HKUST · Clear Water Bay · Hong Kong

Environmental
Biotechnology
for Resource Recovery and Sustainability Group

Waste-to-Resource

Located at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, we advance waste-to-resource conversion through anaerobic digestion, aquaponics, gas fermentation, and nanobubble technology — bridging fundamental science with real sustainability impact.

Explore Research Publications
Research Group
50+
Countries Visited
HKUST
HONG KONG
200+
Publications
6
Research Areas
50+
Countries Reached
25+
Years of Research
Environmental Biotechnology Research Group Team
About Our Team

A Global Community of
Research Excellence

Our research group spans two world-class institutions—HKUST in Hong Kong and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa—bringing together diverse perspectives, expertise, and dedication to solving critical environmental challenges. With over 15 active researchers and 50+ alumni worldwide, we tackle complex problems through interdisciplinary collaboration in anaerobic digestion, nanobubble technology, aquaponics, machine learning, and waste-to-resources systems.

Under the leadership of Professor Samir Kumar Khanal—a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher (top 1%)—our team has published over 170 peer-reviewed articles, delivered presentations at 25+ international conferences in 2025 alone, and fostered a collaborative environment where graduate students, postdocs, and visiting scholars develop sustainable, scalable solutions for a cleaner future.

Meet Our Team About Prof. Khanal
HKUST Students
8 Active Members
UH Mānoa Students
5 Active Members
Alumni
50+ Worldwide
What We Do

Our Research Areas

Click any research area to explore dedicated pages with full detail and publications.

Anaerobic Digestion Lab
01 / CORE

Anaerobic Digestion & Microaeration

Optimizing biogas production from organic waste streams using advanced microbial consortia research.

Explore → Nanobubbles
02 / NOVEL

Nanobubble Technology

Enhancing oxygen transfer and biological treatment through nanobubble and micro-aeration science.

Explore → Bioenergy
03 / ENERGY

Bioenergy & Biofuels

Fungal and enzymatic processing of agricultural residues into second-generation biofuels.

Explore → Gas Fermentation
04 / EMERGING

Gas Fermentation

Converting syngas and CO₂ into valuable chemicals and fuels via biological processes.

Explore → Resource Recovery
05 / CROSS-CUT

Resource Recovery

Integrated biorefinery concepts recovering nutrients, metals, and biochemicals from waste streams.

Explore → Aquaponics Lab
06 / APPLIED

Aquaponics

Integrated food production coupling aquaculture with hydroponics for sustainable urban food systems.

Explore →
View All Research Areas →
In the Field

Technology in Action

Research · Applied

Microaeration in AD

Our cutting-edge research translates into impactful real-world applications advancing environmental sustainability.

Innovation · UST Collaboration

NanoAero Smart Farming

Our nanobubble research translates into real-world sustainable solutions by optimizing water usage and eliminating the need for harmful chemicals in high-density vertical farms.

Nanobubble Technology · Applied

Nano Drone Cleaning

Green high-rise cleaning using nanobubble technology — continuous-power drone operations with minimal disruption.

Nanobubble technology developed at HKUST Environmental Biotechnology Research Group, deployed in collaboration with UST.

Research Funding Highlight

🎉 HKUST Sustainable Smart Campus Living Lab Grant · 2025
Grant Award

Green High-Rise Cleaning Nanobubble Technology with Continuous-Power, Minimal-Disruption Drone Operations

Our project has been selected by the Sustainable Smart Campus (SSC) Committee for a Living Lab (SSC) funding award. The Committee recognized that our project embraces the central vision of the Living Lab by addressing a sustainability issue with a smart and innovative approach.

Principal Investigators:
Prof. Samir Kumar Khanal & Mr. Dickson Li
HK$
600K
Funding Awarded
Selected Works

Recent Publications

View All Publications →
2025Water ResearchResearch Article
Micro-nano bubble ozonation for effective treatment of ibuprofen-laden wastewater and enhanced anaerobic digestion performance
Zhou, S., Qiao, L., Jia, Y., Khanal, S.K., Sun, L., Lu, H.
2025Environmental Science & TechnologyResearch Article
Biochar-augmented anaerobic digestion system: insights from an interpretable stacking ensemble deep learning
Khan, M., Surendra, K.C., Baniya, S., Rhymer, J.H., Khanal, S.K.
2026Plant Biotechnology JournalReview
Synthetic biology and metabolic engineering of microalgae for sustainable lipid and terpenoid production: an updated perspective
Ty Shitanaka, Yu Wang, Sally Do, Julia Yuson Samir Kumar Khanal ,Krzysztof Zienkiewicz*, Zhi Yan Du*
2026Chemical Engineering JournalResearch Article
Nanobubble-enabled wetting control in membrane distillation via interfacial modulation
Mingyi Jia, Jianhao Qian, Muhammad Usman Farid*, Jehad A. Kharraz, Shadi W. Hasan,Samir Kumar Khanal,Alicia Kyoungjin An
2026Bioresource TechnologyResearch Article
Anaerobic co-digestion as a strategy for treating coffee Pulp: Insights into process performance
Renisha Karki, K. C. Surendra, Steven Skerlos, Lutgarde Raskin*, Samir Kumar Khanal*
Lab Updates

News & Highlights

🌏
June 29–July 1, 2026

RR2026 — Joint Mini-Symposium on Resource Recovery, Bali, Indonesia

Our lab co-hosts this international symposium with Udayana University (host) and Korea University. Held at the Engineering Faculty of Udayana University, Jimbaran, Bali. Covers anaerobic digestion, resource recovery, wastewater treatment, and sustainability research. Visit symposium website →

🎓
May 2026

Seminar: Microbial Protein — Food, Feed and Wrap by Prof. Korneel Rabaey

Prof. Korneel Rabaey (Dept. of Biotechnology, Ghent University, Belgium) presents on microbial protein as a sustainable resource for food, feed, and bioplastics. 5 May 2026, Tuesday, 11:00 am–12:00 noon, Room 3598 (Lift 27/28), Academic Building, HKUST. Enquiry: Ms. Crystal Lau, cecrystal@ust.hk

🔬
2026

Micro-aeration Workshop — 19th IWA World Conference on Anaerobic Digestion

Dr. Khanal proposed and will chair the workshop on "Micro-aeration in anaerobic digestion processes: lab-to-full-scale testing", along with Ana Cavaleiro from University of Minho and Lut Raskin from Yale University, at the 19th IWA World Conference on Anaerobic Digestion View workshop →

💧
2026

Keynote Speaker — International Nanobubble Conference 2026

Dr. Khanal invited as a Keynote Speaker at the International Nanobubble Conference 2026. View conference →

🏆
March 2025

Prof. Khanal receives Elsevier Impactful Research Award

Recognized for transformative contributions to anaerobic digestion and waste-to-energy research.

View All News →