Best Poster Award and Oral Presentation Award at the 23rd Symposium on Chemistry Postgraduate Research in Hong Kong

The 23rd Symposium on Chemistry Postgraduate Research in Hong Kong was completed smoothlyon 23rd April 2016 in PolyU, involving 596 participants from the six local institutions. This 1-day Symposium is an important annual event for the Chemistry community in Hong Kong dedicated to offer postgraduate research students a platform to present their research findings and groom local research talents. The poster section showcased 295 posters in four areas including Analytical & Environmental Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry. The organizing committee has the honor to have invited Prof. John Hartwig, Henry Rapoport Professor of Chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley, to be the Keynote Speaker to give a plenary lecture and share his insights on his new research direction in catalysis. ABCT has won 3 awards in the Symposium including the Best Poster Award in Analytical & Environmental Chemistry by Mr. Wong Ho Yi (PhD student of Dr. Zhong-ping Yao) with winning poster entitled "Rapid Analysis of Traditional Chinese Medicines by Direct Ionization Mass Spectrometry"; the Best Poster Award in Organic Chemistry by Mr. Fu Wai Chung (PhD student of Prof. Fuk-yee Kwong) with winning poster entitled "Palladium-Catalyzed Phosphorylation of Aryl Mesylates and Tosylates"; and Champion in Oral Presentation by Mr. Chan Chun Ming (PhD student of Dr. Michael Yu) with winning presentation entitled "Transition Metal-Catalyzed Carbenoid Cross Coupling Reactions for Cascade C-C and C–X Bond Formations".). Let us take this opportunity to congratulate Mr. Wong Ho Yi, Mr. Fu Wai Chung and Mr. Chan Chun Ming on receiving the honors!

Asian Core Program / Advanced Research Network Lectureship Awards from Japan, Korea and Taiwan (27-30 Oct 2016)

We are proud to announce that Prof. Michael Fuk-yee Kwong and Dr. Man-kin Wong have received the Asian Core Program / Advanced Research Network Lectureship awards in the ACP-2016-Korea: the 11th International Conference on Cutting-Edge Organic Chemistry in Asia (ICCEOCA-11) & the 2nd Advanced Research Network on Cutting-Edge Organic Chemistry in Asia (ARNCEOCA-2)), held in Daejeon, Korea from 27 to 30 October, 2016. This conference program brings together outstanding researchers in the field of organic chemistry in Asia and serves as a major annual forum to showcase high-quality scientific achievements. It offers an excellent opportunity for the exchange of the most up-to-date science knowledge, as well as to nurture close relationships and collaborations between top organic chemists in the Asia region. This year, Prof. Michael Fuk-yee Kwong has gained the recognition from the Japanese representatives with his presentation entitled "Palladium-Catalyzed Three Component Cross-Coupling: Facile Access of Phenathrenes Using Norbornadiene as Ethylene Surrogate". Other than that, Dr. Man-kin Wong's presentation on "Development of (N^C, C^O) Cyclometallated Gold(III) Catalysts and Visible Light-Gold Catalysis for Organic Synthesis" has attracted the recognitions from both the Korean and Taiwanese representatives. The two awardees will be invited to deliver a series of lectures during their one-week visits to Japan, Korea and Taiwan in 2017 respectively. Congratulations to Prof. Kwong and Dr. Wong on receiving these prestigious awards!

ABCT postgraduate awarded The Best Oral Presentation in the 6th JICCEOCA (24-26 Oct 2016)

Mr. Wai Chung FU, PhD student of Prof. Fuk Yee KWONG, received The Best Oral Presentation Award in The 6th Junior International Conference on Cutting-edge Organic Chemistry in Asia (6th JICCEOCA) held in Fukuoka, Japan, from 24 to 26 October 2016. The Junior ICCEOCA is part of the Asian Core Program (ACP) and its aim is to create a new set of well-trained young organic chemists working in cutting-edge research as well as enabled them to begin networking early in their career. The conference fosters the next generation of leading researchers by establishing sustainable collaborative relations among research/education institutions in Asian countries. 51 postgraduate students from the countries of Japan, Korea, China, Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia and Hong Kong presented their work at the conference. As a delegate of Hong Kong, Mr. FU has gained recognitions from the judges with his oral presentation on the research topic "Palladium/Norbornadiene-Catalyzed Three-Component Synthesis of Phenanthrene Derivatives: A Combination of C-H Activation, Decarboxylation and Retro-Diels-Alder Strategy". In this project, a novel approach was developed to make use of low-cost and easily available starting materials and provide regiospecific polyaromatic compounds that cannot be easily accessed by traditional methods or present transition metal catalysis. This method also allows for the rapid assembly of polyheteroaromatics and unusual heptagon structures, which are highly important in material science, pharmaceutical industry and organic synthesis. With his outstanding research presentation at the conference, Mr. FU was the first in Hong Kong to receive The Best Oral Presentation Award in JICCEOCA. Let us congratulate Mr. FU on receiving the honour!

ABCT students awarded a Merit Prize in the 2016 Lee Kum Kee Innovation Competition

Sauce is one of the seven necessities in a Chinese household, and what if we get it out from the kitchen and put it in research? It has led to the winning of a merit prize in the 2016 Lee Kum Kee Innovation Competition by four PolyU undergraduate students. The four students (Li Chung Pang and Cheng Shing Sau from Chemical Technology, Lai Sin Ting from Food Safety and Technology and Liu Chun Ming from Computing) have spent three months to research on the making of snack with distinctive regional flavor, and the winning snack, named the Magic Trio, is composed of scallop, pig ears and chicken tendons, representing creatures from the sea, land and air, respectively. The Lee Kum Kee Innovation Competition was co-organized by CIFST and LKK (China) with the aim to provide a practical platform for undergraduates of food science or related subjects to conduct innovative research in food with the use of Chinese condiments. Students from 10 Universities took part in the competition, with the PolyU being the only representative from Hong Kong. Let us take this opportunity to congratulate the students on receiving the award!

ABCT New Chair Professor named among World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds

Congratulations to Professor Raymond Wong, the new Chair Professor of Chemical Technology in ABCT, who was named in the list of Highly Cited Researchers 2015 published by Thomson Reuters. The award ceremony of The World's Most Influential Scientific Minds 2015 was held this morning at the Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers. The "World's Most Influential Scientific Minds 2015" is a citation analysis identifying scientists who have made the most significant global impact in their respective fields of study determined by their fellow researchers in the form of citations. The identification of these awardees is rooted in the collective, objective opinions of the scientific community. The longer-range study, widely known as the Highly Cited Researchers, included an 11-year assessment of research paper citations to determine the leaders within 21 broad fields of science and social sciences. The fields included clinical medicine, biology & biochemistry, chemistry, engineering, geosciences, materials science, physics, immunology, computer science, mathematics, microbiology, space science, economics & business. The study recognised around 3,000 scientists who published the greatest number of articles ranking among the top one percent by citations received in their respective fields in each paper's year of publication. The analysis covered over 120,000 papers indexed between 2003 and 2013 for each specialty. Professor Wong's research focuses on the development of sustainable energy sources and improvement in light/electrical energy conversion technologies. He produced more than 500 research papers in leading international scientific journals. Professor Wong is featured among the world's top 1% in the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) list of most cited chemists and materials scientists. He was recognized as one of the world's top 130 researchers in materials science, and one of only two scholars in this field who come from universities in Hong Kong. Please join me in welcoming Professor Raymond Wong to the ABCT family and let us congratulate him again for this remarkable achievement. To download the full report of "World's Most Influential Scientific Minds 2015", please visit: http://stateofinnovation.thomsonreuters.com/worlds-most-influential-scientific-minds-report-2015 To read more about Professor Raymond Wong's background and research, please click here

Best Poster Award and Oral Presentation Award at the 23rd Symposium on Chemistry Postgraduate Research in Hong Kong

The 23rd Symposium on Chemistry Postgraduate Research in Hong Kong was completed smoothly on 23rd April 2016 in PolyU, involving 596 participants from the six local institutions. This 1-day Symposium is an important annual event for the Chemistry community in Hong Kong dedicated to offer postgraduate research students a platform to present their research findings and groom local research talents. The poster section showcased 295 posters in four areas including Analytical & Environmental Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry and Physical Chemistry. The organizing committee has the honor to have invited Prof. John Hartwig, Henry Rapoport Professor of Chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley, to be the Keynote Speaker to give a plenary lecture and share his insights on his new research direction in catalysis. ABCT has won 3 awards in the Symposium including the Best Poster Award in Analytical & Environmental Chemistry by Mr. Wong Ho Yi (PhD student of Dr. Zhong-ping Yao) with winning poster title "Rapid Analysis of Traditional Chinese Medicines by Direct Ionization Mass Spectrometry"; the Best Poster Award in Organic Chemistry by Mr. Fu Wai Chung (PhD student of Prof. Fuk-yee Kwong) with winning poster title "Palladium-Catalyzed Phosphorylation of Aryl Mesylates and Tosylates"; and Champion in Oral Presentation by Mr. Chan Chun Ming (PhD student of Dr. Michael Yu) with winning presentation title "Transition Metal-Catalyzed Carbenoid Cross Coupling Reactions for Cascade C-C and C–X Bond Formations".). Let us take this opportunity to congratulate Mr. Wong Ho Yi, Mr. Fu Wai Chung and Mr. Chan Chun Ming on receiving the honors!

ABCT winning the Champion and 2nd runner-up of the Most Favourite PolyU Research News of 2015

In 2015, CPA publicized in media more than 30 PolyU research findings which are of interest to the public. The innovative researches publicized have generated positive impact on many fronts, attracting attention and funding from government, industry collaborators, potential commercial partners and the public alike. A campaign to "Vote for the Most Favourite PolyU Research News of 2015" was launched in PolyU Facebook in early January 2016 for PolyU community and the public to vote for their most favourite PolyU research news. After counting the votes, our Department is honoured to announce that two of our research teams have won the Champion (Project: Hong Kong's First Breast Milk Nutrient Database led by Dr. Man-sau Wong) and 2nd runner-up (Project: Catalyst for Green Biodiesel Production from Unrefined Feedstock led by Prof. Wing-tak Wong and Dr. Joseph Yung), showing the impacts of our research on the community. The awardees were invited to a celebration luncheon hosted by the President and joined by Vice President (Research Development) on 2 February 2016, and were presented the certificates for recognizing their efforts during the luncheon. Congratulations to our awardees and thank you all for participating in media publicity which helped showcase PolyU's research excellence and quest for innovative solutions to problems!

ABCT Postgraduate received the Young Investigator Award in the International Conference on Food Factors 2015 (22-25 November 2015)

Mr. Kar-him LUK, PhD student of Dr. Ka-hing WONG, received the Young Investigator Award in the International Conference on Food Factors 2015 (ICoFF2015) held in the Seoul, South Korea, from 22 to 25 November 2015. Mr. Luk has gained recognitions from the judges with his interactive sharing and outstanding oral presentation entitled "Enhanced Bone Formation in MC3T3-E1 Preosteoblast Cell Induced by Selenium Nanoparticles Encapsulated by Mushroom Polysaccharide Protein Complex via upregulating BMP-2 expression", which studies how selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) can be successfully stabilized with the aid of mushroom polysaccharide-protein complex extracted from Lignosus rhinocerus sclerotia. Mr. Luk said, "The findings of this study could provide significant insights for the further development of PTR-SeNPs into the functional food on bone health". ICoFF started in 1995 and has been held every four years. The conference represents a gathering of world experts in food factors which reduce the risk of lifestyle related diseases. The main theme of ICoFF 2015 is 'Bioconvergence for Food Function', which includes food factors for health promotion and disease prevention, sources of food factors and processing aspects of food factors. Let us congratulate Mr. Luk on receiving the award!

Excellent Poster Presentation Award at the 15th International Symposium on Electroanalytical Chemistry

We are delighted to announce that Dr. Enna HA, Research Assistant of Prof. Kwok-yin WONG, has received an Excellent Poster Presentation Award in the Fifteenth International Symposium on Electroanalytical Chemistry (15th ISEAC) held in Changchun, China on 13 – 16 August 2015. The ISEAC is organized on behalf of the Chinese Chemical Society (CCS) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) mainly by the Open Laboratory of Electroanalytical Chemistry (LEAC) in the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry (CIAC) of the CAS. It has been held in Changchun regularly every two years ever since the first ISEAC in 1987. The symposium aims to emphasize the recent important developments in electroanalytical chemistry including theories, methods and applications and to encourage us to proceed to new fields especially the multidiscipline. Many stimulating distributions including discussions and suggestions have been expected during the symposium. The symposium will include plenary and invited lectures as well as oral and poster presentations. The award to Dr. Ha recognized her research entitled "Morphology controlled synthesis of Au/Cu2FeSnS4 nanomaterials with enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen generation". Let us take this opportunity to congratulate Dr. Enna HA and her research team on receiving the honor.

ABCT Postgraduate awarded the Nature Poster Prize in the International Polymer Colloids Conference 2015

Mr. YAO Yuan, MPhil student of Prof. Pei LI, has been awarded the Nature Poster Prize in the International Polymer Colloids Group (IPCG) Conference 2015 held in the University of New Hampshire, USA, from 28 June to 3 July 2015. The Conference is a biennial event hold by the International Polymer Colloids Group (IPCG), aiming at discussing the most recent advancement in all main aspects of Polymer Colloids, exchanging research ideas and fostering collaborations and networking. Mr. Yao, being invited to the IPCG Graduate Research Symposium (GRS), has gained recognitions from the judges with his presented poster entitled "Novel Nonconjugated Photoluminescent Polymer Dots". In his work, Mr. Yao demonstrated a simple and versatile method of producing nonconjugated photoluminescent polymer dots (PPDs) which process excellent fluorescent properties in water. A novel fluorescent mechanism behind the nonconjugated PPDs has been proposed and opened up new understanding on autofluorescence of polymeric materials. This novel synthetic approach for PPDs is very amenable for large scale production and potential applications of these PPDs will give breakthrough in the fields of bioimaging, OLED and solar cells. With the outstanding performance of Mr. Yao and his interactive sharing with the judges, Mr. Yao has been selected as the awardee of the Best Poster Award by Nature Publishing Group this year. Congratulations to Mr. Yao!