Yan Zhuge

Yan Zhuge is an academic, structural engineer, and author. She is a professor of Structural Engineering and the professorial lead of Research Education at the University of South Australia (UniSA).

Zhuge's research centers on transforming industrial waste into sustainable, high-value construction materials focused on achieving net-zero emissions. She is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences & Engineering.

Education Zhuge completed her Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering and a Master of Engineering in Structural Engineering from the Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture. She later earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Structural Engineering from the Queensland University of Technology.

Career Zhuge worked at the University of South Australia as a lecturer in Civil Engineering from 1996 to 1999 and was later employed as a senior lecturer between 2000 and 2008. In the following year, she became a senior lecturer at the University of Southern Queensland, a position she held until 2011. From 2012 to 2016, she was an associate professor there. Since 2017, she has been a professor of Structural Engineering and has also been working as a professorial lead of Research Education since 2022 at UniSA.

Research Zhuge's research work has focused on developing sustainable concrete materials, fibre composites, and exploring structural applications for durability and environmental impact. She explored permeable concrete mix designs, identifying compositions that enhanced both structural strength and permeability. In collaboration with Lian and Beecham, she presented a new model based on Griffith's theory and demonstrated that porosity influences the strength of porous concrete.

Zhuge examined optimization techniques for fiber composite structures in civil engineering. She also studied the mechanical properties of waste tyre rubber concrete. Moreover, she reviewed landfill waste recycling in construction, examining global waste generation, performance, applications, and future frameworks to improve the reuse of tyres, plastics, and glass for sustainability.

As chief investigator, Zhuge has worked on research projects, including an investigation focused on vehicle intrusions into masonry walls, where she developed mitigation strategies using auxetic composites and vibration isolation for improved safety. In another research project, she converted carbon waste from hydrogen production into durable concrete using AI-assisted nanoscience.

Awards and honors 2012 – Fellowship Award, Queensland International 2013-2014 – Research Leadership Development Program (RLDP) Award, University of Southern Queensland 2024 – Fellow, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences & Engineering 2024 – Fellow, Engineers Australia