On 15 November 2025, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) Faculty of Science and Engineering (FoSE) held its second annual UG/PGT Research Showcase, highlighting the innovative achievements of its students. A record 128 groups and 307 students presented projects spanning artificial intelligence, biomedicine, new materials, and sustainable energy, with nearly 70 academic supervisors offering guidance and feedback.
The event celebrated excellence in student research through the Best Poster Awards, with first prizes awarded to projects such as “Experimental Study on Dresser Wear and Pad Leveling under CMP Conditions” by Zihan Zheng and Chenglong Hua. They conducted dresser-wear tests and pad-conditioning experiments under CMP conditions, comparing how single-crystal diamond, CVD, and brazed dressers change in surface morphology during fatigue testing, as well as how they affect the polished pad surface. Other projects included the design of high-performance metamaterials for aerospace, novel catalysts for CO₂ conversion, and innovative drone technologies aimed at improving payload capacity and swarm obstacle avoidance.
The Research showcase comes from the FoSE’s long-running Faculty Undergraduate Research Practice (FURP) programme, which has nurtured nearly 5,000 students over the past decade. Many FURP participants have gone on to pursue fully-funded PhD programmes at world-leading institutions such as the University of Cambridge. One alumnus, Ziyi Fang from the Class of 2024, credited FURP with sparking his passion for fluid dynamics research, which paved the way for his current studies in scientific computing at Cambridge.
For the first time, the showcase welcomed around a hundred of high school students from Ningbo, offering them a glimpse into university-level education through public lecture, and lab tours. A student from Ningbo Xiaoshi High School shared, “Visiting the More electric aircraft lab opened my eyes to engineering in action—it was inspiring to see real-world applications of what we learn in class.”
Today, you showcase your findings. Remember, every great scientist starts as a curious student.
" As Professor John Zhou, Dean of FoSE, stated in his opening address, By bridging academic excellence with community engagement, the showcase reinforced FoSE’s role as a hub of innovation and talent development, ready to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.
First Prize
Hang Xu
Zihan Zheng, Chenlong Hua
Second Prize
Lina Ai
Bingzhuo Wang, TianLe Chen, Kailing Xie, Yuchen Fan
Zhenyi Sun, Xiaotian Chen
Yue Cui, Xing Lu
Third Prize
Enze Li
Shuo Zhang, Shuo Wang
Xiuzhu Chen, Jingyang Dai, Ying Ding, Zhenxuan Huang, Shiyue Li, Jiajing Wang, Chenzhe Xiang
Haoqi Zhao, Xiaoyi Jiang
Pengyang Jin, Jiahao Chen, Wenliang Lai, Qiyun Zhu, Ruiyuan Jia
Xinjie Li, Zixi Liao, Shihao Wei
Most Popular Award
Shuaichen GE, Xinyue LI, Yining LU, Yixin TANG
Yingjia Zhang
Chengyan Lu, Ruohan Yan, Yian Ba
Xinyi Shao, Yuqiang Li, Haoyang Wang, Pengyuan Guan
Jing Huang, Jiale Qin
Junren MAO, Ziyao ZHAO, Yibo ZHU, Yige WANG, Yuyao SHANG
Daowei Hu, Ziyu Lin, Yixin Wang
Published on 18 November 2025