A dialogue with Prof. Wang Shengwei, Director of Research Institute for Smart Energy

Prof. Wang, thank you very much for joining us today. The set-up of RISE marks PolyU’s new approach to translational research on energy-related problems. To begin, would you please share with us what has driven the establishment of RISE? What are some of the Institute’s research interests?

Energy is one of the most pressing global problems that humanity is facing today. Sustainable energy solutions are the fundamental means to support national and global carbon-neutral policies. The depletion of fossil fuels and the need for energy resilience have driven scientists and engineers worldwide to take on these challenges and look for solutions to energy-related issues. They are putting more efforts into new research areas, such as efficient conversion and harvesting of renewable energies, smart energy efficiency on the demand side, and effective balancing of the mismatch between power supply and demand patterns.

RISE was established at PolyU in May 2020 as an interdisciplinary research platform for developing innovative energy technologies along with sustainable and carbon-neutral solutions. We envision becoming a leading institute in the advance and transfer of knowledge on smart and sustainable energy, for the benefit of Hong Kong, the nation and the world. To date, we have over 55 faculty members from 12 departments and associated research laboratories and equipment, conducting impactful studies and nurturing PolyU’s interdisciplinary research culture.

Currently, our works fall into five research focus areas: (1) District Energy Systems and Smart Grid; (2) Smart Buildings and Smart Energy Systems; (3) Advanced Energy Storage Technologies; (4) Advanced and Renewable Energy Conversion Technologies; and (5) Advanced Energy Materials. These areas were chosen to ensure that our research scope covers both energy system technologies and energy enabling technologies, thereby serving the energy systems/services industries and energy product manufacturing industries, respectively.

It has been over two years since the Institute’s establishment. Would you please describe the current R&D progress at RISE?

RISE’s interdisciplinary research platform has matured significantly over the past two years, attaining some major milestones which have laid the cornerstone for the Institute’s long-term development. We have generated an increasing number of affiliated energy-related publications, from 50 publications in June 2020 to 220 publications at the present time. These publications not only inject innovation into and enrich academic resources in energy-related fields, but also build a good reputation for RISE and PolyU. According to the Stanford University Report 2022, a total of 28 RISE members are recognised among the top 2% of scientists in the world. Moreover, four RISE members have been recognised on Clarivate Analytics’ list of highly cited researchers for 2021 and 2020.

Would you please share with us some of your flagship projects involving interdisciplinary collaboration?

Our members have been pursing worthwhile research which has attracted funding from external bodies. We have received 14 external large grants from the Research Grants Council (RGC), the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF), and the Green Tech Fund (GTF), among others, with total funding of more than HK$78M. These large projects cover various energy-related areas and necessitate cross-institutional and sectoral collaboration. 

For example, in Smart Data-driven Building Management Framework for Environmental and Sustainability Applications (supported by the ITF), Prof. Xiao Fu, Associate Director of RISE, Associate Dean of Faculty of Construction and Environment, and Professor in the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering, works with the Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre Limited as well as supporting partners in the government, local universities and companies. The team is integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and artificial reality (AR) to develop a framework for building energy efficiency. They also aim to build management technologies including AI-empowered data-driven optimisation and predictive maintenance strategies as well as an AR-enabled informative and interactive human-equipment-information interface.

In Advanced Fourier-transform Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectrometer for Molecular and Nano Functional Materials Research (supported by the RGC), Prof. Raymond Wong Wai-yeung, Associate Director of RISE, Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, and Chair Professor of Chemical Technology, brings RISE together with other three local universities to investigate the use of an analytical technique for a deeper fundamental understanding of functional materials.

In Development of Next-generation Key Technologies for Smart Buildings (supported by the RGC’s Collaborative Research Fund), I am working with colleagues in the Department of Computing at PolyU and The City University of Hong Kong to develop fundamental methodologies and essential technologies for next-generation building automation systems for smart buildings.

“Our large projects essentially reflect the interdisciplinary nature of RISE work … All of these projects involve scholars and experts from various departments and organisations in work which cannot be achieved alone. I find these collaboration experiences enjoyable and meaningful. It is a ‘win-win’ solution.”

Our large projects essentially reflect the interdisciplinary nature of RISE work. In terms of our work on “District Energy Systems and Smart Grid” and “Smart Buildings and Smart Energy Systems”, we have integrated the thermal energy system, power system, and information technology. In terms of our research on “Advanced Energy Storage Technologies” and “Advanced and Renewable Energy Conversion Technologies”, we have applied materials science, conversion technology and energy storage technology. All of these projects involve scholars and experts from various departments and organisations in work which cannot be achieved alone. I find these collaboration experiences enjoyable and meaningful. It is a “win-win” solution. Through our research, not only will the final outputs address energy conservation, but also the process of development will elevate other sectors such as the information and communication technology industry.

A project you led was awarded the Team Award in Knowledge Transfer (Industry) in The President’s Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Knowledge Transfer 2021 at PolyU. What is the project about?

Under the umbrellas of RISE, I am leading a research team of more than 30 members from the Building Energy and Automation Research Laboratory, which includes three other core members from the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering, Prof. Xiao Fu, Dr Li Hangxin and Dr Shan Kui, on a project titled Transfer and Implementation of Smart Technologies for Building Life-cycle Optimisation and Diagnosis. The project aims to develop and apply advanced technologies in the categories of system optimisation, system control optimisation, and energy diagnosis and commissioning, for smart, energy-efficient and energy-flexible buildings with a view to carbon neutrality. Our targets involve various kinds of non-residential buildings and energy systems. These technologies have been implemented successfully in a large number of energy optimisation projects for both new and existing buildings in Hong Kong with energy savings ranging from 15% to 40% and maximum annual energy saving of over 10M kWh per individual building. The technologies have attracted over HK$30M in funding from industry in support of our further research and technology development.

What kinds of challenges have you faced during the project? How have they been tackled?

A core challenge is that problems of both research and technology development and application require multidisciplinary knowledge and experience in areas such as energy systems, control, IT and data sciences and smart power grid. For this project, we have covered the domains of energy systems (e.g., air-conditioning systems) and building automation systems and have used various fundamental technologies including control technology, big data analytics, uncertainty analysis, information technology and the internet of things (IoT). With our network and partnerships successfully built over the last twenty years, we have been able to solicit support and expertise from academia and industry for enjoyable interdisciplinary collaboration in different forms and at different levels.

In recent years, we have seen increasing efforts by the Hong Kong government to address environmental and energy conservation in its policy-making. For example, Hong Kong’s Climate Action Plan 2050 has defined four decarbonisation strategies, two of which are “net-zero electricity generation” and “energy saving and green buildings”. What are your views of these developments?

“By ‘smart’, not only are we implying that the energy problems are more difficult, but also that there is a need for ‘smarter solutions’—solutions which involve advanced technologies and are convenient and accessible for use.”

I think it represents a significant change to the energy sector. I have been working in the field for almost 30 years. In the first 20 years, energy conservation and saving did not receive much attention and interest from the government or private sector. There was rigorous building energy research back then, and some of the technologies and outputs available at that time were of high quality. However, they were neglected and appeared redundant in society. The last 15 years, particularly the last 10 years have been very much different, as the public and private sector have been very serious about energy conservation.

The establishment of RISE symbolises the efforts of PolyU and the larger society to realise energy conservation and carbon neutrality. Smart energy research differs slightly from the energy research we did in the past. By “smart”, not only are we implying that the energy problems are more difficult, but also that there is a need for “smarter solutions”—solutions which involve advanced technologies and are convenient and accessible for use.

What are the reasons for the shift in attitude towards energy conservation?

A number of social and economic factors may have driven such an attitudinal change. First, the emergence and prevalence of wireless networks and communication are associated with the increased number and use of equipment like sensors, devices and nodes, thus resulting in enormous growth in energy consumption. This has created concerns over financial costs, especially since making a profit nowadays has become more difficult than in the past. Starting and running a business used to be easier back then, so “money saving” did not receive much attention from business owners and operators. As the business environment has become harsher, cost cutting has become one of their priorities. This then brings us to the second reason for the shift: the emergence of energy technology companies and enterprises. In the market, while there are companies trying to maximise profits by cutting costs related to energy consumption, “energy saving” has become a new area of business. In other words, there are more companies with a profitable business of helping clients use less energy. Third, there are more local, regional and international campaigns and movements raising public awareness over energy conservation. Thus, the technological, market and social forces have together driven an ideological change.

You are one of the top 2% of scientists in the Stanford University Report 2022, ranked 192nd among 321,394 scientists in the field of energy. Since joining PolyU in 1993, you have obtained over 50 research grants, authored and co-authored four books, published over 450 journals and papers, and conducted energy optimisation projects which brought energy savings of 15-40% for the building industry.

Looking back on your 30-year career, how did you become interested in this specialty? How has your interest in the field changed over the years?

“New outputs do not merely refer to generating more papers and technologies, but solutions that respond to the needs in society, especially smart energy and carbon-neutral solutions which benefit our industrial partners.”

Well, it started by chance, and I find this journey very enjoyable. There are always new things in this discipline. By new things, I mean new problems to solve, new technologies, new tools, new outputs, and new blood in my team and new partners for the team. This makes the subject very interesting and drives me to dig deeper and explore more, non-stop. New outputs do not merely refer to generating more papers and technologies, but solutions that respond to the needs in society, especially smart energy and carbon-neutral solutions which benefit our industrial partners. It is not only about intellectual pursuit, but also something that adds value and meaning to the external world. In regard to new blood, every year there are new people joining the research team and departments. As we work together, the collaboration sparks innovation and joy. Of course, the teaching and mentoring aspect is also something that gives me great satisfaction. When I started my career, the first few years were very challenging. I would say that the many tasks that filled those years were more like something I had to do and survive. The next 5–10 years became more enjoyable. Finally, the last 20 years till now have been a period when I can fully immerse myself in my career.

Have there been any special challenges throughout your professional career, such as encountering a bottleneck in coming up with new ideas and projects? Have there been any unforgettable moments along the journey?

I think the idea that “there are constantly new things in the building and construction sector” has both negatives and positives. On the negative side, it keeps you busy since there are always new things to do. On the positive side, it gives you challenges. By challenges, I refer to those which can be managed. If the challenges are beyond your scope to manage, then it can be stressful and very frustrating. I believe what we are facing are the manageable challenges in the field which have driven me to work in the sector for such a long period.

As I have shared, there has been a transformation in the public impression of energy research. When I came to PolyU in early 1990s, we already started to do very good research. Nevertheless, it is only in the last 10-15 years that the government and industry have started to emphasise energy research. Now, they are very serious about this. Seeing this change on the levels of society, sector and industry encourages my continuous service in the sector. Another special moment would be my contribution to cleanroom air-conditioning systems during the pandemic. I worked with the government to improve ventilation in isolation units in hospitals and dining and catering premises. These experiences gave me a deep sense of the significance of the building services industry to the normal operation of a well-functioning society.

Do you have any advice for your students and young persons who aspire to professional careers in the energy sector and the building and construction industry?

“It will change your attitude towards your work from ‘have to do it’ to ‘enjoy doing it’ and give you much happiness in life.”

I always share with my research students and fellows that as professionals, we should continually find ways to enjoy work. This is particularly important if you have decided to conduct research for your long-term career. It is important to change your attitude towards your work from “have to do it” to “enjoy doing it” and give you much happiness in life. Therefore, my first piece of advice is to make their work less boring. For example, they can explore how their research might give rise to new outputs or utilise new technologies available in the sector. Second, it is important to link the research to application so that the work is original, meaningful and impactful. Energy research should not only focus on scientific breakthroughs, but should also generate applicable technologies and solutions that are needed by the larger society. This brings us to the third piece of advice: to build partnerships and networks with the industry. It is very easy for research students to narrow their interests to only conducting research inside laboratories while losing sight of the developments outside. In the past 20 years, we have conducted many different projects and programmes in which we involved students. The combination of rich industrial exposure and academic excellence give them a competitive edge in the job market. Many of my students are now enjoying rosy prospects in academic institutions and companies.

Finally, it is essential that they strike a proper balance between work and life while enjoying work. With the teaching, management, research and external duties of a professional, the work can be very busy, and such busyness may cause one to stop pursuing a long-term professional career. Taking myself as an example, every week, my boys (fellows) and I will play a ball game for two hours. Sometimes there might be ad-hoc duties which could have prevented me from taking part, but I prioritise it over work. So, there is a need to say “no” to these ad-hoc tasks. The two-hour match is my weekly habit. It is like a platform on which I get to communicate and exchange thoughts with young persons in an informal setting. It strengthens our relational bonds, which can also benefit our office work. The ball game is also a form of physical exercise, which is good for our minds and bodies. This is especially important for us in learning how to maintain our long-term work.