Hoe claimed that after more than 6 years, in 2012, her products were widely used in Singapore's supermarkets, 800-flat buildings, and airports.
She recalled that more than 20 years ago, when she taught at the HCM City's Technology University, she alone left for the US in order to conduct research about paint.
When she returned back home to continue teaching at the Technology University, Hoe started making paint.
Initially, her items were packed in cans, but after she was conferred the Kovalevskaia Award (the award aimed to confer a female scientist and scientific organisations having outstanding research and application on technology, economy and culture to bring benefit for communities) in 1993, she branded her products as "Kova Paint" and started packaging them in barrels.
Hoe had successfully conducted research for over a decade on nanopaint and its applications in daily life, such as silica nano separated from rice husks to make her paint.
She claimed that nano fireproofing paint made from rice husk can protect surfaces, such as concrete, steel, or wood following exposure to heat up to 1,300 degree Celsius for a period of 4 to 6 hours.
In addition, Hoe also successfully conducted research on a bacterium-sterilised paint, which is specially used in kindergartens and hospitals.
When questioned about her decision to choose rice husk, Hoe said that it is the waste derived from agriculture products, which is very cheap, but has high silica content.
Since several years, Viet Nam has been a leading producer and exporter of rice. In the past, farmers only used rice husks as fuel or fertilisers.
Hoe's paints have not only received recognition among domestic users, but also in foreign countries, such as Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Singapore.
Apart from researching and conducting business, Hoe has set up a fund named "Kova" to grant scholarships for good, ethnic students from impoverished families who have excelled in studies and have a thought process of applying scientific research in daily life.
Her Kova Fund also bestows scholarships to individuals and organisations having creative projects that bring high economical results for the communities.
Over the past 10 years, the Kova Fund has granted more than VND10 billion to 90 outstanding individuals and organisations.
