News

CEE Three Minute Thesis Competition

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering held its inaugural Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition Final on 15 May 2023. Five finalists outshining from the Semifinal gave stunning presentations about their theses in just three minutes or less.   The 3MT® was developed by The University of Queensland, Australia in 2008 to celebrate the discoveries made by RPg students and encourage them to develop the skills to communicate the importance of their research to the broader community. 3MT® competitions are now held in over 900 universities across more than 85 countries worldwide. This year, a total of 19 CEE RPg students participated in the 1st CEE 3MT® competitions. Their excellent performances will inspire more newcomers in the future.   Congratulations to all the winners of the CEE 3MT® Competition 2023: Name Presentation Title Chief Supervisor Award LI Danning How can we reclaim and repurpose rubberized asphalt pavement? Dr Zhen Leng Champion XU Zibo Achieving carbon neutrality by biochar production and its soil application Prof. Dan Tsang First Runner-up WANG Manli TULINK: Transient Utilization for Leak Identification in pipe Networks Dr Huan-Feng Duan Second Runner-up ZHOU Beining Summertime ozone pollution over the Pearl River Delta region: A study on physical and chemical processes Prof. Hai Guo People’s Choice For the full version of the competition, please refer to:  https://youtu.be/GtIs03k-Z2A

CEE PhD Student’s Paper Awarded Best Paper Award in Carbon Research

Congratulations to Dr Zibo Xu, CEE PhD student supervised by Prof. Dan Tsang, whose paper titled “Redox-induced Transformation of Potentially Toxic Elements with Organic Carbon in Soil”, has been judged to be one of the Excellent papers published in 2022 in Carbon Research. The journal Carbon Research is an international multidisciplinary platform for communicating advances in fundamental and applied research on natural and engineered carbonaceous materials that are associated with ecological and environmental functions, energy generation, and global change.

Outstanding Alumni Award of PolyU CEE 2023

The Outstanding Alumni Award of PolyU CEE aims to honour outstanding CEE graduates who have made distinctive contributions to the alma mater and community and have attained exceptional professional, entrepreneurial, scholarly or community service achievements in their professions. We are proud to announce that Ms Grace Kwok, Chairman and Executive Director of AEC Group and Chief Sustainability Strategist of AEC Capital Ltd, is the recipient of Outstanding Alumni Award in Professional Achievement of PolyU CEE, while Mr Kenny Lok, Co-founder and Managing Director of EnviPro, is the recipient of Outstanding Young Alumni Award in Entrepreneurial Achievement of PolyU CEE.   Ms Grace Kwok, graduated with BEng (Hons) Environmental Engineering in 1998, is the Chairman and Executive Director of AEC Group and Chief Sustainability Strategist of AEC Capital Ltd. She has more than 23 years’ experiences in sustainable design and green building projects in Hong Kong and across Asia-Pacific. With the vision of shaping a sustainable future for all, Ms Kwok actively works with different Government appointed committees and the building and construction sector to build climate resilience and accelerate net-zero transition. She also keeps close connection with CEE by taking up advisory role of the Department to facilitate academic and industry partnership. Ms Kwok’s strong leadership and dedication to her career in sustainability and green building has made herself and her team earn different international recognitions, including  Sustainability Leader of the Year 2021 presented by Hong Kong Management Association and Women in Sustainability Leadership Award 2022, as well as obtaining the Honorable Mention under the Hong Kong Corporate Governance Excellence Awards 2020 etc.   Mr Kenny Lok, graduated with BSc (Hons) Environment & Sustainable Development in 2012 and MSc Environmental Management and Engineering in 2014, is the Co-founder and Managing Director of EnviPro Technologies Co. Ltd. He has more than 10 years’ experience in the environmental and energy sector, contributing to consultancy projects related to air, acoustic, odour and health impact assessment in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. Mr Lok actively participated in various professional bodies to promote sustainability and provide professional environmental advice aiming to positively transform the community and to shape a sustainable future. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Ms Grace Kwok and Mr Kenny Lok on receiving the Outstanding Alumni Award of PolyU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering!

New joiner - Dr Xi Jiang

Dr Xi Jiang obtained his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Civil Engineering (Pavement Engineering) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, USA, and a Doctor of Engineering degree in Civil Engineering (Geotechnical and Underground Engineering) at Tongji University, Shanghai, China. Prior to joining PolyU as a Research Assistant Professor, Dr Jiang worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at PolyU. Dr Jiang's research interests primarily revolve around geotechnical transportation engineering, with a special focus on the development of resilient infrastructure, such as pavements and tunnels. In addition, he is passionate about exploring cleaner construction materials to foster sustainability in the industry.   Dr Jiang has joined us on 29 May 2023.

Dr Qi Zhao’s PhD Students Wu Huanyu and Zou Yuan Presented in PAIR Conference 2023

Mr Wu Huanyu and Mr Zou Yuan, CEE PhD students supervised by Dr Qi Zhao, presented their research at PAIR Conference 2023 held from 8 – 11 May 2023 at PolyU. Congratulations to Mr Wu Huanyu, whose poster titled “Micro-CT Characterization of Lunar Regolith Using Machine Learning – Based Segmentation”, was awarded the Best Poster Presentation Award in the Deep Space Explorations Session.

Dr Tony Sze being Invited to Speak on RTHK Radio Programme

There were several fatal accidents involving old taxi drivers in recent years which arouse much debate on the tightening of license renewal requirements for older drivers in Hong Kong. Together with representatives from the transport industry and Legislative Council, Dr Tony Sze, Associate Professor of CEE, was invited by RTHK Radio 3’s Backchat to discuss the recent Government’s initiative to lower the age from 70 to 65 for mandatory annual health checks of professional drivers on 17 May 2023 (Wed). Dr Sze highlighted the relationship between long working hour, driving fatigue, and accident of professional drivers, and suggested possible ways to improve road safety. More details regarding the programme can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/BackchatRTHKRadio3/posts/pfbid025hk4WWzMkSdWNy8RhSw7vL2YssEkdkVetbwg24uQwLnZuADgWXEmYehp4MRg1dSCl https://www.rthk.hk/radio/radio3/programme/backchat/episode/882912?fbclid=IwAR0w_A_xVY3DtVy90PDoJboUH8B1hWNuGOwHKd6jsun5xaUQoyHUjD5b9c8

PolyU JUPAS Consultation Day 2023

PolyU JUPAS Consultation Day 2023 was successfully held on 20 May 2023. Dr Barbara W.Y. Siu, Scheme Leader of BEng(Hons) Scheme in Civil Engineering and Sustainable Development [JS3120], introduced the programme admission information and career prospects of the industry during the information seminar, which attracted more than 50 participants. Apart from the info seminar, laboratory tour to Noise and Safety Lab was arranged to the participants to allow them to know more about the facilities of CEE. The programme ended with a seminar introducing structural engineering and bridges, during which the basic knowledge and fun facts of the structural engineering field, bridge design and construction concepts were introduced.

CEE Members being Awarded in International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva 2023

The 48th International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva was held on 26 – 30 April 2023 in Switzerland. Our CEE members have won 5 awards including 1 Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury Special Prize, 1 Silver Medal and  3 Bronze Medals. Congratulations to the following CEE members whose projects were being awarded in the Geneva Inventions Expo.   Project Principal Investigator / Co-investigator Award Eco-Tiles for Enhancing Marine Biodiversity Prof. Chi Sun Poon Head of CEE Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury Special Prize BioCharttery: A Climate-smart and Carbon-negative Growing Material Prof. Dan Tsang Professor Dr Grace Mingjing He PhD graduate supervised by Prof. Dan Tsang Silver Medal Modular Rail Particle Damper for Noise and Vibration Reduction in Railways Prof. Yi-Qing Ni Chair Professor Director of CNERC-Rail Dr Wai-kei Ao Research Assistant Professor Bronze Medal Food Waste-derived 3D Printing Material Prof. Dan Tsang Professor Bronze Medal Novel Smart Precast Porous Road System Against Flooding Prof. Yuhong Wang Professor Bronze Medal  

HKIE LTD Annual Symposium 2023 – The Future of Transport and Logistics in Hong Kong

The 2023 Annual Symposium of Logistics & Transportation Division (LTD) of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE), co-organized by Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), was successfully held on 6 May 2023 (Saturday) at PolyU. The theme of this symposium is “The Future of Transport and Logistics in Hong Kong”.   The symposium was graced by the keynote speaker, Ir Sai-hung Lam, GBS, JP (Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Transport and Logistics Bureau of HKSAR Government), along with four plenary speakers - Mr Gary Leung (Assistant Director (Strategic Planning), The Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd.), Mr Paul Loo (Chief Operating Officer, Lalamove), Ms Irene Lau (Assistant General Manager (Aviation Logistics), Airport Authority Hong Kong) and Ms Suki Cheung (President, Hong Kong E-Commerce Logistics Association).   The symposium provided a platform for insightful knowledge and technology exchanges on transport and logistics development for our society. The symposium was a great success with over 100 participants. All participants enjoyed the symposium and appreciated the speakers’ sharing.   Left photo (From left to right) : Mr Paul Loo (Lalamove), Ms Suki Cheung (Hong Kong E-Commerce Logistics Association), Ir Prof. William Lam (Emeritus Professor of CEE), Ir Prof. Xiangdong Li (Chair Professor and Dean), Ir Sai-hung Lam, GBS, JP (Transport and Logistics Bureau), Ir Charles So (HKIE LTD), Ir Dr Irene Poon (HKIE LTD), Ir Patrick Ho (Transport Department), Mr Gary Leung (The Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd.), and Ms Irene Lau (Airport Authority Hong Kong)

CEE Entry Scholarships for Outstanding HKDSE Students

The brand new CEE Entry Scholarships for Outstanding HKDSE Students will be effective from 2023/24 intake! The one-off scholarship will be granted to HKDSE admittee(s) with outstanding academic results and financial needs. The “best 5” HKDSE subjects will be considered. For more details, please refer to https://bit.ly/polyuceescholarship.