HKIE Environmental Division Prize for 2021/2022 Best Final-Year Environmental Project

Mr. Chong Man Hin, recent BEngESE graduate, won the 2^nd Runner-up (Individual Project) of 2021/2022 Best Final Year Environmental Project Award hosted by Environmental Division, HKIE. The award-winning project is titled “Bio-photoelectrochemical Hybrid Devices for Simultaneous Wastewater Treatment and Solar-fuel Generation”.

Under the supervision of Dr. Sam H.-Y. Hsu, Mr. Chong utilized a Shewanella Oneidensis MR-1 microorganism as well as 3 types of photoelectrodes including iron(III) oxide (Fe₂O₃), bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄), tungsten(IV) oxide (WO₂)  for converting the biomass energy from wastewater (i.e., expired juice) to chemical energy (i.e., hydrogen). Mr. Chong has successfully demonstrated that the performance of the bioelectrochemical system has been enhanced by using different photoelectrodes with specific microorganisms, as well as investigating the correlation of the selected photoelectrodes and microbes with common wastewater.