108th Departmental Advisory Committee Meeting

The 108th Departmental Advisory Committee (DAC) meeting was held online on 18 March 2022, under the chairmanship of Ir Dr Angus HW Cheung, Chief Executive Officer of Aerovision Technology Limited. We were grateful to have new committee members joining us. They were: Dr Vanessa Au (Principal Environmental Protection Officer (Regional West), Environmental Protection Department, HKSAR Prof. Chen Guohua (Chair Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, PolyU) Miss Chan Hoi Yi (Full-time BEng Student, Department of Mechanical Engineering, PolyU) Miss Jiang Qian (Full-time PhD Student, Department of Mechanical Engineering, PolyU) The DAC is comprised of 2 ex-officio members (i.e., the Faculty Dean and Department Head), 9 local and overseas members from the academia, industry and professionals as well as 3 internal members and 2 student representatives from the Department. The meeting kicked off with the Head Prof. Su Zhongqing’s report on the latest updates of the Department. Following up on the 107th DAC meeting, various measures and actions have been taken. Responses to the last DAC advice were summarized in this meeting. Since the last DAC, the Department has organized a number of key events, received remarkable research achievements, surged in world rankings by ME subject. The growth and development in various aspects were shared in the meeting. On the other hand, we reviewed the student intake, graduate employment, budget and staffing. It was a very fruitful meeting as members, with their wide range of expertise, had provided valuable advice and constructive suggestions to the Department for future development in teaching and learning, research and consultancy, and strategic plans.

Outstanding Alumni Award of PolyU Department of Mechanical Engineering 2022

The Department of Mechanical Engineering is pleased to announce that three distinguished graduates are awarded the “Outstanding Alumni Award of PolyU Department of Mechanical Engineering 2022” in recognition of their professional/entrepreneurial achievements and significant contributions to the Department, PolyU and the wider community. Their remarkable achievements and valuable contributions have earned them well-deserved honour and respectful recognition. Congratulations to the following awardees!

ME Young Scholar secures Environment and Conservation Fund to conduct research on smart robot

Dr Henry Chu Kar Hang, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering (ME), has secured a fund from the Environment and Conservation Fund (ECF) for the research project “GPS-assisted Smart Robot with Self-exploration Ability for Litter Pick-up and Sorting on Curved Hillsides”. Robots have been serving us in many sectors to improve the quality of our lives. Nevertheless, majority of commercial robots mainly focus on applications for indoor use with large market sizes, opening a gap in some less explored areas. In this project, Dr Chu and his research team will develop a first-of-a-kind litter picking robot and its supporting system to work alongside with cleaning workers to reduce their workload and the risk of injury, while preserving the natural scenery and environment in Hong Kong.  The Environment and Conservation Fund (ECF) was set up by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to provide funding support for educational, research and other projects and activities in relation to environmental and conservation matters. Every year, more than 170 applications are received, with only 25% of them are supported.

ME Young Scholar secures Innovation and Technology Fund to conduct research on autonomous driving

Dr Sun Yuxiang, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering (ME), has been awarded a HK$899,300 Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) grant by the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) for a research project entitled "A Study on RGB-Thermal Adaptive Fusion-based Semantic Understanding of Complex Day-and-Night Environments for Autonomous Driving". ITC also provides additional full financial support for this project for up to 4 research talents including research assistants (up to HK$21,000 per month) and postdoctoral research fellows (up to HK$32,000 per month). Semantic understanding of traffic environments is important to ensure safe driving of autonomous vehicles. It can tell a self-driving car which pixels correspond to free spaces or obstacles in the pictures taken by an on-vehicle visual camera, so that the car can effectively avoid obstacles and safely navigate. However, the current semantic understanding solutions usually use RGB visible-light cameras. When the ambient light is insufficient at night, or there are glares caused by on-coming headlight, the existing solutions are difficult to produce satisfactory results. To address this problem, this project proposes to design a solution based on adaptive fusion of RGB and thermal images, so that robust semantic understanding could be achieved in complex day-and-night environments. It is very encouraging to see young scholar from our department to be funded by important funding of ITC to conduct research in cutting-edge technologies.

The 7th ME Research Presentation Competition

The 7th PolyU Mechanical Engineering Research Presentation Competition was successfully held at the Lecture Theatre in the Jockey Club Innovation Tower, PolyU, on 7 Jan 2022. It is an annual event for research students to display their research project results and share knowledge with the PolyU community. The competition emphasized academic pitching skills, with an aim to train research students to explain academic ideas to peers and non-experts clearly. This year, we invited 13 academics from 3 main discipline areas (Control, Acoustics and Dynamics; Materials and Solid Mechanics; Thermofluids and Combustion) to form a panel of judges to select the best presenters. Besides, we welcomed other research students and PolyU staff members to join the event and vote for the People’s Choice award. Nineteen research student participants each delivered a high-impact brief in a 3-minute presentation. With their professional and animated presentations, those academic and technical terms were no longer distant to the layman. Most of the participants demonstrated outstanding academic pitching skills. The panel of judges was impressed by the ever-improving performance of the participants this year. Their presentations appealed to a large audience to vote for them. After the oral presentations, participants interacted with the audience in the research posters exhibition. Displayed posters not only highlighted their research project results, but it was also an occasion for participants to convey their ideas, communicate with viewers and professionals, and let their talents be known. Congratulations on their fabulous presentations and excellent research work! Champion Student: Mr ARIF Muhammad Irsalan Supervisor: Dr Randolph LEUNG Title: Airfoil Tonal Noise Reduction by Means of Localized Flow-Induced Panel Vibration Champion Student: Mr GUO Jiaming Supervisor: Dr JIAO Zengbao Title: Precipitation Mechanisms and Mechanical Properties of New High-entropy Alloys Strengthened by Dual Precipitation 1st Runner-Up Student: Mr FU Jin Supervisor: Prof. FU Mingwang Title: Additively manufactured metals and lattice structures by micro laser powder bed fusion for mechanical applications 2nd Runner-Up and People’s Choice Student: Ms JIANG Qian Supervisor: Dr TANG Hui Title: Optimization on therapeutical efficacy in magnetic hyperthermia 2nd Runner-Up Student: Mr YANG Yi Supervisor: Dr RUAN Haihui Title: Investigation of glassy carbon structure formation--experiments and modeling

ME Staff received Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2021

Warmest congratulations to the following staff members on receiving the Faculty Awards for Outstanding Achievement 2021.  Dr An Liang Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Engineering Outstanding Award in Research and Scholarly Activities: Outstanding Young Researcher (Individual) 2021 Prof. Fu Mingwang Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Engineering Merit Award in Research and Scholarly Activities: Outstanding Researcher (Individual) 2021 Dr Choy Yat Sze Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Engineering Merit Award in Teaching (Individual) 2021 Dr David Navarro Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Engineering Merit Award in Teaching (Individual) 2021   Since 2003, the Faculty Research Grant Achievement Award has been set up by the Faculty Research Committee to recognize the outstanding performance of FENG academic staff members in securing external competitive research grants. Besides, the Faculty Awards in Teaching, Research and Scholarly Activities, and Services have also been established to encourage and recognize excellent practices in respective areas. Winners of the awards have demonstrated a high level of professionalism and dedication, and contributed to the achievements of the Faculty.

Establishment of Biel-PolyU Glass Research Joint Laboratory

Dr Ruan Haihui, Associate Professor of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at PolyU, has received an industrial support of 5 million HKD from the Biel Crystal (HK) Manufactory Limited for collaborative research on precision glass manufacturing. The upcoming technologies have called for more usage of curved cover glasses in many areas including smartphones, wearable electronics, VR/AR glasses, and electronic vehicles. Such needs stem from the fact that human-machine interfaces must be transparent and anti-scratch. While glass covers can be thermoformed to have curved profiles that suit such needs, precision glass thermoforming is still extremely difficult owing to various quality issues arising from the lack of detailed know-how of the manufacturing process and in-depth knowledge in glass science. In the past decade, the development of a manufacturing process for curved glass covers was extremely time-consuming and costly owing to enormous trials and errors; therefore, an upgrade to a computation-based process development protocol is urgently needed. To lay such a foundation for the industrial partner and the glass manufacturing industry, we establish the Biel-PolyU Glass Research Joint Laboratory (伯恩光學 - 香港理工大學玻璃研究聯合實驗室) to develop: computational models that predict stress buildup, relaxation, and deformation in chemical strengthening, computational protocols that assist the design of molds to compensate form errors due to shrinkage and chemical strengthening, and novel molding materials and mold manufacturing technology that keep the transparency of thermoformed glass and ensure high-volume production.

Dr Zhang Xiao recognised amongst the World’s Most Highly Cited Researchers in 2021

Congratulations to Dr Zhang Xiao being one of the eight academics from PolyU who have been acknowledged in the "2021 Highly Cited Researchers" list by Clarivate Analytics. The list identifies the most influential scholars around the world for their exceptional research performance, determined by the publication of multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations in each respective field. Approximately 6,600 researchers across the globe were named Highly Cited Researchers in 2021. The inclusion of our academics in the list is a testament to the University’s pursuit of research excellence and our impact on society. The department is proud of Dr Zhang’s outstanding achievement in particular at such an early career stage.   Read more at Clarivate  

ME students win Best Paper Award in 3rd Asian Pacific Symposium on Technology of Plasticity

A team of a PhD and a MSc (dissertation) students from the Department of Mechanical Engineering (ME) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) won the Best Paper Award at the 13th Asian Workshop on Micro/Nano Forming Technology (2021) and the 3rd Asian Pacific Symposium on Technology of Plasticity (AWMFT & APSTP 2021) held on 3 to 6 Nov 2021 in Shanghai, China. The team members, ZHENG Junyuan (PhD) and HU Dien (MSc dissertation), supervised by Prof. FU Mingwang, presented a paper entitled “Interactive Effect of Grain Size and Grain Orientation on the Micro-scaled Deformation Behaviors of Brass Foil”. The conference was organized by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Harbin Institute of Technology, and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and also co-organized by the China Society for Technology of Plasticity, CMES, the Japan Society for Technology of Plasticity, the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity and the State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration. The event provided a great opportunity and platform to share valuable ideas and communicate with both academic and industrial scientists around the world working on the cutting-edge knowledge and novel technologies of plasticity. 

Prof. Wallace Leung's new book on nanofiber filter technologies published by Elsevier

Prof. Wallace Leung has recently written a new book, “Nanofiber filter technologies for filtration of submicron aerosols and nanoaerosols”, published by Elsevier, 2021.   More than 26 cities in the world have high PM2.5 with over 10,000 counts/cubic centimeter. Hong Kong is no exception due to severe pollution from traffic emissions and the transport of pollutants across the border. The aerosols are dominated by submicron aerosol sizes less than one micrometer/micron and nanoaerosols of less than 100 nanometers. Novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2 virus) leading to the COVID-19 pandemic that has paralyzed the entire world in magnitude far beyond anyone’s imagination is in the same size category. Unfortunately, failure to recognize one of the modes of transmission by air of the coronavirus and its variants by the health authorities, experts, and the General Public leads to widespread disease and deaths globally during the first half of 2020 and in some cases even as of today. The book provides strong definitive evidence collected worldwide on the air transmission mode of the virus from residence, hospitals to laboratories. The virus is 60-140 nanometers and when attached to a carrier, it can be easily airborne. The book also provides nanofiber technologies on how the airborne virus can be effectively filtered. The book is written in layman’s language in 14 chapters, 533 pages, covering “fundamentals, deeper understanding, technologies, and applications”, with questions and answers at the end of each chapter. It is suitable for 3rd and 4th year undergraduates, or graduate courses, with contents related to pollution control, aerosols, fluid engineering, material sciences and engineering, and health technologies. To date, it is the first and most comprehensive text on air filtration using nanofiber technologies.  Topic Coverage 4 areas are being covered in the book – Fundamentals, Deeper understanding, Technologies and Applications. Nanofiber Filter Technologies for Filtration of Submicron Aerosols and Nanoaerosols – 1st Edition (elsevier.com) Check the book on ELESVIER .telerik-reTable-5 { border-collapse: collapse; border: solid 0px; font-family: Tahoma; } .telerik-reTable-5 tr.telerik-reTableHeaderRow-5 { margin: 10px; padding: 10px; color: #3A4663; text-align: left; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-family: Tahoma; text-transform: capitalize; font-weight: 500; border-spacing: 10px; line-height: 11pt; vertical-align: top; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableHeaderFirstCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; color: #3a4663; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableHeaderLastCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; color: #3a4663; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableHeaderOddCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; color: #3a4663; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableHeaderEvenCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; color: #3a4663; } .telerik-reTable-5 tr.telerik-reTableOddRow-5 { color: #666666; vertical-align: top; font-size: 10pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 tr.telerik-reTableEvenRow-5 { color: #666666; vertical-align: top; font-size: 10pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableFirstCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableLastCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableOddCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableEvenCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 tr.telerik-reTableFooterRow-5 { color: #3a4663; font-weight: 500; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Tahoma; line-height: 11pt; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableFooterFirstCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; text-align: left; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableFooterLastCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; text-align: left; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableFooterOddCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; text-align: left; } .telerik-reTable-5 td.telerik-reTableFooterEvenCol-5 { padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; text-align: left; }