Prof Chen Xi, Dean of the WJYSIS and Chair Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies at Lingnan University, has been elected an ICCES Distinguished Fellow.
This international accolade celebrates the lifelong research of foremost scientists in the global engineering sciences community. Awarded annually, only three scholars worldwide were selected this year, and Prof Chen is the sole recipient from higher education institutions in Asia and the Hong Kong SAR to receive this distinction, which shows the respect in which the research excellence of Lingnan scholars is held by the international academic community. Prof Chen will be presented officially with this honour at the 32nd ICCES, which will be held in Hong Kong this August.
Prof Chen expressed his deep gratitude, adding “Maintaining multi-perspective thinking, discovering details that others might easily overlook, and bravely pioneering new academic fields all contribute to creating cross-disciplinary research impact. As the world faces multiple severe challenges in sustainable development, we uphold the philosophy of ‘AI+’ green innovative technologies, and we orientate our work toward major national and societal needs in order to carry out disruptive hard tech innovations. For instance, our team is currently focusing on the development of novel carbon dioxide capture and utilisation technologies, designing new material structures based on AI, and transforming the concept of distributed carbon neutrality into practical applications. This shifts the responsibility of carbon reduction towards a multi-party collaborative model, effectively mitigating carbon emissions and even achieving negative emissions—meaning the removal of more greenhouse gases than are emitted — thereby stimulating Hong Kong’s development as a smart, sustainable city.”
Prof Chen entered Xi'an Jiaotong University at the age of 13, pursued his postgraduate studies at Tsinghua University, and obtained his PhD in Solid Mechanics from Harvard. Prior to joining Lingnan in 2023, he was a tenured Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering at Columbia University, where he spent 20 years engaged in scientific research focusing on energy, environment, nanotechnology, and biotechnology. He is one of the leading international trailblazers in interdisciplinary innovative technologies across engineering sciences, new materials, carbon neutrality, and sustainable development.
Prof Chen has earned numerous accolades, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in 2008, the highest official award given to young scholars by the US government. He was elected a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in 2014, and has received the Tencent Carbon X Award for Direct Air Capture.
A research team led by the professorwon a Silver Medal at the International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva in March this year for their “Hydrogel Smart Window: Cool Without Power”. The technology uses a water-retentive thermochromic hydrogel combined with low-emissivity film to filter solar heat radiation, cooling indoor spaces and reducing energy consumption by up to 34 per cent.
In a recent paper published in the influential international journal Nano-Micro Letters, Prof Chen’s research team proposed combining “AI + wrinkled materials” to create innovative matter. By using the naturally occurring surface textures of these materials alongside AI-assisted design, the technology can be applied to intelligent anti-counterfeiting, artificial organs, and stretchable batteries. Prof Chen has also led the development of a flexible lithium battery that bends, folds, and resists impact, significantly reducing the risk of accidents caused by collisions. This new device has already been applied to wearable medical devices and soft robotics, providing a solid technological foundation for the development of related industrial chains in Hong Kong.
Founded in 1986, ICCES is one of the most competent academic authorities worldwide in computational science, experimental science, and engineering, and presents several academic awards for technological innovation and exchange in interdisciplinary engineering sciences.
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