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PReCIT launches inaugural PolyU Innovation & Technology Index Hong Kong ranks 7th in Greater China; Increased investment in R&D and patent application recommended

Key Findings Top three regions for innovation and technology (I&T) in Greater China: Guangdong (1st), Jiangsu (2nd), and Beijing (3rd). Hong Kong ranks 7th. Hong Kong’s ranking is projected to rise to 6th in 2027 and 3rd in 2032 respectively if the city realises the vision outlined by the HKSAR Government in the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint. Top four Bay Areas I&T Rankings: San Francisco Bay Area (1st), Tokyo Bay Area (2nd), Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area (GBA) (3rd), New York Bay Area (4th). The GBA ranking is expected to surge if there is greater focus on social innovation and inclusivity, and if Hong Kong integrates more effectively into the GBA. Recommendations for Hong Kong Increase R&D expenditure and encourage patent licensing. Support I&T start-ups and establish the I&T ecosystem. Retain and attract I&T talents, and improve the public’s innovation awareness. Leverage Hong Kong’s strategic positions to accelerate new industralisation. Harness the green economy and enhance I&T development. Embrace the digital economy with the innovation evaluation framework. Accelerate GBA integration for building a leading international innovation and technology hub. The Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology (PReCIT) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) today released its inaugural PolyU Innovation & Technology Index (the Index). With the aim of formulating impactful I&T development policy recommendations to the HKSAR Government in view of enhancing Hong Kong’s competitiveness and its integration into national development under the 14th Five-Year Plan, the Index compares Hong Kong’s I&T strengths and challenges with those of various regions in Greater China and four major bay areas. (1) Comparison of Hong Kong with other Regions in Greater China Guangdong, Jiangsu and Beijing rank as the top three regions for I&T among the 34 regions in Greater China, with an I&T Index score of 6.77, 5.20 and 4.72 respectively. Hong Kong ranks 7th with an I&T Index score of 3.53. The city’s ranking is attributable to lower scores in R&D, the number of patents, I&T practitioners, and start-ups, and the contribution to GDP from the city’s manufacturing industry. Despite Hong Kong’s Gross Domestic Expenditure on R&D (GERD) as a ratio to GDP having risen from 0.74% in 2016 to 0.99% in 2022, the figure is still below the Greater China average of 2.4%. However, Hong Kong outstrips other Greater China regions in the aspects of average venture capital deal size and high-technology exports, highlighting the city’s edge as an international financial centre with its free market economy, thriving trade circumstances and liveable environment. The study forecasts that Hong Kong’s ranking will rise to 6th in 2027 and 3rd in 2032 respectively if the city realises the vision outlined by the HKSAR Government in the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint. Table 1: Top 10 I&T Regions in Greater China Rank Region Overall R&D Start-ups Talent Industry Impact 1 Guangdong 6.77 2.03 2.08 1.00 0.46 1.20 2 Jiangsu 5.20 1.88 1.21 0.86 0.48 0.77 3 Beijing 4.72 2.22 1.68 0.15 0.14 0.52 4 Zhejiang 4.61 1.66 0.91 0.83 0.46 0.75 5 Taiwan 4.28 1.65 0.31 1.13 0.48 0.71 6 Shanghai 3.89 1.74 1.03 0.26 0.32 0.54 7 Hong Kong 3.53 0.82 1.09 0.29 0.00 1.33 8 Fujian 3.00 1.37 0.51 0.39 0.41 0.32 9 Shandong 2.90 1.22 0.30 0.31 0.47 0.60 10 Anhui 2.63 1.23 0.33 0.26 0.39 0.42 Prof. Christopher CHAO, PolyU Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Director of PReCIT, said, “Hong Kong has not fully leveraged its internationally recognised free-market economy due to the dominance of public investment in R&D expenditure. Guangdong, Jiangsu and Beijing, in contrast, have successfully optimised their investment policies promoting private capital investment in local start-ups. Hong Kong is advised to enhance private investment in R&D and strengthen the venture capital flow from the Mainland to Hong Kong in order to more effectively support the ongoing development of Fintech and the I&T ecosystem.” Prof. Eric CHUI, Co-Director of PReCIT and Head of the Department of Applied Social Sciences, continued, “The number of patents is a crucial parameter for measuring I&T advancement. R&D institutions in Hong Kong, including universities and enterprises, are encouraged to apply for patents and participate in setting standards with the Mainland to better align with the 14th Five-Year Plan. However, the cost of maintaining intellectual property rights in the early stages of start-ups is high, which discourages entrepreneurs from protecting their unique business ideas and competitiveness. The Government is recommended to increase the funding limit for each enterprise or individual application to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship, and strengthen the I&T talent pool for long-term sustainability.” (2) Comparison of GBA with other Three Bay Areas The San Francisco Bay Area and Tokyo Bay Area rank 1st and 2nd among the world’s four largest Bay Areas with scores of 6.99 and 4.07 respectively, followed by the Greater Bay Area (3rd, score: 3.75) and the New York Bay Area (4th, score: 3.14). Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area is home to some of the world's leading tech companies, and the Tokyo Bay Area is well-known for its advances in robotics and electronics, while the New York Metropolitan Area is a hub for finance and media. According to Table 2, the Greater Bay Area scores lowest in the R&D and Start-ups sub-categories. It scores the highest among the other three bay areas in the aspects of Talent and Impact to society. Table 2: Four Bay Areas’ I&T Ranking Rank Bay Area Overall R&D Start-ups Talent Industry Impact 1 San Francisco 6.99 2.51 3.00 0.90 0.08 0.50 2 Tokyo 4.07 1.75 0.59 0.64 0.30 0.78 3 GBA 3.75 0.49 0.23 1.24 0.50 1.29 4 New York 3.14 0.97 1.01 0.75 0.00 0.41 Prof. Haitian LU, PolyU Director of Mainland Development and Core Member of PReCIT, commented, “To differentiate itself from other bay areas and consolidate its position as a global economic and technological powerhouse, the GBA is advised to more effectively address social innovation and inclusivity, and improve access to education and healthcare. Better integration within the GBA is crucial for enhancing its ranking in the future. Hong Kong can strengthen its collaboration with GBA cities by leveraging its strength as an international financial centre and accelerating interconnectivity within the Area to empower the GBA’s overall development.” Dr Winnie TANG, Adjunct Professor of the Department of Applied Social Sciences and Founder and Honorary President of the Smart City Consortium, added, “As the first Interactive Map Dashboard for I&T index focusing on the Greater China region and bay areas, the index will serve as a platform to enhance collaboration and take the I&T development of Hong Kong to new heights. This is especially true in the areas of new industrialisation, digital economy and smart city, after Guangdong and Hong Kong signed the ‘Co-operation Agreement between Guangdong and the HKSAR on Co-developing a Smart City Cluster’ in March 2023 to enhance mutual exchanges within the GBA.” The full report is available at: https://polyu.me/PolyUInTIndex2023 Established in 2022, PReCIT is a University-level interdisciplinary I&T think-tank. Its primary areas of research include carbon-neutral cities, Greater Bay Area I&T development, and the Belt and Road Initiative development in Southeast Asia. For more information about PReCIT events, please visit www.polyu.edu.hk/precit/.

Centre for Eye and Vision Research and Aier Eye Hospital Group collaborate to drive translational vision research

The Centre for Eye and Vision Research (CEVR) and Aier Eye Hospital Group (Aier) are delighted to announce their strategic collaboration. With mutual and complementary benefits, CEVR and Aier will jointly promote development of advanced eye and vision research, conduct collaborative research and commercialise the technology and research outputs, provide advice and support to start-ups, nurture research talents, and promote a common vision of disseminating cutting-edge research innovations to both the Mainland China and international eyecare markets. A signing ceremony was held today on The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) campus. Prof. Wing-tak WONG, Chairman of the CEVR Board of Directors cum Deputy President and Provost of PolyU, and Ms Elaine ZHANG, Global Strategy and Business Development Director of Aier signed the memorandum of understanding. Prof. Wong said, “The PolyU School of Optometry has been collaborating with Aier since 2022, providing clinical training for student optometrists in Mainland China and overseas. The collaboration provides a strategic synergy between research and application, leveraging CEVR’s innovative research and Aier’s extensive eyecare network of over 800 clinics and hospitals. We are looking forward to seeing a range of new advances in the diagnosis and treatment of ocular and visual conditions in the foreseeable future.” Ms Zhang remarked, “Aier has always been committed to providing the highest quality eyecare services to patients worldwide. This collaboration with CEVR will not only provide innovative solutions and world-class care for our patients, but also accelerate the translation of cutting-edge research findings, ultimately improving the quality of life of individuals who are suffering from vision-related conditions.” The collaboration between CEVR and Aier marks a milestone in translational vision research in Hong Kong and beyond. By harnessing the strengths of CEVR and Aier, this partnership will create an impactful research culture and a vision research power-house that can generate groundbreaking technologies for solving intractable vision problems in the real world.

Advancing materials science to attain immense impacts

Persistency and curiosity are crucial to achieve research breakthroughs.  Materials science is a multidisciplinary field that involves the study of the properties, structure, processing, and performance of various materials, with the ultimate goal of improving their performance for practical applications that can benefit the society.  Prof. Feng YAN, Chair Professor of Organic Electronics in Department of Applied Physics at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has spearheaded the research on materials science. His research on advanced materials, notably organic semiconductors and perovskite materials, has contributed to the advancement of biosensors and optoelectronic devices such as photodetectors and solar cells.  With the high number of citations across various fields, Prof. YAN’s research on advanced materials have made noteworthy contributions. This is particularly significant in the fields of polymer- and perovskite–based solar cell technology and transistor-based sensors, with a focus on practical devices and applications. Prof. YAN, said, “The recognition of being highly cited is motivating my research on material development, aimed at contributing to a sustainable future and improving human life. In-depth knowledge in pure sciences from multiple disciplines, including physics, chemistry and engineering, is fundamentally essential for conducting robust research.”    Transistor-based sensors Prof. YAN is a global leader in organic electronics and the developer of highly sensitive transistor-based sensors for light, molecule and biomarker detections. His novel research on advanced materials, including organic semiconductors and perovskite materials, has greatly advanced biosensors, optoelectronic devices such as photodetectors and solar cells, and other technologies. “Quantum dots are really interesting because they are highly responsive to light and make for highly sensitive photodetectors,” said Prof. YAN. “But for them to work, they need to be fixed to a conductive channel of a transistor5. We developed a field-effect transistor using graphene as a channel and modified quantum dots with short molecular connections to create a high-performance, photo-detector system that has now been further developed for a range of industrial applications.” Prof. YAN and his team went on to extend that work to organic or two-dimensional, metal-organic framework – based transistors that can be combined with commercial biomolecular probes — molecules designed to bond to proteins and other biomolecules of interest — to create ultra-high-sensitivity and low-cost biosensors. Their device consists of an array of transistors on a chip that, when modified with the right probe, can detect various types of biomolecules at very low concentrations.   Electrochemical transistors  In his recent study, two-dimensional conjugated metal organic frameworks are proven to be excellent semiconductor materials for high-performance electrochemical transistors (ECTs) with promising applications in flexible and wearable electronics1. ECTs have shown broad application in bioelectronics and neuromorphic devices due to their high transconductance, low working voltage and versatile device design2. “We developed a bioelectronics device for detecting Sars-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, as an ultrafast, sensitive and portable diagnostic tool2,” said Prof YAN. “We continue to develop this biosensor system, because it can be used non-invasively with saliva to detect a range of useful biomarkers.” Prof. YAN’s team is also working on perovskites — a class of inorganic crystalline materials with photoelectric properties — as another alternative to silicon-based solar cells. Prof. YAN has made significant breakthroughs that improve the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells in an ambient atmosphere3 and also by using tin to replace lead, which is conventionally used in perovskites — providing a less toxic alternative3. Prof. YAN’s global leadership in advanced materials epitomises his persistence focus on materials science that contributes to society.   This article is excerpted from the feature published by Nature Portfolio. Reference: https://www.nature.com/articles/d42473-023-00143-3 Research Interests: Solar Cells (Organic & Perovskite), Organic Electronics, Electrochemical Transistors Highly Cited Researcher: 2020-2022 (Clarivate Analytics) Selected Highly Cited Publications: F. Yan, J. Song, H. Liu, Z. Zhao, et al., 2D metal-organic frameworks for ultraflexible electrochemical transistors with high transconductance and fast response speeds, Science Advances, vol 9, Jan. 2023. F. Yan, H. Liu, A. Yang, J. Song, et al., Ultrafast, sensitive, and portable detection of COVID-19 IgG using flexible organic electrochemical transistors, Science Advances, vol 7, Sept. 2021. F. Yan, Q. Tai, X. Guo, G. Tang, et al., Antioxidant Grain Passivation for Air-Stable Tin-Based Perovskite Solar Cells, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., vol 58, 2019. F. Yan, Q. Tai, P. You, H. Sang, et al., Efficient and stable perovskite solar cells prepared in ambient air irrespective of the humidity, Nature Communications, 7:11106, 2016. F. Yan, Z. Sun, Z. Liu, J. Li, et al., Infrared photodetectors based on CVD-grown graphene and PbS quantum dots with ultrahigh responsivity, Advanced Materials, vol 24, Nov. 2012.   Download Version

PolyU receives two Ministry of Education Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Awards

Two research projects led by scholars from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have received the Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Awards (Science and Technology) 2022 from the Ministry of Education (MOE) with a First-Class and Second-Class Award in Natural Science respectively. A First-Class Award in Natural Science was presented to the research project “Mathematical theory of compressible Navier-Stokes equations and related models” led by Prof. Tong YANG, Chair Professor of Mathematical Science in the Department of Applied Mathematics; and a Second-Class Award in Natural Science was granted to the project “Atmospheric Chemistry of Reactive Nitrogen Oxides and its Impacts on Regional Atmospheric Environment” led by Prof. Tao WANG, Chair Professor of Atmospheric Environment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Prof. Christopher CHAO, PolyU Vice President (Research and Innovation) said, “We are honoured to receive these prestigious accolades from the MOE, which are testament to the dedication and hard work of our scholars. Their outstanding achievements have had very considerable impacts and serve to showcase PolyU excellence in scientific research and academia. We express our appreciation to our colleagues for their relentless pursuit of knowledge and passion for discovery, which truly exemplifies the spirit of higher education. As valued members of the PolyU community, they will continue to inspire future generations, leveraging the University’s strengths in education, research and entrepreneurship to contribute to the Nation.” Prof. Tong Yang’s project is conducted in collaboration with Prof. Changjiang ZHU and Prof. Huanyao WEN at the South China University of Technology. The mathematics model, known as the compressible Navier-Stokes equations, is fundamental to describing the motion of compressible fluids, and research into its mathematical theory has long been recognised as significant in the global mathematics community. This project is in Prof. Yang’s core research area. Prof. Yang has made significant contributions to scientific research on Conservation laws, the Boltzmann equation and Boundary layer theories. Prof. Tao Wang’s project is conducted in collaboration with scholars from Shandong University, Nanjing University and the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences. The research started 20 years ago with systemic study of nitrogen oxides in Hong Kong and other places in China. The project is in Prof. Wang’s core research area. By employing field observations, laboratory experiments and computer simulations, Prof. Wang’s team discovered important chemical processes of Nitrogen oxides and their roles in photochemical and haze pollution. The findings have enhanced knowledge of atmospheric chemistry and improved an extensively used air quality model for global air quality forecasting and research. The Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Awards (Science and Technology) were set up by the MOE to recognise outstanding research projects at tertiary institutions nationwide. The award is presented to individuals or units who have made remarkable contributions in science and technology advancement, translational research and talent cultivation.

Media Interview: Biomimicking Photocrosslinkable Nanocomposite Bone Grafts mirror the structure of natural bone

Dr Xin ZHAO, Limin Endowed Young Scholar in Biomedical Engineering and Associate Professor of Department of Biomedical Engineering of PolyU, introduces her research project that won the 2023 TechConnect Global Innovation Award in an interview with Sing Tao Daily. She also shares career prospects in the field of biomedical engineering, and encourages students who aspire to engage in scientific research to take on challenges. Please click here for details.

Cultivating a holistic view of research impacts

Researchers need to take a holistic mindset on bringing the results from laboratory to society. Computer scientists must remain constantly prepared for a wide spectrum of rapidly evolving paradigms and environments within computing networks and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Prof. Song GUO of Department of Computing at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has fostered proactive teamwork to develop innovative research and impactful applications in the field of dynamic computing. As Director of the Edge Intelligence Laboratory at PolyU, Prof. GUO has inspired a team of active researchers to investigate diversely, from the Internet of Things (IoT) to wearable devices and systems over ubiquitous mobiles, algorithms, deep learning, and edge computing. Prof. GUO always believes that talent developments and team efforts are crucial for research and constantly promoting a promising environment with diverse opportunities for growth, knowledge acquisition, and achievements. “My consistent recognition as a highly cited researcher underscores our team’s influential contributions in the field,” said Prof. GUO, whose research in Edge-cloud AI is highly cited. Individually, the paradigms of edge computing, cloud and AI are all rapidly evolving technologies that garner significant interest from academia and industry. If the cloud server centre functions as the brain, then edge computing is the nervous system connecting to various intelligent terminals throughout the body. The number of edge devices is proliferating, with the generation of excessive amounts of data crucial for intelligent applications. In an era of the smart city and living environment, edge learning research is essential as a paradigm that complements cloud-based methods for big data analytics in the cloud-edge environment.   Edge-cloud AI “Edge-cloud AI has emerged as a widely cited research field involving the collaboration of edge-side clients, networking facilities, and cloud-side servers. Our primary objective is to perform systematic research to design and implement efficient systems for Edge-cloud AI applications,” said Prof. GUO. However, a comprehensive life-cycle optimisation is a key challenge to addressing various aspects of computing systems, such as edge AI risks, dynamic environments, on-device constraints and heterogeneous resources. In the previous research, these requirements were abstracted into a bottom-up hierarchy and followed by a comprehensive approach to designing the system from deployment to training, adaption, and governance perspectives. The primary focus of research embraces four major aspects for developing efficient Edge-cloud AI systems: Designing a collaborative training framework over heterogeneous edge environments Offering a lightweight deployment engine for resource-constrained edge devices Proposing fast adaptation mechanisms for evolutionary edge environments Designing trustworthy governance technologies to mitigate various Edge AI risks. Highly Cited Deep learning is critical to applications of IoT by improving the efficiency of deployment and management of IoT, enhancing security and privacy protection, and enabling various smart usage. Respectively, federated learning is a decentralised approach to training machine learning models without exposing their private data. Prof. GUO’s highly cited research, titled “Layer-Wised Model Aggregation for Personalised Federal Learning”, showed higher performance in collaborative learning while protecting data privacy. The study proposed a novel personalised federated learning training framework to optimise the personalised model aggregation of clients with heterogeneous data. IoT generates large amounts of data at the network edge. Machine learning models are often built on these data to enable the detection, classification, and prediction of future events. However, it is often impossible to send all the IoT data to the central server for centralised model training due to network bandwidth, storage, and privacy concern. Prof. GUO’s research, titled “A Learning-based Incentive Mechanism for Federated Learning”, was published in IEEE Internet of Things Journal in 2020. It studied the incentive mechanism for federated learning to motivate edge nodes to contribute model training. Notably, a deep reinforcement learning-based incentive mechanism was designed to determine the optimal pricing strategy for the parameter server and optimal training strategies for edge nodes. For edge computing, Prof. GUO’s research designed a decentralised algorithm for computation offloading to enable users to independently choose their offloading decisions. The highly cited research, titled “A Deep Reinforcement Learning Based Offloading Game in Edge Computing”, was published in IEEE Transactions on Computers in 2020.   Practical applications Leveraging the Edge-cloud AI research platform, Prof. GUO's team has successfully applied the findings to real-world applications. For instance, the smart health project, which deploys lightweight medical models on edge devices, precisely enables body posture analysis with 90% classification accuracy. This “Dr Body Scan” posture analysis system has become the first automated, all-in-one machine for accurate diagnosis and evaluation of human posture. It won the Hong Kong Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Awards 2021 for providing impactful solutions for social and business needs.  Another smart transportation project uses neural video enhancement techniques to address vulnerabilities in autonomous vehicles by taking hardware, software, network environment and real-time demands into account. It effectively leads to up to 20 times reduced traffic. Overall, these real-time video inference algorithms and neural video enhancement models provide solid foundations for Edge AI applications.  “We take pride in balancing academic publications and practical applications. Alongside our academic achievements, we have published two books and secured over eight patents related to Edge AI,” said Prof. GUO. These accomplishments vividly build the value of research on social and economic benefits and make the connection between academia and industry. Collaboration with universities, hospitals, government, and charity organisations is essential for researchers with a proactive vision of real-world impacts. Also, international exchanges on global conferences participation and top-notch institutes visits are motivational activities to explore cutting-edge technology and gain in-depth knowledge.   Research Interests: Edge AI, Edge Computing, 6G, Big Data, Machine Learning, Distributed Systems, Mobile Computing Highly Cited Researcher: 2020-2022 (Clarivate Analytics) Selected Highly Cited Publications: S. Guo, Y. Zhan Y., P. Li, J. Zhang, A Deep Reinforcement Learning based Offloading Game in Edge Computing, IEEE Transactions on Computers, vol. 69, issue 6, June 2020. S. Guo, Y. Zhan, P. Li, Z. Qu, D. Zeng, A Learning-Based Incentive Mechanism for Federated Learning, IEEE Internet of Things Journal, vol. 7, issue 7, July 2020.  S. Guo, X. Ma, J. Zhang, W. Xu, Layer-Wised Model Aggregation for Personalized Federated Learning, Proceedings of the IEEE/CVF Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, pp. 10092-10101, 2022.   Download Version

Two PolyU scholars conferred as RGC Senior Research Fellow and Research Fellow

Two scholars from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have been awarded Fellowships under the Research Grants Council’s (RGC) Senior Research Fellow Scheme (SRFS) and Research Fellow Scheme (RFS) 2023/24 respectively for their excellence in cross-disciplinary research. Prof. Meng NI, Associate Dean of the Faculty of Construction and Environment and Professor of the Department of Building and Real Estate, has been awarded SRFS funding, while also being conferred the title “RGC Senior Research Fellow”. His cross-field research project aims to promote sustainable and clean energy generation. Situated across the disciplines of energy engineering and environment, Prof. Ni’s research interests include fuel cells, rechargeable metal-air batteries, electrochemical water-splitting and electrochemical systems for low-grade waste heat utilization. Additionally, he serves as a reviewer for more than 80 academic journals including top-tier publications such as Science, Nature Energy, Nature Communications, Joule and Advanced Materials. Prof. Buyang LI, Professor of the Department of Applied Mathematics, has received funding under the RFS and is conferred the title “RGC Research Fellow”. His research focuses on addressing pioneering mathematics questions. Prof. Li’s research endeavours in applied, numerical and computational mathematics have led to the discovery of solutions to a wide variety of mathematics questions. His contributions to the field of mathematics have also earned him the Hong Kong Mathematical Society Young Scholars Award 2022, which recognised his excellence in both research and academia within the mathematics domain. Prof. Christopher CHAO, PolyU Vice President (Research and Innovation), extended his congratulations to the awardees and said, “The accomplishments of the successful scholars highlight PolyU’s exceptional capacity and competitiveness in promoting and conducting multifaceted research across various academic disciplines. Their achievements serve as an inspiration to other researchers, encouraging them to persist in pursuing impactful research for the betterment of society.” The achievements of the two researchers demonstrate PolyU’s outstanding academic and research capabilities in interdisciplinary fields, as well as the University’s commitment to scientific research with the goal of addressing global societal needs. The SRFS and RFS aim to provide sustained support to exceptionally outstanding researchers at the UGC-funded universities in Hong Kong. Each scheme provides ten grants to scholars from any academic discipline, with funding support for a period of 60 months. The supporting university receives a fellowship grant of around HK$7.8 million for SRFS and HK$5.2 million for RFS per award. Details of the two awardees’ research: Senior Research Fellow Scheme Project Coordinator: Prof. Meng Ni, Associate Dean of the Faculty of Construction and Environment and Professor of the Department of Building and Real Estate Project Title: “Protonic ceramic fuel cells for clean power generation: From new cathode materials to new stack designs” Abstract: Characterised by their high efficiency and low emission, protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) are power sources that promise to replace conventional thermal power plants. Despite this, the practical performance of a PCFC stack remains limited due to high energy at the cathode and the non-uniform distribution of reactants in a traditional PCFC stack. The project adopts both the trial-and-error and machine learning-based approaches to facilitate new cathode material development. Through multi-physics modelling and optimisation techniques, unconventional stack designs, including several nature-inspired stack configurations, will be evaluated for PCFC. The research integrates engineering, chemistry, physics and material science to address the complex challenges of using PCFC for clean power generation. Research Fellow Scheme Project Coordinator: Prof. Buyang Li, Professor of the Department of Applied Mathematics Project Title: “Challenges, numerical analysis and new computational methods for curvature-driven surface evolutions and related problems” Abstract: This project aims to address a series of long-standing mathematical questions related to the stability and convergence of parametric finite element algorithms for approximating surface evolution under geometric flows and interface evolution under two-phase Navier-Stokes flows (such as gas bubbles in liquids). The research is expected to produce novel insights into the foundational algorithms for curvature-driven surface evolutions and new computational methods that can improve the accuracy, stability and mesh quality in approximating surface evolutions.

PolyU researchers collaboratively develop high-performance titanium alloys through additive manufacturing

The industrial production of titanium alloys has always been plagued by challenges associated with quality and waste management. Engineering scientists from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), in collaboration with RMIT University and the University of Sydney, have successfully used additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, to solve these long-standing issues in titanium alloy production. The research study, titled “Strong and ductile titanium-oxygen-iron alloys by additive manufacturing”, was recently published in Nature. Titanium alloys are advanced lightweight materials that play an indispensable role in many critical applications. The research team’s discovery of the innovative use of additive manufacturing for the production of titanium alloys and potentially other metal materials offers numerous advantages, such as reduced costs, improved performance, and sustainable waste management. Through the use of 3D printing, the research team has produced a new strong, ductile, and sustainable titanium alloy (α–β Ti-O-Fe alloy). These properties are achieved through the incorporation of inexpensive and abundant oxygen and iron, which are the two most powerful stabilising elements and strengtheners for α–β phase titanium alloys. The new titanium alloy exhibits immense potential for diverse applications, ranging from aerospace and marine engineering to consumer electronics and biomedical devices. Compared with the Ti-6AI-4V benchmark material, which has been widely used since its formulation in 1954, the new titanium alloy produced by the research team demonstrates better mechanical performance, with comparable ductility and considerably higher strength. Although traditional manufacturing methods, such as casting, can also be used to produce the new titanium alloy, the poor properties of the resulting material may render it unsuitable for practical engineering. Additive manufacturing effectively overcomes the limitations of traditional methods to improve alloy properties. The energy-intensive Kroll process, typically used to produce titanium alloys, generates off-grade sponge titanium, which accounts for approximately 10% of all sponge titanium, resulting in substantial waste and increased production costs. Additive manufacturing effectively addresses this problem by enabling the recycling of off-grade sponge titanium, converting the waste into powder for use as raw material. Dr Zibin CHEN, Assistant Professor of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at PolyU, an awardee of the Young Innovative Researcher Award 2022 and a leading author of the research, stated, “Our work can facilitate the recycling of more than 10% of the waste generated by the metal alloy production industry. This can significantly lower both material and energy costs for industries, contributing to environmental sustainability and carbon footprint reduction.” The research integrates alloy design, computational simulations, and experimental characterisation to explore the additive manufacturing process-microstructure-property space for the new titanium alloy (α–β Ti-O-Fe alloy). The study highlights that additive manufacturing enables the one-step production of complex and functional metal parts, thereby accelerating product development with reduced costs. Additionally, it can be used to fabricate metal parts with unique structures and compositions, which cannot be achieved using traditional methods. In terms of quality improvement, additive manufacturing allows for the adjustment of the microstructure of metal alloys, resulting in increased strength, flexibility, and resistance to corrosion and water. Furthermore, lightweight but strong metal parts with intricate internal patterns can be manufactured. This research breakthrough opens up possibilities for holistic and sustainable material design strategies facilitated by 3D printing. Prof. Keith K.C. CHAN, Chair Professor of Manufacturing Engineering at the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at PolyU and a co-author of the study, noted, “This work can serve as a model or benchmark for other metal alloys that use 3D printing to enhance their properties and expand their applicability. Metal 3D printing is an emerging field, and it will take time before it is widely adopted in materials manufacturing.”  

PolyU awarded RGC Strategic Topics Grant to address societal needs in mental healthcare

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has received funding support from the Strategic Topics Grant (STG) 2023/24 of the Research Grants Council (RGC) for a health technology project aimed at promoting a new paradigm shift with creation of an integrated solution to address urgent mental healthcare needs. In Hong Kong, major psychiatric disorders (MPDs), such as major depressive disorder, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, have a high prevalence rate of 13.3%. In addition, less than 40% of patients achieve complete symptoms control after initial treatment. Currently, the standard diagnosis criteria rely on cognitive and behavioural indicators. The PolyU project introduces an innovative and integrated strategy that utilises artificial intelligence (AI) and genomic and biomedical technology to support diagnosis, treatment planning and understanding of disease mechanisms. The project has been funded under the STG topic of using AI to address imminent challenges in healthcare, proposing an AI-based, data-driven approach to diagnosis and personalised therapy. Prof. Christopher CHAO, PolyU Vice President (Research and Innovation) said, “Under this new RGC funding scheme, PolyU has received the highest funding allocation among all institutions to support our scholars in conducting interdisciplinary and collaborative research in areas pertinent to the strategic needs of Hong Kong. PolyU has been working with various sectors to provide solutions to societal challenges. This major funding received from the RGC demonstrates PolyU’s experience in mental health research and its strengths in translating academic research for the benefit of the society.” Prof. Weixiong ZHANG, Chair Professor of Bioinformatics and Integrative Genomics at PolyU, leads the project “Integrated innovative artificial intelligence, and genomic and biomedical technologies in healthcare: Objective diagnosis, personalised therapy and determination the etiology of major mental disorders,” which has been awarded funding of over HK$37 million. With a strong academic and research background in interdisciplinary fields, Prof. Zhang is a professor at both the Department of Health Technology and Informatics and the Department of Computing at PolyU. He is also a Hong Kong Global STEM Professor. The project aims to revolutionise the approach to diagnosing complex diseases like MPDS by shifting from symptom-based diagnosis to AI-based, data-driven diagnosis, disease study and personalised therapy. It builds upon Prof. Zhang’s extensive research in heuristic search, planning and optimisation, as well as his innovative techniques in AI and big data. By combining these techniques with genomics and biomedical technologies that he has been studying over the years, the project seeks to develop medical explainable AI (XAI) solutions for MPD diagnosis, etiology disease study and personalised therapy. Prof. Zhang said, “This is a multidisciplinary project that responds to the urgent need for new technologies to improve mental healthcare in Hong Kong and beyond. The research team combines expertise from diverse fields such as computer science, biology and medicine, to address some fundamental challenges in complex disease studies.” The project will involve 20 investigators and collaborators from eight institutions in Hong Kong, the Mainland China and the United States. The STG has been set up to support collaborative research in specific areas which can help Hong Kong overcome imminent challenges and tap fast-evolving opportunities. The maximum duration of a project is five years. The ceiling of project cost per project to be awarded by the RGC is $40 million (excluding on-costs).   Details of the funded project Project Coordinator: Prof. Weixiong Zhang - Chair Professor in Bioinformatics & Integrative Genomics in the Department of Health Technology and Informatics and Department of Computing - Hong Kong Global STEM Professor   Project Title: Integrated Innovative Artificial Intelligence, Genomic and Biomedical Technologies in Healthcare: Objective Diagnosis, Personalised Therapy, and Determining the Etiology of Major Mental Disorders Abstract:   The project proposes a paradigm shift from symptom-based diagnosis to AI-based, data-driven diagnosis and a personalised therapy approach. By integrating AI, genomics and biomedical technologies, the research team aims to create an explainable AI-enabled treatment planning system that can support reliable diagnosis and guide personalised repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy.   The research project encompasses three research focus (RF) areas: RF-1 : Identify genetic disease biomarkers and brain activity patterns to classify MPDs into distinct categories. RF-2 : Study the longitudinal impact of stress on diseases and their inheritance. RF-3 : Combine the findings of previous research focus areas by applying genetic biomarkers and brain patterns from RF-1 and the knowledge of disease mechanisms obtained from RF-2, so as to guide reliable diagnosis and personalised therapy, ultimately improving mental healthcare.    

PolyU announces the establishment of the Department of Food Science and Nutrition to nurture food specialists and promote innovative and sustainable development

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) announced the establishment of the Department of Food Science and Nutrition (FSN), which is Hong Kong’s first UGC-funded academic department specialising in Food Science and Nutrition. To celebrate its inauguration, an International Conference on Food and Human Health was held at PolyU, followed by a Grand Opening Ceremony last week (13-14 July). More than 300 guests, including government officials, community leaders, industry partners, and staff attended the opening ceremony. Miss LAU Lee Kwan Vivian, Permanent Secretary for Environment and Ecology Bureau (Food Branch) of the HKSAR; Dr LAM Tai-fai, Council Chairman of PolyU; Prof. Wing-tak WONG, Acting President of PolyU; Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU; Prof. Raymond WONG, Dean of Faculty of Science of PolyU; and Prof. CHEN Sheng, Head of Department of Food Science and Nutrition of PolyU, officiated the ceremony. Since 21st century, the food supply has become a complex and specialised industrial process, with quality management being a key challenge throughout the entire food supply chain. In 2008, PolyU launched the self-financed BSc (Hons) in Food Safety and Technology to address the escalating concerns of food safety related to the outbreak of a number of large-scale food safety incidents. Based on the key pillars of Food Safety, Food Technology, Human Nutrition, and Chinese Medicine, FSN is dedicated to providing professionally crafted trainings to nurture food specialists. FSN is also focused on addressing health-related issues and pursuing impactful research to promote innovative and sustainable development that benefits the world and mankind. Miss Lau Lee Kwan said, “With the establishment of the Department of Food Science and Nutrition, we expect that experts from relevant fields will come together to collaborate and share their knowledge and experience, making positive contributions to the development of innovative solutions to benefit society. We are also happy to see young professionals being groomed in the related fields.” Dr Lam Tai-fai said, “The new Department of Food Science and Nutrition is well positioned to become a centre of excellence in research, education, and outreach in the areas of food and human health. I am confident that the Department will make significant contributions to the advancement of knowledge in these areas for the betterment of society as a whole.” Two fascinating food projects were presented during the Grand Opening Ceremony. The first was an award-winning project on the AkkMore™ formula, which has been further developed into a low-calorie ice cream by Dr Gail CHANG, Research Assistant Professor of FSN. The second project was on modernised and sustainable mariculture at a demonstration farm, specifically the cultivation of grouper, by Dr Kevin KWOK, Associate Head of FSN. The grouper was served as one of the dishes at the Ceremony dinner. Prof. Raymond Wong said, “With the growing concern over food safety and sustainability, and nutrition-related health issues, our role has never been more important. Through the pursuit of excellence in holistic education, impactful research and knowledge transfer, we strive to contribute to the development of innovative solutions in Food Science and Nutrition for the betterment of our society.” Prof. Chen Sheng said, “We believe that the challenges we face in this field are multifaceted and require an interdisciplinary approach to tackle. That’s why our Department brings together scientists, nutritionists, engineers, and social scientists so that people with expertise in different areas can complement each other and work towards the common goal of improving human health.” FSN will work hand-in-hand with Research Institute for Future Food (RiFood) and Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation (RCMI) to provide interdisciplinary solutions for major societal challenges through advanced research and knowledge transfer, creating positive impacts to improve the health and well-being of mankind.