SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
Chemical engineering is a discipline in which the principles of mathematical, physical and natural sciences are used to solve problems in applied chemistry.
Chemical engineers design, develop, and optimise processes and plants, operate them, manage personnel and capital, and conduct research necessary for new developments.
Through their efforts, new petroleum products, plastics, agricultural chemicals, house- hold products, pharmaceuticals, electronic and advanced materials, photographic materials, chemical and biological compounds, various food and other products evolve.
The Department offers four degree programmes: Bachelor of Engineering (BEng), Master of Science (MSc), Master of Philosophy (MPhil) and Doctor of Philoso- phy (PhD).
Faculty
Professor and Head of Department:
P. L. YUE, BEng, PhD McGill Readers:
Chi-Ming CHAN, BS Minnesota; MS, PhD California lnst of Tech
Reinhard RENNEBERG, BSc Moscowand Donetsk; PhD Centr lnst Molec Biol, Berlin
Visiting Reader:
Gordon MCKAY, BTech, PhD, DSc Bradford LecturerslAssistant Professors:
Chak K. CHAN, BS Univ of Texas, Austin; PhD California lnst of Tech Furong GAO, BEng East China lnst of Petroleum; MEng, PhD McGill Ping GAO BSc Dalian; PhD Cambridge
Xijun HU, BSc South China lnst of Tech; PhD Queensland
Tze-Man KO, BEng Cooper Union; PhD Univ of Wisconsin, Madison Yongli MI, BS Heifei; PhD Syracuse
Terrence F. YEE, BSc Oregon State; PhD Carnegie Mellon
Jian YU, BEng Zhejiang lnst of Tech; MSc Zhejiang; PhD British Columbia
Undergraduate Programme
The undergraduate curriculum is designed to prepare students for employment in the industrial and commercial sectors after graduation or for postgraduate study.
Graduates of chemical engineering will have acquired a broad knowledge of chemical engineering fundamentals, including: thermodynamics; transport phenomena: reactor design; separation processes and process control; applied mathematical and computer skills in simulation and control: and the skills necessarv for effective communication.
They will be well-prepared to pursue a professional ckeer in traditional areas of the chemical, petroleum, plastics and pharmaceutical industries as well as in emerging areas of environmental engineering, biotechnology and solid-state processing. Within each area, career options include research and development, process and plant design, technical management, sales and marketing, and customer technical service. Chemi- cal engineers also play an increasingly important role in business and policy planning.
Alternatively, many chemical engineering graduates may choose to pursue advanced studies in science or engineering, as well as in business, law or medicine.
School of Engineering
develops an independent pursuit of new knowledge, both basic and applied; and engages in research that is at the cutting edge of this and related disciplines.
The postgraduate programmes emphasise academic excellence and industrial relevance. Wherever possible, the programmes are set in the light of local industrial needs and with the potential to create demand for new technologies. The Department is an active participant in the interdepartmental MSc programme in Biotechnology, MSc programmes in Environmental Science and Engineering, and MSc programme in Materials Science and Engineering.
The Department is undertaking research and associated postgraduate pro- grammes in the following areas:
Advanced Materials
Over the last three decades, many "high-technology" industries have evolved from mechanical-based to chemical-based manufacturing. Examples are seen in home entertainment, data storage and manipulation, telecommunications, and the manufac- turing of high-performance polymers, advanced ceramics and composites. Chemical engineers have actively participated in research that has made these advances possible. Research in the Department focuses on polymers, polymer blends, polymer composites, and thin-film materials.
Bioprocess Engineering
The Department's major bioprocess engineering research programmes are being developed with the support of HKUST's Biotechnology Research Institute. This interdepartmental institute brings multidisciplinary expertise to bear on problems of significance to the developing biotechnology industry in Hong Kong and China. The Department is currently planning projects in downstream processing and product recovery, cell engineering, biosensors, and environmental biotechnology.
Environmental Engineering
Hong Kong is a densely populated urban environment where air, water, munici~al and in.lustrial pollution are facts of life. Research programmes at HKUST aim at developing appropriate technologies for improving the environmental quality in Hong Kong, as well as at pursuing fundamental studies of generic phenomena and exploring innovative clean technologies and advanced methods for environmental protection.
Research is proceeding in several directions, namely, emerging technologies, ad- vanced oxidation for water, wastewater and air remediation, air pollution studies, and waste minimisation and resources recovery.
Modelling, Computing and Control
The computer's ability to handle complex mathematics and to permit the exhaustive solution of detailed models allows chemical engineers to model process physics and chemistry from the molecular scale to the plant scale, to construct models that incorporate all relevant phenomena of a process, and to design, control and optimise more on the basis of computer predictions and less through empiricism. A
Department of Chemical Engineering
considerable part of the research activities in modelling is linked with other research in the Department.
In addition, there is a transputer-controlled rig for undergraduate and ~ o s t - graduate project work, and for demonstrations to local;ndustries
of
the feasibility and desirability of advanced process control. Another area of research concerns the use of ~ - - -artificial intelligence techniques for process design, operation and control, including knowledge-based systems and neural network. An example application is the use of these techniques in the control of injection moulding.
Master of Science (MSc) Programme in Biotechnology
This multi-disciplinary programme is jointly offered by the Departments of Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Civil and Structural Engineering. For details, please refer to page 112.
Master of Science (MSc) Programme in Chemical Engineering
This programme is for students who wish to acquire an in-depth understanding of a particular area of chemical engineering while strenathenina their overall knowledae at an advanced level. The MSc i s a taught degree which norially requires one a n i a half years of full-time studies. Each student is required to complete at least 30 credits of approved subject work. Twenty of these, including an MSc project of six credits, should be in Chemical Engineering. The supervisor may be a faculty member in Chemical Engineering or may be co-opted from industry. Part-time MSc students may undertake, as their projects, in-depth case studies or investigations. All projects must be approved in advance by the Department.
Master of Science (MSc) Programmes in Environmental Science and Engineering
These are multi-disciplinary programmes jointly offered by the Departments of Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Me- chanical Engineering. For details, please refer to page 181.
Master of Science (MSc) Programme in Materials Science and Engineering This multi-disciplinary programme is jointly offered by the Departments of Chemistry, Physics, Chemical Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. For details, please refer to page 115.
Master of Philosophy (MPhil) in Chemical Engineering
The MPhil is a research degree and students are required to complete 15 credits of postgraduate course work, at least 10 of which should be in Chemical Engineering.
In addition, students must complete a thesis in order to demonstrate their competence in engineering research. If the student participates in an industrial project and writes a thesis on a work-related topic, the thesis will be supervised jointly by a faculty member of the Department and a representative from the participating company. The MPhil
School of Engineering
-
DeDartment o f Chemical En~ineerine degree normally takes one ~ I K I a half years, but the time required depends in part on
the individual's undergraduate background.
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Programma in Chemical Engineering
The PhD degree is awarded upon the successful m ! t i O n of a programme of advanced study which includes a minimum of 15 credits of postgraduate subjects. 10 in Chemical Engineering, 5 in a minor field, and a doGos!
a ! of
simifican! Wtginai research or development work. Students entering with a master's or eq!~kalent degree in engineering or a related subject area may bsgranted a partial waiver of the PhD reauirements. The oroaramme usuallv takes -7-- - - a minimum of threeyearsof full-timestudy beyond the bache~dr'sze~ree, or a mhimum of two pars beyond the master's degree.After a student enters the PhD programme, a doctoral guidance committee will be established to supervise hislher prwramme of study
and thesis.
TO become a doctoral candidate, the student must bass a qualifying exkination within the first one and a half years of histher PhD study. The qualifying examination consists of an oral examination given by the doctoral guidance committee. The purpose ofthe
oral examination is to establish the student's ability to formulate and conduct original research in hislher chosen discipline.Upon completion of the postgraduate study programme and the thesis, the candidate is required to defend the thesis before a thesis examination committee.
Faculty Research Interests
Professor Po-Lock Y UE, Head of Department
Detoxification of hazardous waste and wastewater by advanced oxidation, catalytic wet air oxidation and biological oxidation. Waste minimisation and resources recovery.
Applied catalysis, pho<&atalysis and novel reactor engineering. Knowledge-based svstems forthe desian. operation and control of process industries, neural networkand - .
.
~ ~ p l ~ c a t i o n s of artificial intelligence.
Dr Chi-Ming CHAN, Reader
Polvmer blends and alloys. Conductive composite polymers. Cross-linking of poly- mers. Polymer processhg. Adhesion phenomena. Surface and interface science.
Surface analysis techniques. Application of surface and interface analysis techniques in theological measurements.
Dr Reinhard RENNEBERG, Reader
Biosensors and bioelectronics (enzyme sensors, immuno sensors, microbial sensors, micro-biosensors, sensors based on RNA and DNA); bioanalytical chemistry; environ- mental chemistry; application of biosensors for waste water monitoring, allergens, fitness. heart infarction detection, medical diagnostics; enzyme catalysis; immobilisa- tion of biomolecules; biomodification of sensor surfaces.
Dr Gordon MCKAY, Visiting Reader
Adsorption systems for the removal of pollutants from aqueous effluent and potable waters. ~ n e i ~ ~ conservation studies. Fluidisation and transportation of large particles.
Comouter aided desian and mathematical modelling, utilisation of chitin and chitosan
Dr Chak-Keung CHAN, Assistant Professor
Aerosol physics and chemistry. Emission control and fate predictions of particulate pollutants; microcontamination control in ultraclean facilities; powder synthesis via novel aerosol reaction engineering. Air pollution control and instrumentation.
Dr Furong GAO, Assistant Professor
Process measurements, dynamics, and control in polymer processing; real-time com- puter modelling; computer aided design, engineering, and manufacturing (CADICAEI CAM); applications of neural networkand fuzzy control to process engineering systems.
Dr Ping GAO, Assistant Professor
Diffusion in polymers and processing of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). Low temperature processing for precision extrusion of high impact strength UHMWPE materials. Applications of oscillatory flow in baffled tubes to reaction and liquid/liquid mixing.
Dr Xijun HU, Assistant Professor
Application of adsorption and catalytic techniques in air pollution control and wastewater treatment. Multicomponent adsorption eauilibrium and kinetics in heteroaeneous porous media.
as-solid
reaction.at he ma tical
modelling and computer simiation of chemical processes. Characterisation of microporous solids.Dr Tze-Man KO, Assistant Professor
Structure-property-processing relationships of solid-state polymers and polymeric composites. Polymers used in microelectronics and information storage such as photoresists, encapsulation, and magnetic and optical recording materials. Plasma etching and deposition. Advanced materials characterisation Techniques including XPS, FTIR, SEM and TEM.
Dr Yonali MI. Assistant Professor
~tructuye-permeabili relationships of polymer membranes. Synthesis of new fluorine- containing polyimides with enhanced permeability and selectivity for the separation of gas mixtures. Solubility and transport of plasticising gases in giassy polymers.
Dr Terrence F. YEE, Assistant Professor
Process modelling and optimisation, membrane technology.
Dr Jian YU, Assistant Professor
Biodegradation and biotransformation of environmental pollutants; enzymatic catalysis and kinetics; immobilisation of cells and enzymes; fermentation/separation system;
downstream processing of bioproducts; production of biodegradable plastics.
from'local waste shells. Production of briquettes and solvent extraction of materials from lignite. lmmobilisation studies.
<.or~r/)rrter sir~lrrlcrtiol~
of
t l ~ r ~ ' i b r a t i o ~ l fa srrspelrsiolr bridge. srrcl?
t r s t l ~ Tsilz,yll~a Bridge.
llrI/~.s cvrgil1eer.s rr?rdersta~lrl its
sttrrctrrlnl bebrr~-iozr~:
School o f Engineering
Department of Civil and Structural Engineering
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING