Applied Research
HKUST's mission as a research university is to not only focus
on academic research, but also be actively involved in applied
research and development that can help bring results to the
market. The University sees this as one of its major contributions
to the social and economic development of Hong Kong and the
region.
During the year, HKUST was very successful in the arena of
applied research, developing promising technologies or products
with market potential out of a number of research breakthroughs.
Several of the projects received private and public sector
support for collaborative product development. Some notable
examples are as follows:
- The Department of Chemistry's research on artemisinin
(qinghaosu) derivatives led to the design of new antimalarial
drugs. In vitro tests have shown that the new drugs
are much more active than other known antimalarials in use
today. HKUST researchers are now working with Bayer AG and
the Medicines for Malaria Venture towards drug development.
- Scientists at the Department of Biology have successfully
developed techniques to grow Cordyceps sinensis in
the laboratory. The traditional Chinese medicine, found
to have very high pharmaceutical value, is also very expensive
because of its scarcity in the natural environment. The
samples cultivated in HKUST's controlled environment have
chemical constituents similar to those found in the natural
environment, which makes mass production at lower costs
feasible.
- A research team of the Department of Physics utilized
advanced nano-technology to create a super-thin film that
can effectively absorb microwave radiation, making it an
ideal material for shielding the radiation generated from
cellular phones. A number of manufacturers are now negotiating
with the University to jointly develop related products.
- Researchers at the Department of Civil Engineering joined
hands with scholars from the Chinese Mainland, Canada, and
France on a project entitled "Investigation of slope
instability in unsaturated expansive soils". The results
will aid the Chinese Government in carrying out the South-North
Water Diversion Project, one of the Mainland's massive infrastructure
projects.
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering researchers
are working with three local light-emitting diode (LED)
companies: COTCO, Lighthouse Technology Limited, and Strong
Base Investment Limited, to develop new technology for the
manufacture of inorganic blue/green LEDs.
- The Department of Chemical Engineering developed a novel
enzyme technology to make bioactive complex pellets. The
pellets show 100% higher bioactivity and a working life
that is 100 times longer than individual enzymes. Procter
& Gamble, the US-based consumer products giant, will
work with the Department in developing a marketable product.
HKUST established partnerships with many other leading corporations
during the year, including Microsoft Research, China; Advanced
Micro Devices Far East Ltd; and Geron Corporation, to conduct
research in the areas of software, supercomputing platforms,
and drug screening.
During the year under review, HKUST researchers were granted
10 US patents for their inventions, bringing the number of
registered patents owned by the University to 37 (35 of these
are from the US). As of the end of June 2001, HKUST had 56
patent applications pending.
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