ABOUT ME

I am a professor in the School of Materials Science and Engineering at UNSW where I am doing both research and teaching. My research is focused on complex gas-solid reactions at high temperatures in application to steel/alloy high temperature corrosion and metallurgical technologies. I started the gas-solid reaction research when I carried out my PhD work in the field of process metallurgy on iron ore reduction and cementation. My high temperature corrosion research commenced at Max-Planck-Institute for Iron Research (MPIE) in Germany as a research scientist after my PhD. Three years research at MPIE in the field of high temperature corrosion laid a sound foundation for my further work at UNSW in this research area. I returned to UNSW in 2003, working in the high temperature group at the School of Materials Science and Engineering, first as a research associate and research fellow (2003-2005), Australian Research Fellow (2006-2010), a senior research fellow (2009-2011), a senior lecturer (2012- 2015), an associate professor (2015-2019), and a professor (2019-), and is now leading a research team in high temperature corrosion research.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

• Professor, School of Materials Science & Engineering, UNSW 2019
• Associate Professor, School of Materials Science & Engineering, UNSW, 2015 - 2019
• Senior Lecturer, School of Materials Science & Engineering, UNSW, 2012-2015
• Senior Research Fellow, School of Materials Science & Engineering, UNSW, 2009-2011
• Research Fellow, Research Associate, School of Materials Science & Engineering, UNSW, 2003-2009
• Research Fellow, Max-Planck Institute for Iron Research, Germany, 2000-2003
• Visiting Research Fellow, University of Newcaste, 1996
• Associate Professor, Lecturer, Southeast University, China, 1987-1996

RESEARCH

High-temperature corrosion is essential for some important industries, such as electric power generating plants, aerospace, heat-treating, and mineral and metallurgical processing operated at high temperatures. The formation of corrosion products leads to the loss of materials, reduces reliability and stability, and finally decreases the service lifetime of the engineering components. It is therefore important to develop high temperature corrosion resistant materials.

Research goals

My research is focused on the understanding of the alloy-gas reactions in corrosion processes, the prediction of reaction products and kinetics as a function of temperature and the compositions of both alloy and gas, and finally the development of corrosion resistant high temperature alloys for high temperature application.

Research Contributions

Most significant contributions of my work are in the field of gas-solid reactions at high temperature, including high temperature corrosion and processing metallurgy. Research emphases are on the reaction thermodynamics and kinetics, phase transformation and characterisation, reaction mechanism understanding, sustainable materials processing, and new materials development. 

Major Research Projects

• alloy metal dusting and its prevention
• CO₂-rich gas corrosion in oxyfuel processes
• coal ash/deposit corrosion in power generation
• new mould flux development for steel continuous casting