KE Spotlight - Community Engagement - HKU Knowledge Exchange

HKU chemist-led research generates industrial-competitive materials and technologies for organic light-emitting devices (OLEDs) and organic photovoltaics

A multi-institutional team led by Professor Vivian Yam of HKU’s Department of Chemistry has developed robust phosphorescent OLED materials, the superior performances of which have attracted a lot of interests from industry. An exclusive license agreement on OLED material patents has been executed with one of the world’s leading OLED display manufacturers. The licensing is anticipated to realise next-generation OLED technologies.

HKU astronomers promote stargazing manners and dark sky conservation

The HKU Physics Department has been conducting comprehensive research on the light pollution conditions all around Hong Kong for over a decade through the Hong Kong Night Sky Brightness Monitoring Network. Results from the Monitoring Network clearly indicate light pollution is serious in Hong Kong, and the actual number of meteors observable is closely related to the level of light pollution: the more serious the light pollution is, the smaller the numbers of stars and meteors observable. The measured night sky brightness data collected also allows for more realistic estimates of the number of meteors observable. To promote dark sky preservation, the Department is launching the “Be a responsible stargazer • Enjoy the meteor shower” Campaign to encourage the adoption of proper stargazing manners, and to promote reducing light pollution. The Department has also prepared a series of educational infographics for non-experts on meteor showers and dark sky preservation and it is available for free at the public website: http://nightsky.physics.hku.hk/KE/201718/.

HKU Professor Kenneth Leung conferred fellowship by Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

Professor Kenneth Leung Mei-yee of the Swire Institute of Marine Science and School of Biological Sciences of HKU was conferred as a Fellow of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) in recognition of his contributions to ecotoxicology, environmental chemistry, risk assessment and/or life cycle assessment. There are only 57 SETAC Fellows around the world.

HKU Professor Kenneth Leung awarded Biwako Prize for Ecology by the Ecological Society of Japan

Professor Kenneth Leung Mei-yee of the HKU Swire Institute of Marine Science and School of Biological Sciences was awarded the 19th Biwako Prize for Ecology jointly by the Government of Shiga Prefecture and the Ecological Society of Japan. The award is presented to outstanding ecologists under the age of 50 who have made academically and socially significant achievements in the field of aquatic ecology in Asia, and demonstrated great potential to become central figures in ecology. Professor Leung developed a novel approach called the field-based species sensitivity distribution (f-SSD), which has been adopted by other countries in their guidelines on sediment quality, water quality standards for metals, and freshwater quality criteria for nutrients and conductivity. He devotes his time and effort to various community services, especially in environmental protection and biodiversity conservation, and has also made contributions to the development of marine water quality objectives in Hong Kong.

Knowledge Exchange Awards 2017

The annual Faculty Knowledge Exchange (KE) Awards recognise each Faculty’s outstanding KE accomplishment that has made demonstrable economic, social or cultural impacts to benefit the community, business/industry, or partner organisations. Results of the 2017 Faculty KE Awards are now available.

HKU partners with Cyberport to set up digital tech entrepreneurship platform to support start-ups

HKU and Hong Kong Cyberport signed a memorandum of understanding to set up the HKU x Cyberport Digital Tech Entrepreneurship Platform to provide support to digital tech start-ups spanning the aspects of human capital, innovation and technologies, entrepreneurship, and legal and business expertise. At the launch of HKU's FinTech Nucleus at Cyberport, SHIELD, a cyber security technology developed by the HKU Center for Information Security and Cryptography was showcased. A portfolio optimisation software "PORTimizer®" and MPF mobile app "MPF Optimal Allocation" developed by the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science was also demonstrated.

HKU and Kyoto U reveal a new strategy to enhance the efficiency of cereal straw for biofuel production

Researchers from HKU and Kyoto University (Kyoto U) revealed a new strategy to allow cellulose in rice straw to release its fermentable sugar more efficiently. Currently, expensive and complicated procedures are required to loosen lignin, a complex polymer which provides mechanical strength and structural integrity in plants, in order to utilise cellulose more efficiently during the production of bioethanol. According to the findings by HKU plant biochemists Dr Clive Lo Sze-chung and Dr Lydia Lam Pui-ying and Kyoto U lignin specialist Dr Yuki Tobimatsu, when flavone synthase II (FNSII), a key enzyme involved in tricin synthesis was knocked out, the lignin content in rice straw was reduced by approximately one-third, the yield of glucose from cellulose degradation was increased by 37% without any chemical treatment. In other words, the efficiency of ethanol production can be enhanced at a lower treatment cost for lignin.