News & Stories

As communities around the world are increasingly becoming aware of the importance of green and sustainable energy sources, fuel cells that convert chemical energy of hydrogen, natural gas, and alcohols directly to electricity have become a hot research topic. Current energy technologies that use fossil fuels, such as diesel, coal and oil, face many challenges including low efficiency, limited supply, air pollution, and climate change. Yet, to date, renewable energy still accounts for less than 3% of all electricity produced worldwide. Power density record Prof Zhao, Director of the HKUST Energy Institute, and his researchers have become global pioneers in raising the performance of Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells (DAFC). Among other achievements, his team holds the internationally acknowledged world record for the power density of direct ethanol fuel cells.

Prof Jian-shu Li, Chair Professor in the Department of Mathematicsat HKUST, has been elected as a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) for his outstanding achievements in Mathematics, becoming the first Hong Kong-based scholar elected to the Academy's Division of Mathematics and Physics. The honor brings the total number of CAS members at HKUST to six. CAS membership is the highest academic recognition conferred by the Chinese government for science and technology research achievements. The election of CAS members takes place biennially, with the total number of new members kept under 60 each time. There are stringent nomination, appraisal and election processes. Members are elected under one of six categories: Mathematics and Physics, Chemistry, Life Sciences and Medical Sciences, Information Technological Sciences and Technology Sciences.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Mathematical Olympiad Hong Kong Committee Company Limited (IMOHKCL) to be the Host Institution of the 57th International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) - one of the most prominent international competitions for school students in the mathematics community. The competition will be held in Hong Kong in 2016. Prof Tony F Chan, President of HKUST, said the University was honored to host this prestigious event.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) President Prof Tony F Chan has been elected as a member of the US National Academy of Engineering (NAE), one of the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. NAE's membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to "engineering research, practice or education - including significant contributions to the engineering literature", and to the "pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing / implementing innovative approaches to engineering education."

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) PhD student Zhang Shanchao, Department of Physics, has won the 2013 Young Scientist Award. Zhang was awarded the honor in the Physical/ Mathematical Science category for the project "Coherent Quantum Interaction Between Photons and Atoms". He also received the Best Poster Award for his poster on "Single-Photon Absorption and Reemission in Two-Level Cold Atoms" at the 21st Annual Conference of Hong Kong Institution of Science. Another PhD student Chen Shuming from the Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering, received the runner-up prize in the Engineering Science Category with his project on white organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs).

Living in a world where we can no longer simply rely on traditional rules and principles, a responsible policy and decision maker should always react fast and search for up-to-date understanding and creative solutions to global issues that impact our daily lives. To this end, the University of Oxford and the HKUST has joined forces to establish the Oxford-HKUST Leadership and Public Policy (LAPP) Series. This is the first program under the recently established LAPP Executive Education Office of HKUST which provides executive education for policy and decision makers including senior civil servants and officials from government, statutory or related bodies and NGO’s in Hong Kong, Mainland China and other parts of Asia.

Prof Tianshou Zhao, Chair Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Director of HKUST Energy Institute, and his researchers have received one of the most prestigious awards in science and technology in China for the second consecutive year. Prof Zhao and his researchers received a 2013 State Natural Science Award (Second Class) from the State Council of the People’s Republic of China for their pioneering work on Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells (DAFC).

The Oxford-HKUST Leadership and Public Policy Series, jointly established by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and University of Oxford (Oxford), was officially launched today. The leading regional initiative seeks to provide executive education for public sector officials and senior executives in Hong Kong, Mainland China, and Asia. Program instructors will come from HKUST, Oxford and other academic institutions worldwide, and will also include leaders and practitioners from fields that impact on public sectors. Officiating at the Launch Forum were: the Honorable C Y Leung, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Prof Andrew Hamilton, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford; Dr Marvin K T Cheung, Chairman of the HKUST Council; and Prof Tony F Chan, President of HKUST.