Technical Seminar “Breakthrough on Nanofiber Technologies to Air Purification and Solar Cells” by Ir Prof. Wallace Leung

Co-organized by the Mechanical, Marine, Naval Architecture & Chemical (MMNC) Division, Gas and Energy (EG) Division, Materials Division of The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE), The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET – Hong Kong Branch) and the Mechanical Engineering (ME) Department of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), a technical seminar with the theme “Breakthrough on Nanofiber Technologies to Air Purification and Solar Cells” was delivered by Ir Prof. Wallace Leung, Chair Professor of Innovative Products and Technologies of ME Department of PolyU, on 25th April 2018. Over 100 HKIE and IET members participated in the seminar. Nanofiber is non-woven, randomly oriented very fine fiber with a fiber diameter less than 1000 nanometer. Prof. Leung started by introducing the physical features, materials and production methods of nanofiber. Then, he divided his presentation into two main topics: Nanofiber in Energy and Nanofiber in Environment. For the first topic, he talked about application of nanofiber on solar cells. He introduced an environmental-friendly PV technology, the dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC), which uses an organic dye to effectively harvest solar energy and convert photons to electrical charges efficiently. Three technologies on nanofiber-based DSSC along improvements in light trapping, light harvesting and charge transport have been discussed. The adoption of bilayer TiO2 nanofibers, CuPC co-sensitization and carbon nanotube in TiO2 nanofibers brings significant efficiency improvement of DSSC. Nanofiber technology also gives remarkable contribution in air quality improvement. Filtration using nanofibers arranged in novel configurations can remove particulate pollutants and air borne viruses as small as 10-100 nm with high capture efficiency, high aerosol holding capacity, low-pressure drop and stable performance. These nanofiber technologies present a wide range of applications, from facemask, respirators, cabin filter, HVAC, engine, turbine, hospital wards to industrial uses. Besides, novel nanofiber photocatalysts, which are made of composite semiconductor such as TiO2-ZnO, can purify gases effectively by breaking down harmful substance to carbon dioxide and water vapor, after harvesting both UV and visible light. The seminar came to a successful end with an interactive Q&A session and last but not least, souvenirs were presented to Ir Prof. Leung by the HKIE and IET representatives, Miss Winky Lui and Mr. Victor Chan, to thank Ir Prof. Leung for his informative and inspiring sharing.

ME Scholar won Gold Award in International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva

Prof. Zhongqing SU of the Department of Mechanical Engineering won a Gold Medal in the 46th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, Switzerland in April 2018. Sprayable Smart Sensing Network Coating for Structural Health Monitoring Principal Investigators: Prof. Zhongqing SU (Department of Mechanical Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) Prof. Zhong ZHANG (CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing) Prof. Limin ZHOU (Interdisciplinary Division of Aeronautical and Aviation Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University) This innovative, first-ever, nanocomposites-inspired smart sensor is made of carbon black (CB), 2D graphene and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). The sensors made of this new breed of nanocomposites can be directly sprayed on any engineering structure to form a highly dense smart sensing network, which can acquire in-situ broadband ultrasounds of up to 1 MHz for damage detection. Lightweight, flexible and highly responsive, the sensing network can quantitatively evaluate invisible, undersized defect and damage in the structure, such as cracks caused by metal fatigue. This new sensing technology retrofits conventional ultrasonic sensing philosophy, and blazes a new trail for next generation of in-situ structural health monitoring. The 46th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, held from 11-15 April 2018, has attracted 822 exhibitors from 40 countries/regions, showcasing around 1,000 or so innovations. Under the patronage of the Swiss Federal Government, the State and the City of Geneva as well as the World Intellectual Property Organization, it is the biggest event of its kind globally.

ME PhD student won the Best Student Presentation Award at the 22nd Annual Conference of HKSTAM

Mr Jimin FU, a PhD student from the PolyU Department of Mechanical Engineering, got the Best Student Presentation Award at the 22ndAnnual Conference of HKSTAM on 14 April 2018. The 22nd Annual Conference of HKSTAM 2018 in conjunction with the 14th Shanghai-Hong Kong Forum on Mechanics and Its Application was co-organized by the Hong Kong Society of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (HKSTAM), the Shanghai Society of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (SSTAM) and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). The conference topics cover mechanics and its application in all science and engineering disciplines. The one-day conference featured 5 distinguished lectures and 38 presentations in eight parallel sessions. Student participants were provided opportunities to present their research work during the presentation sessions. Based on the assessment results by referees, eight best students were awarded the Best Student Presentation Award. The topic of Jimin’s presentation is “Microscopic ridge-like surface morphology: An antifouling strategy learned from nature”. Jimin is a fourth-year PhD candidate. He is devoted to the study on micro-and nanomechanics of natural biomaterials under the joint supervisions of Dr Haimin YAO and Prof. Sanqiang SHI.

ME students won the Champion and the Best Innovative Award in the HKIE Joint Student Chapters Competition 2018

A team of Mechanical Engineering students of the undergraduate final-year capstone project in the title of “Design and Construction of an Innovative Energy Conversion Device” – Ms. Fung Man Yi, Ms. Wong Hei Wa and Ms. Pang Wei Fong under the supervision of Dr. Lam Chun Ki has won the Champion and the Best Innovative Award in the HKIE Joint Student Chapters Competition 2018. The competition was organized by the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE) and held at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University on 14 April 2018. The theme of this year is “Engineering a Utopia”. The topic should be related to Sustainable Development, and should fulfill at least one of the scopes of Intelligent Building, Green Construction and Methodology and Energy Efficiency and Management. Top universities in Hong Kong have participated in this annual competition. The judging panel marked the competitors based on design innovation, design methodology, potential for commercialization and presentation skills during the presentation session. The winning innovative design for the team is an eco-friendly portable fridge powered up by energy conversion on a bike.

PolyU ME Robot triumphed in IMechE 2018

Bravo! The PolyU student team won the Champion and the Most Innovative Awards in the 7th IMechE Greater China Design Competition held at Guangzhou on 24-25 March 2018. Organized by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) – Hong Kong Branch, this year challenge was to design an unmanned robot for relief. Eight top universities, including The University of Hong Kong, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, University of Macau, South China University of Technology and PolyU, participated in this annual competition. The PolyU team, comprised of third year undergraduate students, Ji-ho SHIN, Hung Ming Roy CHOW and Rudra SOMESHWAR, under the supervision of Dr Henry CHU and Ir Dr Curtis NG of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, designed and created a robot, which can successfully move across different terrains for material transport. “Our students were wholly dedicated to this challenge. They were highly self-motivated to work on the prototypes and well-prepared for the competition.” Dr Curtis NG said. The judging panel marked the competitors based on design innovation, design methodology, potential for commercialization, presentation skills, as well as the technical performance of the prototype design during the demonstration session. The PolyU team robot stood out from the rest. The robot topped off the challenge in the competition with the full smoothness and highest efficiency. “Students feel fabulous with their achievement and we are highly proud of them.” Dr Henry CHU exclaimed. Watch the video to see how the mission was beautifully done!   Selected to be the POLYU OUTSTANDING WORK BY STUDENTS. Click to learn more …

3 ME Staff received Faculty Awards for Outstanding Performance/ Achievement in 2016/17

The PolyU Faculty of Engineering Spring Reception cum Faculty Awards Presentation Ceremony was held on 9 March 2018. Three staff members from the Department of Mechanical Engineering were awarded for their outstanding performance and achievement. Prof. SHI San-Qiang, Head of Department of Mechanical Engineering and Prof. CHENG Li, Chair Professor of Department of Mechanical Engineering received the “Faculty of Engineering Research Grant Achievement Award 2016/17”. Since 2003, the award has been set up by the Faculty Research Committee torecognize the outstanding performance of FENG academic staff members in securing external competitive research grants. Prof. CHENG Li was also awarded the “Faculty Award in Research and Scholarly Activities – Merit Award (Individual) 2016/17”. Prof. LEUNG Chun Wah, Adjunct Professor of Department of Mechanical Engineering was awarded the “Faculty Award in Services – Outstanding Award (Individual) 2016/17”. The awards are established to encourage and recognize excellent practices in teaching, research and scholarly activities, and services. Winners of the awards has demonstrated high level of professionalism and dedication in their respective areas and contributed to the achievements of the Faculty.

105th Departmental Advisory Committee Meeting

The 105th Departmental Advisory Committee (DAC) meeting took place on 8 March 2018, under the chairmanship of Ir Conrad Wong, Vice Chairman of Yau Lee Group. It was a very useful meeting as members, with their wide range of expertise, had a fruitful discussion, sharing their expectations on our students and graduates, and provided very constructive views and suggestions to the Department of its efforts in the future development in teaching and learning, research and consultancy and strategic development.

ME Team Building Social Gathering cum Spring Lunch

A fun time for team building, re-energizing and communicating. On 6 March 2018, ME Department organized a Spring Lunch cum bowling ball game for all academic, administrative and technical support staff as well as research personnel. We had over 100 participants joining the event. People were in their causal dressed, light-hearted mood and smiles on their faces. The buffet lunch came with the bowling games definitely gave all ME members a wonderful and joyful break!

ME scholar’s research work accepted by Physical Review Letters

Sound wave has been thoroughly studied for centuries as one of the most well-known type of classical waves and close partner of our everyday life. Is there any undiscovered phenomenon associated with sound, especially whether we can find new ways to manipulate sound wave based on ideas inspired from quantum-classical mechanics analogue, has been a well sought-after topic for the last decade. A new study conducted by Dr Jie Zhu, the Assistant Professor of Department of Mechanical Engineering, and his team has made significant progress towards expanding such investigation. With passive acoustic system, Dr Zhu’s team and his collaborator from Huazhong University of Science and Technology present the first experimental study of PT symmetry physics beyond one dimension. A two-dimensional intrinsic PT symmetric potential is demonstrated with an all passive acoustic metamaterials crystal. As an example, the two-dimensional unidirectional sound focusing effect is experimentally realized. This progress breaks through the most essential roadblock to observing the evolution of non-Hermitian Hamiltonians respecting PT symmetry with acoustic system: the absence of natural gain medium. This all passive acoustic PT-symmetric material requires no electricity supply nor feedback control mechanism. It provides a much more compact and robust solution, when pushing the PT-symmetry acoustic research into practice in the future to build new devices for sound imaging and sensing. This work was recently accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters. ME PhD student Tuo Liu is the first author. Dr Jie Zhu is the corresponding author. Learn more at Physical Review Letters

Alumni Mentorship Dinner 2017/18

The PolyU Department of Mechanical Engineering Alumni Mentorship Dinner 2017/2018 was successfully held on 7 Feb 2018. Over 100 alumni, honorable guests and academics, together with about 150 students from the graduating classes of BEng(Hons) in Mechanical Engineering, BEng(Hons) in Product Analysis and Engineering Design, and Double Degree Programme in Business Administration and Engineering showed up in that evening making the dinner a memorable and meaningful one. The Alumni Mentorship dinner is a tradition of ME to enhance the bonding between alumni with members of the Department and more importantly, to provide a platform for our final year students to learn practical experiences and professional advice from alumni mentors. In the welcoming remark, Prof. SQ Shi, Head of Department, expressed deep gratitude to all the alumni and industrial friends for their support over the years. Especially in the mentorship programme, their willingness to share, to listen and to provide guidance to our students was definitely invaluable. Followed by our guest speech, Dr Yau Wing Kwong, President of the Mechanical and Marine Engineering Alumni Association, showed full support to the Department and students. The dinner was not just a dinner, through which we connected among academics, students, alumni and industrialists, through which our bonding was fortified. Time flew, the MC concluded the dinner by thanking all for their attendance. Nonetheless, guests showed no sign of leaving but couldn’t stop sharing. All people were very satisfied with the feast and found it a fruitful one. Check out more photos of the event HERE.