Dr Shuai Zhao
- Position: Marie Curie Research Fellow
- Areas of expertise: tunnelling and rock engineering; subsurface space; computer vision; deep learning; digital twin; AI agents; multi-scale and multi-physics modelling; distributed fiber optic sensing
- Email: S.Zhao1@leeds.ac.uk
- Location: 2.21 Sir William Henry Bragg Building
- Website: ORCID
Profile
I hold a PhD degree in Civil Engineering from Tongji University. I spent around three years at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University before moving to University of Leeds in 2025, where I worked as a postdoctoral research fellow. During my PhD studies, I was funded by China Scholarship Council to study at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore from January 2020 to May 2021 as a visiting student.
I won the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowships from the European Commission. I was selected as a Young Talent of the Baiyulan Talent Plan of Shanghai City. I received the First Prize of Science and Technology Progress Award from China Highway & Transportation Society. I am a PI or Co-PI of research projects that have received funding four times to conduct interdisciplinary research on tunnel maintenance and AI. I am a Corresponding Member of ISSMGE TC222 and Members of CCES and CISMGE-CCES.
Research interests
Machine vision and deep learning for tunnels and underground structures; Distributed fiber optic sensing and deep learning for geotechnical materials; Multi-scale and multi-physics modelling of underground structures and geotechnical materials; Intelligent construction and maintenance of tunnels and underground space.
Qualifications
- PhD Civil Engineering, Tongji University
Professional memberships
- Corresponding Member of ISSMGE TC222
- Member of China Civil Engineering Society
- Member of CISMGE-CCES