PhD graduate Leon H Lu, 2011 Civil Engineering, came second in the prestigious international Huber Technology Prize 2012 for his PhD work on developing and demonstrating the Sulphate Reduction, Autotrophic Denitrification and Nitrification Integrated (SANI) process. SANI can reduce sewage sludge by 90% and treatment costs by 50%. Dr Lu worked with Prof Guanghao Chen at HKUST and a team of international academics. The award recognizes outstanding young researchers in innovative water technology development. The theme of this year's prize was energy from wastewater. It was presented in Munich, Germany, in May. Dr Lu was the only awardee from Asia.

MPhil graduate Kany S Y Zhou, 2009 Mechanical Engineering, received the third prize in the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE) Engineering Graduate Training Scheme "A" – Trainee of the Year Award 2011. Kany is a Hong Kong Productivity Council Associate Consultant (Automation Service Division), specializing in optics development and precision fabrication. She has delivered a number of industrial consultancy projects and government-funded research and development projects.