Dr. Lina Zhao (赵丽娜) 🧪 is an Associate Professor at the School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shenyang University of Technology 🇨🇳. With a Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from USTB 🎓, she specializes in extreme-environment batteries 🔋, sodium-ion energy storage 🔄, and first-principles calculations 🧠. Her academic path includes research roles in top institutions across China and Japan 🌏. Dr. Zhao’s innovative battery research supports sustainable energy transitions ♻️. She has delivered numerous invited talks 🎤 and has received multiple national and international accolades 🏅. She remains dedicated to bridging computational studies with real-world battery applications 🚀.

Publication Profiles

Scopus

 Education & Experience 

🎓 Education

• 📘 Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering – USTB (2014–2019)
  Advisor: Prof. Zhao Hailei

• 🔁 Ph.D. Exchange – NIMS, Japan (2010–2011)
  Advisor: Prof. Sasaki Takayoshi

• 🧪 M.Eng. in Chemical Engineering & Technology – BUCT (2007–2010)
  Advisors: Academician Duan Xue & Prof. Xu Sailong

• 🔬 Special Exchange Researcher – Kitami Institute of Technology, Japan (2008–2009)
  Advisor: Prof. Abe Yoshio

• 🧫 B.Eng. in Applied Chemistry – Dalian Polytechnic University (2003–2007)

🧑‍🔬 Professional Experience

• 👩‍🏫 Associate Professor – Shenyang University of Technology (2022–Present)

• 🧪 Assistant Researcher – Tianjin University (2021–2022)

• 🔬 Postdoctoral Fellow – Peking University (2019–2021)

• 🧾 Research Assistant – Ministry of Ecology & Environment (2011–2014)

Suitability for the Award

Assist Prof.Dr. Lina Zhao, Ph.D., currently serving as an Associate Professor at the School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shenyang University of Technology, is a highly deserving candidate for the Best Researcher Award, owing to her groundbreaking work in extreme-environment energy storage systems, sodium-ion battery commercialization, and first-principles computational materials science. With over a decade of interdisciplinary research spanning advanced lithium and sodium battery technologies, her expertise bridges fundamental materials chemistry with applied engineering innovation.

 Professional Development

Dr. Lina Zhao has developed a robust professional career through diverse academic and industrial collaborations 🌐. She has served in various research-intensive roles, progressing from research assistant to postdoc and now to associate professor 🎓. Her academic mobility between China and Japan 🤝 enhanced her global perspective, while her work in environmental regulation sharpened her interdisciplinary expertise 🌿. She frequently contributes to international conferences through invited talks and poster presentations 🎙️📊. In parallel, Dr. Zhao is actively involved in mentoring students and expanding the frontiers of sustainable energy storage materials 🔋🔍.

 Research Focus 

Dr. Zhao’s research lies at the intersection of materials science and electrochemistry ⚛️🔋. Her primary focus includes extreme-environment batteries, especially optimizing LiFePO₄ materials for low-temperature use ❄️, and developing sodium-ion batteries as scalable alternatives to lithium-based systems ⚡. She leverages first-principles computational tools like VASP and Materials Studio 💻 to explore atomic-level material behavior, driving the design of novel energy storage solutions 🚗🔄. Additionally, she emphasizes green manufacturing and recycling methods ♻️, aiming to build more sustainable battery lifecycles 🌱. Her integrated approach advances both scientific knowledge and practical implementation in the clean energy sector 🌍.

 Awards & Honors 

• 🥇 Peking University Post-Doctoral Fellowship – 2019

• 🏆 Excellent Poster Award – ACSSI-16, 2018

• 🗣️ Best Oral Presentation (Young Scientist) – SSI-21, 2017

• 🎖️ First-Class Ph.D. Scholarship – USTB (2014–2018)

• 🧑‍🎓 Outstanding Graduate (Master, Beijing) – 2010

• 🏅 Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award – BUCT, 2010

• 📚 First-Class Master Scholarship – 2007–2010

• 🌟 Outstanding Graduate (Liaoning & Dalian) – 2007

• 🧠 Top 100 Outstanding Student Award – Dalian Polytechnic University, 2007

• 🏅 Outstanding Student Leader Award – Dalian Polytechnic University, 2004

• 🏆 All-Around Outstanding Student Award – Dalian Polytechnic University, 2003–2007

• 🎓 First-Class Undergraduate Scholarship – 2003–2007

Publication Top Noted

1.  Ostwald Ripening Tailoring Hierarchically Porous Na₃V₂(PO₄)₂O₂F Hollow Nanospheres – Small (2020), IF=13.3 –  Cited by 195
2.  Free-standing, foldable V₂O₃/multichannel carbon nanofibers electrode – Small (2020), IF=13.3 –  Cited by 167
3.  Engineering of Sodium-ion batteries: new opportunities and challenges – Engineering (2023), IF=12.8 –  Cited by 29
4.  Advanced Flexible Electrode Materials and Structural Designs for Sodium Ion Batteries – J. Energy Chem. (2022), IF=13.1 –  Cited by 74
5.  Micro/Nano Na₃V₂(PO₄)₃/N-doped Carbon Composites for High-Rate Pouch-Type Sodium Ion Full Cell – ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces (2021), IF=9.5 –  Cited by 93
6.  Polyanion-type electrode materials for advanced sodium-ion batteries – Mater. Today Nano (2020), IF=10.3 –  Cited by 105
7.  Delicate lattice modulation enables superior Na storage performance – J. Mater. Chem. A (2019), IF=11.9 –  Cited by 129