James Dyson Award winner on his pili sealant invention: ‘A blessing and breakthrough’

A 22-year-old aeronautical engineering graduate from the Philippine State College of Aeronautics has won the 2021 James Dyson Award at the national level with his “sustainable sealant” invention.

Mark Kennedy Bantugon, who is a native of Mabini, Batangas, came up with a new product innovation for the aviation industry, which he calls the “Pili Seal.” It is made from the waste of pili tree resin, commonly known as “spent resin” or “de-oiled resin.”

The Pili Seal is a sealing material used to avoid fuel leakages. It has also been proven effective in other areas subject to contact with aircraft fuels, lubricants, oils, water and weathering.

Mark Kennedy Bantugon holds his award-winning invention, the “Pili Seal.” Image: Courtesy of James Dyson Award

Bantugon’s Pili Seal uses waste material as the base ingredient for aviation sealant. Its quality is significantly greater than any commercial sealant, as proven by 20 different standardized tests. Moreover, this product is not only sustainable and unique but also proven safe and non-toxic to the user’s health.

Bantugon’s sustainable sealant invention represented the country in the international round of the competition on Oct. 13.

Bantugon is the third of five children of Dhanny Bantugon, a local farmer and public school teacher in their province. In an interview with INQUIRER.net, the young inventor credits his father for his invention of the Pili Seal.

“Lagi kaming tinitrain ng Papa ko sa farm every day, bago pumasok at pagkalabas [namin] sa klase, especially sa pagpapakain ng iba’t ibang hayop gaya ng baboy, baka, manok at kambing (My dad always trained us in the farm every day, before and after our classes, especially in feeding different animals such as pigs, cows, chickens and goats),” Bantugon recalled.

“Tinuturuan din [niya] kaming magtanim ng halaman at mangumpay ng damo para sa pagkain ng mga hayop na alaga namin (He also taught us to grow plants and cut grass for the food of the animals we raised),” he added.

Aside from taking care of animals, Bantugon said his father’s job as a local farmer exposed him to different plants, animals, trees and waste materials. It also allowed him to establish a good foundation in experimental research, which is aligned with agriculture and sustainability.

Creating the Pili Seal

Bantugon’s internship experiences in different aviation companies have also inspired him to create the Pili Seal. He noticed then that the commercial sealant (polysulfide-based sealant) used in aircraft released unpleasant and toxic odors.

Bantugon then consulted different aviation personnel regarding the commercial sealant, and he discovered that it could adversely affect the health of aircraft mechanics and technicians because of their direct contact with the product.

Commercial sealants can cause serious health problems such as damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure if inhaled, genetic defects and cancer, as well as be harmful to aquatic life, and these are the problems that Bantugon wanted to solve with the Pili Seal.

Even a few days after receiving the national James Dyson Award, Bantugon is still in awe of his achievement. For him, receiving the award is both “a blessing and a breakthrough.”

Further, he did not just want to showcase the product’s potential and effectiveness but also the intention and advocacy behind it: “This invention showed the value and importance of the waste material by upcycling it and giving it a new function rather than considering it as trash.”

We wish Bantugon success in representing the country with his sustainable sealant invention in the international round of the competition next month! /ra

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