered superior in terms of innovation, relevance of the topic to global energy challenges, and strong and systematic presentation.

“Through this competition, we not only learned about the technical aspects of renewable energy research, but also the importance of cross-field collaboration and effective scientific communication. This is a very valuable experience and will be a great provision for us in the future,” said Salma, representing the team.

This victory is proof that Universitas Brawijaya students, especially from the Faculty of Engineering, have great potential to compete and contribute at the international level. The collaboration between engineering and science students in this team also reflects the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in solving real problems in the modern world.

This achievement not only makes Universitas Brawijaya proud in the eyes of the international community, but also becomes a source of pride for the Faculty of Engineering, which continues to encourage students to be active in research, innovation, and development of technological solutions for a more sustainable future