News

Delegation Visit of Swire Properties

A delegation from Swire Properties visited the RCRE on 18 December 2025. During their visit, Prof. Chi-sun Poon, Director of RCRE, introduced the center’s research activities. Opportunities for collaborative research on low-carbon and green concrete materials were discussed. The visit also included a tour of the concrete printing laboratory, where ongoing projects and technologies were showcased.    

PAIR Distinguished Lecture - Toward Carbon-Neutral Cities: Sensors and Cyber-Physical Networks for Green Infrastructure

On 17 December 2025, Prof. Nemkumar BANTHIA from the University of British Columbia delivered a PAIR distinguished lecture titled “Toward Carbon-Neutral Cities: Sensors and Cyber-Physical Networks for Green Infrastructure” at PolyU. The lecture was jointly organized by PAIR and RCRE. Prof. Bathina’s presentation attracted over 90 in-person participants and an online audience of more than 17,900 across various social media platforms.  Following the presentation was a lively question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Chi-sun POON, Director of RCRE. The audiences engaged in an in-depth discussion with Prof. Banthia.    

RCRE Seminar - Mechanistic Understanding of Carbonation: Coupling among Moisture, Pore Structure, and Practical Approaches for Reliable Accelerated Testing

Dr Luge Cheng of The University of Tokyo delivered a seminar on the topic of “Mechanistic Understanding of Carbonation: Coupling among Moisture, Pore Structure, and Practical Approaches for Reliable Accelerated Testing” on 10 December 2025. The seminar was jointly organized with CEE of PolyU. Over 60 participants joined the seminar.  

RCRE Associate Director won the RGC Early Career Award 2025/26

Congratulations to Prof. Shipeng ZHANG, Associate Director of RCRE and Assistant Professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) won the Research Grant Council (RGC) Early Career Award 2025/26 in recognition of his achievements in research.. Prof. Zhang’s research titled “Development of Lightweight Water-foamed Concrete with Ultrafine Pores using Ultrasonic Carbonation” employs ultrasound-assisted carbonation technology to engineer the flocculation structure of cement paste and develop water-foamed concrete that achieves carbon sequestration. The project has been granted HKD$931,084 under the RGC Early Career Scheme (ECS) 2025/26 exercise.    Online coverage (Chinese only): 星島頭條 - https://www.stheadline.com/ad-edu/3516900/傑出青年學者計劃及人文學及社會科學傑出學者計劃-推動研究發展-壯大香港人才庫  

Visit of Delegation from Wuhan Concrete Association

A delegation from the Wuhan Concrete Association visited the RCRE on 14 November 2025. During the visit, Prof. Chi-sun Poon, Director of RCRE, introduced the center’s research activities, as well as various low-carbon construction materials and technologies. Opportunities for potential research collaboration were also discussed. Following the meeting, Dr. Peiliang Shen, an RCRE member, led the delegation on a tour of the RCRE laboratory.  

Two RCRE Members were listed as the World’s Most Highly Cited Researchers

Congratulations to two RCRE members, Prof. Daniel S.P. LAU and Prof. Xiao ZHANG, for being recognised in the list of “Highly Cited Researchers 2025” by Clarivate Analytics. The Highly Cited Researchers list recognises academics who have demonstrated significant and broad influence in their respective fields of research. The selected scholars have authored multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for their fields and publication year over the past 11 years.   Online coverage (Chinese only): Hong Kong Commercial Daily - https://www.hkcd.com.hk/hkcdweb/content/2025/11/12/content_8724587.html Hong Kong Economic Journal - https://polyu.me/3JZYNsA (subscription required) Dot Dot News - https://polyu.me/49XtFV0 Hong Kong China News Agency - https://polyu.me/3LMfLet China Review News - https://polyu.me/3WRK7yH  

RCRE Seminar: Engineering Application of Ductile Concrete (ECC)

Prof. Victor Li of University of Michigan delivered a seminar on the topic of “Engineering Applications of Ductile Concrete (ECC)” on 3 November 2025. The seminar was jointly organized with the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) Hong Kong Branch and CEE of PolyU, and co-organized by the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE), Hong Kong Concrete Institute (HKCI) and American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Greater Bay Section. Over 100 participants joined the seminar.  

Eco Expo Asia 2025

RCRE has set up an exhibition booth with a start-up “Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) Limited” at Eco Expo Asia 2025 to showcase the sustainable low-carbon construction materials and technologies. This event was held at the AsiaWorld-Expo on 28 – 31 October 2025. Prof. Shipeng Zhang (Associate Director of RCRE) has also been invited to be a speaker to present the developed low-carbon technologies for construction. 

Joint Seminar: The 3D Eco-Concrete Printing for Hong Kong’s Construction Industry

A joint seminar with Hong Kong Institute of Project Management (HKIPM), PolyU-NAMI 3D Concrete Robotic Printing Research Centre (RCC3D), BRE and CEE of PolyU, titled "The 3D Eco-Concrete Printing for Hong Kong's Construction Industry," was held successfully on 28 October 2025. The seminar featured insightful presentations from three distinguished guests: Dr Jacky Chung (RCC3D and RCRE Member), Ir Lucas Lam (RCC3D) and Dr Junli Liu (CEE). Following the seminar, attendees toured RCC3D’s lab to observe 3D concrete printing technologies in action.  

RCRE Director Partners with Industry to Convert Waste Glass into Low-Carbon Bricks for Central Mall Renovation

Ir Prof. Poon Chi-sun, Director of RCRE, has partnered with Gammon Construction to support Hongkong Land’s HK$7.8 billion “Tomorrow’s Central” initiative, which aims to renovate its shopping mall in Central. This project will transform demolition glass waste into partition bricks and low-carbon cement alternatives, with the goal of recycling 75% of the waste generated. The innovative technology grinds waste glass into powder to replace 20–30% of the cement in brick production, resulting in eco-bricks that are 10–20% stronger than conventional ones. With over 41 tonnes of glass already dismantled and more than 20,000 bricks expected to be produced, this approach offers a scalable solution for managing Hong Kong’s extensive glass waste and could be expanded to develop structural building materials in the future.   Online coverage (Chinese only): Ming Pao Daily News - https://polyu.me/4qnMOFr Hong Kong Economic Times - https://polyu.me/43oVvpc (subscription required) Headline Daily - https://polyu.me/4nlRr0d Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/4nl6yXQ Bastille Post - https://polyu.me/49ovAlc Macau Business - https://polyu.me/43B2X0v PC home - https://polyu.me/3L9A1X3 Sina HK - https://polyu.me/43wW9Ru Global News - https://polyu.me/3WWvQjW NetEase - https://polyu.me/4hmWmfP