Media Releases

Professor Jin-Guang Teng assumes duty as the new PolyU President

The new President of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), Prof. Jin-Guang TENG, takes office today. Over the next couple of months, he aims to build connections with students, faculty, staff, and alumni through different engagement opportunities. He will also meet with different internal and external stakeholders to understand the dynamics and to communicate his thoughts and plans for the future development of the University. In his message to the staff members, students and alumni of PolyU, Prof. Teng said, "While it is a great honour that I assume the role of President of PolyU, I am also fully aware of the huge responsibilities and demanding expectations associated with the position."  He pledged to make every effort to fulfil PolyU's mission and to deliver the University's vision. Prof. Teng said, the role of education is to instill positive values in the next generation and equip them with professional competences to change the world for the better. PolyU aims to nurture professionals and leaders with a strong sense of social responsibility, innovative capability, critical thinking and effective communication skills. Over the years, PolyU's graduates have gone on to lead in a range of industries and professions, making contributions to the development of society. He pointed out that PolyU, ranked among the top 100 universities globally, is already a world leader in a significant number of disciplines; therefore, the University can further develop its other areas of strength so as to assume a world-leading position in those areas too. To make this happen, the University will proactively recruit top talents from around the globe and continue to enhance its research environment. The University will also strengthen interdisciplinary research collaborations and industry partnerships, particularly in emerging areas resulting from the development of new technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics, so as to make greater contributions to the sustainable development of Hong Kong, the nation and the world.  PolyU's research outcomes will continue to create a positive impact in business, industry and the community as knowledge transfer is a core element of its mission. PolyU will seek to elevate the level of its global engagement and impact in the coming years. The University will leverage its extensive international network to not only advance academic exchanges, but also increase its students' understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity and broader social issues for enhancing their international perspectives.   Closer to home, PolyU embraces the opportunities brought about by the Greater Bay Area (GBA) development, serving not only the long-term interests of PolyU but also those of the GBA as a whole. Enhancing the role in the GBA will be one of the strategic focus areas of Prof. Teng in the coming few years. He will lead his team to work closely with other GBA cities to nurture talents, pursue research excellence and transfer knowledge. Prof. Teng started his long association with PolyU in 1994, the year when Hong Kong Polytechnic assumed full university status. Over the years, he has been in various capacities including educator, researcher, hall warden, and administrator."PolyU has provided me with a favorable and stimulating environment for my personal growth and career development over the past 25 years, and I hope that PolyU will provide our students and staff with an even better environment for development in the future." The PolyU Council announced in March 2019 the appointment of Prof. Teng as its new President with a five-year term of office from 1 July 2019. Prof. Teng received his BEng Degree from Zhejiang University in 1983. He then pursued further studies in Australia and the United Kingdom. He had served at James Cook University of North Queensland before joining PolyU. A well-accomplished and distinguished scholar in the field of structural engineering, Prof. Teng's publications have been widely cited by researchers around the world, and many of his research findings have been adopted by relevant design codes/guidelines in China, Australia, Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States. He was elected in 2017 as Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is the highest academic title in the field of science and technology in China; Corresponding Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2015; and Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences in 2013.   *****END****

PolyU holds Hong Kong’s first event on design-led technology for social good

The Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) held today the "Designing Future Techstyle" International Symposium and "Techstyle for Social Good International Competition 2019" at The Mills. Endorsed by two world design academies, Royal College of Art in London and Tsinghua University in Beijing, the Symposium was packed with world-renowned speakers from cutting-edge international design brands, world-class luxury group and sportswear brands. This was the first-of-its-kind event to promote a new design approach - techstyle (i.e. intersection of technology and style) - in Hong Kong. In collaboration with The Mills Fabrica, the innovation arm of The Mills, and with the sponsorship of the Create Hong Kong (CreateHK) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Symposium aims at creating awareness of new design approaches to techstyle, and highlighting the industry's needs to work collaboratively across disciplines as technology and consumer demands evolve. The vision of the collaboration is to discover distinguished designs that integrate technology and modern style and explore "techstyle for social good" projects. Through this partnership, the hosting organisations also want to promote sustainability in techstyle industry, and to support the young entrepreneurs who aspire to develop in this area. The opening ceremony was officiated by the Hon. Felix CHUNG, Legislative Council Member; Ms Jersey YUEN, Assistant Head, CreateHK; Dr Miranda LOU, Executive Vice President of PolyU; Ms Vanessa CHEUNG, Founder of The Mills and Managing Director of Nan Fung Development Ltd; and Prof. FAN Jin-tu, Head and Chair Professor, ITC, PolyU. Addressing at the ceremony, Dr Miranda LOU said, "Hong Kong, as a creative capital, strives to play a leading role in encouraging design-led technological innovations for social good. Fashion now concerns more than addressing apparels and wearables, but fostering change to fashion products and systems towards sustainability and a higher sense of social responsibility. Recognised as one of the region's best schools in textiles and clothing, PolyU will continue to be the hub for nurturing talents and cutting edge research in fashion, textiles and design in Hong Kong, and in the region." On behalf of CreateHK, Ms Jersey YUEN expressed her gratitude to the ITC for successfully organising the event to promote design-led technology for social good. Featuring keynote talks and a discussion forum with international renowned academics and experts in techstyle, the Symposium provided local creative communities, design students and the general public a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas and get international, interdisciplinary design perspectives particularly for creating social impact. Prof. Naren BARFIELD, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Provost of Royal College of Art, stressed in his presentation the significant contribution of techstyle and talked about useful innovations that are impacting our lives. Ms Christianna WINCEK, Flyknit Innovation Material Design Director of Nike, shared her insights in the process of designing of sports shoes. Ms Francesca ROSELLA, Co-founder of CuteCircuit, discussed the synergy of design and technology, and the new dimensions for human experience. Well known for her viral colour-changing hair dye, Ms Lauren BOWKER, Founder of THEUNSEEN, presented newly-created, self-activating beauty products that change colour in response to heat, wind and UV light, and discussed their implications on natural beauty. The Project also included the "Techstyle for Social Good International Competition 2019" which awarded the winners with cash prizes, residencies at The Mills Fabrica and opportunities to further explore the potential of their projects. Prototypes of shortlisted participants were showcased at the venue to demonstrate their design-led technology innovations for social good. Further information is available on the internet (https://www.polyu.edu.hk/itc/dft2019/index.html). Group photo of the Officiating Guests, speakers of the Symposium, and adjudicators of the International Competition: (Front, from 4th from left) Ms Vanessa CHEUNG, Founder, The Mills and Managing Director, Nan Fung Development Ltd; Ms Jersey YUEN, Assistant Head, CreateHK; The Hon. Felix CHUNG, Member, the Legislative Council; Dr Miranda LOU, Executive Vice President, PolyU; Prof. Naren BARFIELD, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Provost, Royal College of Art.   *****END****

PolyU wins two global innovation awards at TechConnect 2019

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) won two "Global Innovation Awards" at TechConnect World Innovation Conference and Expo 2019 (TechConnect) staged in the United States. It is the third year in a row that PolyU research teams snatched the awards in the world's largest multi-sector event for fostering development and commercialisation of innovations.  The two PolyU winning innovations are: "New Antibiotic Drug Candidates" invented by Dr Cong MA, Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, PolyU, and Dr Xiao YANG, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Using computer-aided approaches in drug discovery, the interdisciplinary research team discovered small molecules with high potential to be developed into novel antimicrobial agents fighting against the superbugs. Based on a new target, new chemical structure and new mechanism different from the existing antibiotics, these compounds demonstrated great effect of inhibiting bacterial growth, yet with no toxicity to human cells. They are now approaching the pre-clinical development stage. New antimicrobial resistance mechanisms are emerging and spreading globally, threatening human health. These novel drug candidates could potentially be strong complements to the current antibiotics for treating infectious diseases.   "Seeded Sonochemical Coatings" by Dr Nuruzzaman NOOR, Research Assistant Professor, Institute of Textiles and Clothing, PolyU Currently known techniques for coating/incorporating inorganic metal oxide layers on fabrics require high temperature, low pressure and specialised gaseous environments. Output materials also often face leaching issues, which degrade the original function (e.g. UV protection etc.).The innovative seeded-sonochemical deposition method, however, utilises the small seeding layers to direct a more durable overcoating for inorganic metal oxide layer. Processed in room temperature environment, pure products can be developed at high quality in a cheaper, faster and more efficient manner. The research findings can be applied to different areas such as functional clothing and glazing. Ir Prof. Alex WAI, Vice President (Research Development) of PolyU, said, "These awards not only recognise the efforts of our researchers in conducting impactful research, but also affirms PolyU's endeavours in developing and translating our technologies into practical applications with intrinsic value for the benefit of the global community." There are over 600 submissions at TechConnect each year, from global top tier universities and national laboratories such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Sandia National Laboratories, Argonne National Laboratory and EPFL-LPAC etc. The Innovation Awards go to the top 15% technologies submitted. This year, 30 global awards were presented for non-US-federal-funded innovations across the world, while another 59 national awards were granted to innovations with US federal funding. The PolyU delegation showcased 21 technologies this year, two of them received global innovation awards at the event held in Boston on 17-19 June. Besides attending various exchange sessions, the delegation also explored product development and co-operation opportunities with industry end-users, multi-national companies and academic institutions for applying the innovations for the benefits of the world.      Over the years, the TechConnect World Innovation Conference and Expo has connected top applied research and early-stage innovations from universities, laboratories, and start-ups with industry end-users and prospectors. More details are available from the official website of the event: https://www.techconnectworld.com/World2019/     *****END****

PolyU provides “Tanzania Leadership Programme” to nurture talents for Belt & Road region

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) today launched a leadership programme for 100 Tanzania's young professionals from various sectors. The first batch of 30 Tanzanian young professionals will attend a one-week programme consisting of expert lectures, field visits in Hong Kong and Shenzhen as well as knowledge sharing sessions, focusing on areas crucial for Tanzania's development, namely: green manufacturing, urban planning, information technology for international trade, tourism, and public health. The Tanzania Leadership Programme is organised by PolyU's Institute of Advanced Executive Education. PolyUlaunched the Belt and Road Cross-Professional Advancement Programme in January 2019, providing a platform for Hong Kong's professionals and Mainland enterprise leaders to exchange knowledge and share experience, as well as to network, explore market opportunities and develop multilateral collaborations. The University also aims to leverage its expertise to share best practices and experiences with the high-potential future leaders of other Belt and Road countries such as Tanzania. The opening ceremony of the Programme was officiated by Mr Mbelwa KAIRUKI, Ambassador of United Republic of Tanzania in People's Republic of China,and Dr Miranda LOU, Executive Vice President of PolyU. Addressing the ceremony, Dr Lou said, "PolyU has been playing its role to nurture young talents for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) since 2014. We have established a platform to leverage PolyU's expertise and international network for capacity building, and thereby fostering talent development, knowledge transfer and research development for the sustainable advancement of the Belt and Road countries. This Programme is another PolyU's initiative to offer cross-cultural youth leadership programmes to Tanzania future global leaders." She added that there were more than 700 students from the Belt and Road countries last year in PolyU, some of them were from Africa. Apart from academic programmes, PolyU also supports enterprises and professionals to embrace the opportunities arising from the BRI. Since 2014, the University has offered more than 390 consultancy services and executive training to organisations from Belt and Road countries. Tanzania, as one of Africa's fastest growing economies, has its strategic role in the BRI. Mr Kairuki, who flew in Hong Kong to attend the opening, said, "Our country needs such kind of youth with vigour and zeal to make a difference and transform it from where it is to a more prosperous nation. And that starts with learning new ideas and new ways and from new experiences. I saw a need for my country as well to invest in building the capacity of the young and upcoming leaders in various industries. I saw nowhere fit for this than Hong Kong and especially at the Institute of Advance Executive Education and the PolyU." Under the Programme, the 30 Tanzanian participants will conduct field trips related to the five focused areas of the Programme, such as visiting PolyU's innovative facilities, the City Gallery (displaying the vision for the city's planning projects), Shatin (one of the new towns in Hong Kong that exhibits a success case in town planning), textile upcycling factory (using innovative technologies to provide a solution for textile waste recycling), as well as Huawei Shenzhen Campus (showcasing the emerging tech of a smartphone giant). By the end of the Programme, the young professionals, from varied sectors ranging from telecommunications, information technology, marketing, social enterprise, manufacturing, sustainability, finance, tourism to public health, will also work on action plans for specific areas of development in Tanzania. The Programme will run in a series, each will cater for a cohort of 30 Tanzanian young professionals. PolyU's Institute of Advanced Executive Education is also planning to extend similar training to other Belt and Road countries.   *****END****

PolyU fashion design graduates stage Fashion Show 2019

Twenty-two graduating students from Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) showcased their design flair and talent at the PolyU Fashion Show 2019 held on 13 June at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre. Over 2,000 industrialists, fashion designers and fashion bloggers were attracted to the Show. Graduating students from the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Scheme in Fashion and Textiles each presented a series of six pieces of outfit with varied themes of their own choice to compete for seven awards. The Overall Grand Award eventually went to Venus TSANG with her creative design themed Toumei Ningen. (Please refer to the appendix for the full list of awardees.) The judging panel was comprised of well-known fashion designers and seasoned practitioners of the fashion industry. They included: Ms Janet CHEUNG, Vice-Chairman, Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association; Ms Lu Lu CHEUNG, Creative Director, Rolls Group Limited; Mr Anthony KEUNG, President and C.E.O., Fenix Group Holdings Ltd; Mr Walter MA, Director, Walter Ma & Co. Ltd; and Mr Peter WONG, Editorial Director, VOGUE Hong Kong. The Show was officiated by Prof. WONG Wing-tak, Dean of PolyU's Faculty of Applied Science and Textiles, and Prof. FAN Jin-tu, Chair Professor and Head of Institute of Textiles and Clothing, PolyU. Prof. WONG said, "I would like to thank our partners in the industry for their long-standing support and generous sponsorship. With their support, we are delighted to see many brilliant masterpieces today. I have no doubt that our young talents will shine on the international stage very soon." To make the Fashion Show more colourful, ITC in collaboration with the Hong Kong Sports Institute invited local elite athletes from the Institute to join the catwalk and demonstrate their all-rounded talent and charisma beyond sports grounds. The seven elite athletes made their catwalk debut were Katrina WAN (Billiard Sports), Vincent YEUNG (Badminton), Leo LEE (Badminton), Angel WONG (Gymnastics), LAU Chi Ming (Karatedo), Hugo DARKE CHRISTOPHER (Rugby), and Juanita MOK (Wushu).   Professor WONG Wing-tak, Dean of PolyU’s Faculty of Applied Science and Textiles (third from right) and the panel of judges (from left): Ms Janet CHEUNG, Ms Lu Lu CHEUNG, Mr Peter WONG; and (from right) Mr Walter MA and Mr Anthony KEUNG.   Venus TSANG wins the Overall Grand Award with her collection named “Toumei Ningen”.   The winning collection of HKIAIA Award – “ADHD” by Nabeel Khaled Hamed BAHRI.   Kerson Innovation Award goes to “URBAN SURVIVAL” by TSANG Cheuk-him.     The winning collection of Best Use of Australian Merino Wool Award (sponsored by The Woolmark Company) – “Now you know me?” by Hay WONG.   Scholarship of Creativity (sponsored by Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association) is presented to Wesker AU for his collection of “People Underground”.   CHAN Tsz-wa secures two prizes including Esquel Outstanding Menswear Award and Best Use of Australian Merino Wool Award (sponsored by Flinders Merino), with a collection themed “VO-YAGE” Ms Vivienne TAM (third from left), renowned Fashion Designer and Founder of VIVIENNE TAM, also attends the show as award presenter.     The four Hong Kong elite athletes joining the performing dance include (from left): Vincent YEUNG (Badminton), Juanita MOK (Wushu), Angel WONG (Gymnastics) and Leo LEE (Badminton). - End -

Statement by University Presidents Who are Concerned about Society

We are gravely concerned about the intensifying conflicts and tension in the community. We plead for calm from all sectors of the community, and appeal to all to consider their own safety and that of others. We urge everyone to work cooperatively and rationally towards resolving the current impasse. City University of Hong Kong Hong Kong Baptist University Lingnan University The Chinese University of Hong Kong The Education University of Hong Kong The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts The Hong Kong Polytechnic University The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology The Open University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (Listed in alphabetical order)

PolyU’s quality operation of its sub-degree programmes commended in the Quality Assurance Council (QAC) Audit Report

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) welcomes the audit findings of the Quality Assurance Council (QAC) under the University Grants Committee (UGC). The report confirms the University's sound governance, management and quality assurance (QA) of its sub-degree programmes, which are internationally benchmarked. The Audit Panel concludes that PolyU's sub-degree provision reflects its strategic priorities and mission, whether within the University proper or its College of Professional and Continuing Education. The University also consistently adheres to its QA policies and procedures in operating its sub-degree programmes. The current practices in all dimensions attest to the excellence in operation of the University. PolyU Interim President, Professor Philip C. H. CHAN, said, "PolyU is gratified by the many commendations in the report. We thank the QAC Audit Panel for going through a rigorous review process on our sub-degree programmes and offering us valuable recommendations. We are pleased to take on board these recommendations to scale new heights in academic standards and quality as we manage our curriculum and nurture our students." The Panel found PolyU's personal and career development services for students are "comprehensive" and can "help students to adopt a positive attitude towards their study and careers, broaden their horizons and develop as whole persons." Sub-degree programmes students are well supported by high-quality physical learning and e-learning environments which enrich their academic experience. Students are appreciative of their programmes' vocational relevance, the networking opportunities afforded, and skills development that will help them to progress within their chosen professions. The report also recognises PolyU's QA framework as a systematic one that enables the standard and quality of its sub-degree programmes to be set and maintained. PolyU also demonstrates its effectiveness in implementing strategic approach to curriculum design, programme development and approval. The University has clear guidelines and regulations for programme planning, validation and management that align its outcome-based approach. There is also a robust process of evidence-based improvement in learning and teaching through Programme Learning Outcomes Assessment Plans. PolyU is proactive in its support for teaching staff. The University through its Educational Development Centre (EDC), provides professional development opportunities for all academic staff.  EDC courses cover a wide range of e-learning and virtual tutorials as well as a set of workshops on integrative curriculum design. "As a university committed to whole-person development, we are glad to hear that our students are 'active-on and appreciative of'' the co-curricular and extra-curricular opportunities provided to them and found these activities wide-ranging, significant and enriching. We are also pleased to see confirmations from the Panel that our support for teaching staff are 'proactive' and 'fit-for-purpose', while our academic staff 'appreciative of the pedagogical support and development' and found it helpful and valuable," added Professor CHAN. PolyU is committed to achieving excellence in education provision through advancing and transferring knowledge, conducting impactful researches and offering the best holistic development to its students. PolyU has more than 160 postgraduate, undergraduate and sub-degree programmes and has a student population of over 28,000 students. PolyU currently offers three types of sub-degree programme: Higher Diploma (HD), Associate Degree (AD) and Continuing Education (CE). Established under PolyU in 2001, the Hong Kong Community College (HKCC) is a self-financed institution offering mainly sub-degree programmes, helping over 25,000 graduates to articulate into Bachelor's degree programmes since inception.   *****END****

PolyU signs a collaborative agreement with top textile university in Southern China to promote green and healthy textiles

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) today announced the signing of a collaborative framework agreement with Wuyi University (WYU). The two universities will join hands for research on the development of green and healthy textile materials over a span of three years.  The collaboration marks an important milestone of joint R&D effort between Hong Kong and Jiangmen – two major cities in the Greater Bay Area. As one of the world's largest textile and garment production and consumption regions, the Mainland's growing demand for "green and healthy" textile has created a huge market potential for antibacterial and mildew resistant textiles.  The collaboration aims to facilitate the experts from the two universities to innovate dyeing and finishing technologies for fabrics so as to address the health and environmental concerns associated with man-made fibers and their chemical processes. As textiles are good substrates for exponential bacterial growth and microbial proliferation under appropriate moisture, nutrients, and temperature conditions, the research will also study the ingredients and methodologies to enhance the antibacterial, antimicrobial and antifungal performances in textiles. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Ir Prof. Alex WAI, Vice President (Research Development) of PolyU, said "PolyU has proven records in translating impactful research results into applicable technologies and solutions to benefit the society and humankind. Leveraging our research strengths in textile technology for smart materials, textile-based wearable electronics and biomedical textiles, we believe the collaboration will bring further success in developing next generation "green and healthy" fabrics. We are very pleased to collaborate with universities in the Greater Bay Area such as WYU. Such cooperation platforms will accelerate innovation, new technology development and commercial applications of R&D in the region." Prof. ZHANG Kun, Party Committee Secretary of WYU, thanked PolyU for kick-starting the collaboration in textile research. He hoped this is just the beginning and the cooperation could be extended to other disciplines between the two universities. The signing ceremony was attended by Ir Prof. Alex WAI, Vice President (Research Development); Prof. K.Y. WONG, Associate Vice President (Research Support); and Prof. John H. XIN, Chair Prof. of Textile Chemistry and Lee Family Professor in Fashion and Textiles from PolyU; as well as Prof. ZHANG Kun, Party Committee Secretary; Mr NG Wing Chi, Council Chairman; and Professor YU Hui, Dean of School of Textile Materials and Engineering from WYU.   *****END****

PolyU develops Highly Flexible High-energy Textile Lithium Battery to cope with surging demand for Wearable Electronics

Researchers at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have developed a highly flexible, high-energy Textile Lithium Battery that offers more stable, durable and safe energy supply for wearable electronics with a myriad of applications, such as in healthcare monitoring, intelligent textiles, smartphones, Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking and Internet of Things (IoT). PolyU’s novel lightweight Textile Lithium Battery demonstrates high energy density of more than 450 Wh/L, and excellent flexibility — with a bending radius of less than 1mm, and foldability of over 1,000 cycles with marginal capacity degradation. In comparison, the existing bendable lithium battery can only reach a bending radius of about 25 mm, and with much lower performance of less than 200 Wh/L. The Textile Lithium Battery, of less than 0.5 mm thick, also possesses fast charging/discharging capability, and long cycle life comparable with conventional lithium batteries. [Please refer to the Annex for detailed comparison of performance between PolyU’s Textile Lithium Battery and other batteries] The innovation developed by the research team of PolyU’s Institute of Textiles and Clothing (ITC) has snatched three prizes at the 47th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva held in April this year, namely a Gold Medal and two Special Merit Awards. Professor ZHENG Zijian, who leads the ITC research team, said, “Wearable technology has been named as the next global big market opportunity after smartphones. Global market revenues for wearable devices are forecasted to grow by leaps and bounds, of over 20% annually, to reach US$100 billion by 2024. [1] As all wearable electronics will require wearable energy supply, our novel technology in fabricating Textile Lithium Battery offers promising solution to a wide array of next-generation applications, ranging from healthcare, infotainment, sports, aerospace, fashion, IoT to any sensing or tracking uses that may even exceed our imagination of today.” Lithium battery is currently the dominant rechargeable battery in the market due to its relatively high energy density and long cycle life. As conventional bulky heavy lithium battery is hard for use in wearable devices, over the past decade, scientists have put in efforts in developing bendable lithium battery, often by using metal foils as current collectors. However, it is only until the emergence of PolyU’s Textile Lithium Battery that the bottlenecks over energy density, flexibility, mechanical robustness and cycling stability being able to be addressed. Applying PolyU’s patented novel technology of Polymer-Assisted Metal Deposition (PAMD), highly conductive metal, copper (Cu) and nickel (Ni) are uniformly and conformally deposited onto pre-treated fabrics. Such fabricated metallic fabrics, featuring low sheet resistance [2] and large surface area [3], serve as current collectors in battery. After adding active materials to act as cathode and anode, the metallic fabrics, together with separator and electrolyte, are assembled into the Textile Lithium Battery. Laboratory tests conducted by the ITC team have proven the extremely high mechanical stability, durability and safety of the Textile Lithium Battery under deformation. When the battery is repeatedly folded in half, twisted at different angles or freely crumpled, its voltage window remained unchanged. Bending test showed that the battery can be bent over 1,000 times with marginal capacity degradation. Safety tests conducted by continuous hammering, trimming with scissors and penetrating with nail proved the battery can stably provide power output for the electronic components with no risk of catching fire or burst. [ Note: The findings are published in Nature Communications, a world's leading multidisciplinary scientific journal:- Chang et al. Flexible and stable high-energy lithium-sulfur full batteries with only 100% oversized lithium. Nature Communications, 2018, 9(1): 4480. Video on PolyU's Textile Lithium Battery:- https://youtu.be/oGRW9SKmay8 ]   ---- End ----- [1] IDTechEx. ‘Wearable Technology 2018-2028: Markets, Players, Forecasts’. Retrieved 8 May 2019 from https://www.idtechex.com/research/reports/wearable-technology-2018-2028-markets-players-forecasts-000606.asp?setlang=en [2] Sheet resistance is an important property of conductive materials, quantifying the ability for transporting charges of the materials. The lower the sheet resistance, the faster is the transportation. [3] In general, the larger the surface areas for loading anode and cathode materials, the greater stability, higher charge/discharge speed and better flexibility is the battery. Applying the PolyU patented PAMD technology to control the deposition time, the thickness and sheet resistance of the metallic yarns can be easily controlled. By weaving the metallic yarns into a 3D metal fabric, its surface areas for loading the active materials, in comparison of a 2D metal foil sheet of the same size, is much enhanced.

PolyU develops a high-efficiency, high-quality ultra-precision polishing technology for different kinds of freeform surfaces

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) developed a novel curvature-adaptive multi-jet polishing (MJP) technology for different kinds of freeform surfaces, i.e. surfaces without symmetry axis, which are widely used in high end products such as compound lenses in 3D imaging, Head-up display (HUD) lenses used in automotive, optical components for augmented reality and virtual reality headsets, etc. Time efficiency and surface quality improvement are the main goals of the technology research. This technology can meet the stringent requirements for ultra-precision and high efficiency in polishing to reduce the surface roughness in high-value-added products, such as artificial joints, turbine blades of aeroplanes and other components with complex geometric shapes. PolyU’s technological breakthrough in high quality polishing will add great value to the high-end precision equipment manufacturing in the Greater Bay Area. The cutting-edge technology is developed based on the current Fluid Jet Polishing (FJP), an ultra-precision non-contact polishing technology that pumps the pre-mixed slurry, i.e. abrasive particles and water, through an adjustable nozzle directly towards a target surface at appropriate speed to polish the surface of the freeform products to the desired finish. PolyU’s research team customised multi-jet nozzles and developed a computerised system to automate the process and to control the fluid pressure and processing time of each jet according to the shape, variation of curvature and surface polishing requirements of a workpiece. The technology can thus be applied to most of the freeform products, including products with various complex curved designs and inner surface finishing of pipe-shaped products. Similar to FJP, MJP is also of high machining accuracy, suitable for polishing complex surfaces, and will not cause tool wear and temperature increase of the workpiece during polishing. MJP, however, has additional advantages in ultra-precision polishing. It can overcome the limitations of FJP to improve the material removal rate, and the polishing efficiency particularly for large-scale surfaces, lens array surfaces and inner surfaces polishing. The higher efficiency of MJP compared with that of FJP tool has been validated through an experiment. In the experiment, the FJP polishing procedure on a 4x4 lens units array took about 320 minutes as the lens in the array was polished one after another and each unit requires 20 minutes. However, if a MJP tool is used, it only takes 20 minutes to polish all the lens because they were polished simultaneously. In this case, the processing time for using the MJP tool has been significantly improved by about 16 times as compared to FJP. Leading this innovative project, Ir Professor Benny CHEUNG, Head of State Key Laboratory of Ultra-precision Machining Technology, PolyU, said, “Surface finishing especially for freeform surfaces can be expensive, time consuming, labor intensive, and error prone. FJP has its limitation in efficiency, so it has only been used in small size surfaces. MJP can be applicable to various industrial fields, such as high-precision optical components and moulds, aerospace components, automotive systems, semi-conductor plants, as well as biomedical engineering industries. The beauty of MJP solution includes high efficiency and lower cost without compromising on the polishing quality. We believe the technology could bring substantial benefits to the advanced manufacturing industries.” In terms of cost-saving, it will usually cost several millions (HK$) to purchase a FJP machine. However, the design and production cost of a MJP machine innovated by PolyU will only be at about two-third of the cost for the commercialized FJP machine. Moreover, the MJP system can be adapted and integrated into the existing polishing machines or robotic arms, which will further cut down the set-up cost. The novel technology has recently won a Silver Medal as well as two Special Merit Awards at the 47th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, 2019. The research team plans to further enhance the technology by developing apparatus fit for plugging in 3-dimensional (3D) printers for enhancing the efficiency of post-process finishing of 3D-printed complex components. Note: Video on “Ultra-precision polishing technology”   *****END**** About The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) While boasting a proud history of 80 years, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) is a vibrant and aspiring university with a forward-looking vision and mission. Committed to building a talent pipeline and research strength for advancing the development of Hong Kong, the Nation and the world, PolyU provides the best holistic education to nurture future-ready global citizens and socially responsible leaders; conducts high-impact interdisciplinary research and proactively transfers knowledge to create value and build impact. We embrace internationalisation and engage the Nation for education and research through strategic partnerships and collaborations. With “Opening Minds. Shaping the Future” as our brand promise, the University is currently offering more than 160 taught programmes via six faculties and two schools, engaging in 3,200 exciting research projects and partnering with over 660 institutions overseas and in mainland China on a wide variety of initiatives. We have over 400,000 alumni around the globe and 28,000 students. PolyU website: www.polyu.edu.hk