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Yuying Yan

Chair in Thermofluids Engineering, Faculty of Engineering

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Biography

After school, I went to countryside for 2 years and worked in an industrial company for 3.5 years and attended China High Education Examination for University Entrance in November 1977; and was recruited by Jilin University of Technology (now Jilin University) in January 1978 to study Internal Combustion Engine Engineering in the Department of Automotive Engineering, and obtained the 1st class BEng in January 1982. After received my first degree, I was employed by Jilin University of Technology as lecturer from January in 1982 and studied at Shanghai Institute of Mechanical Engineering in 1983 and was awarded MSc (Distinction) in Thermal Sciences and Engineering in 1986. After that I continued working at Jilin University of Technology as a lecturer, then associate professor & Acting Head of Department of Thermal Engineering until 1992.

I studied for PhD in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at City University of London since later 1992 sponsored by ORS Award from the UK Vice Chancellors Committee and MARS Industrial C.A.S.E award and was awarded PhD in Mechanical Engineering in April 1996 on a topic of "The Effects of Electric Fields on Phase Change Processes in Industry". Then I worked in the Department of Chemical & Process Engineering at University of Surrey (UK) as a research fellow on EPSRC sponsored research (1996-1998).

I was appointed to an academic position as lecturer/senior lecturer in the Department of Mechanical & Manufacturing University at Nottingham Trent University (UK) in April 1998 and was promoted to a permanent position of Readership in Thermofluids in the same department at Nottingham Trent University from 2003. I joined the University of Nottingham since 2004 as Senior Lecturer first, then was promoted to Reader in Thermofluids Engineering in 2009, and full professor (Chair in Thermofluids Engineering) since 2011.

Major Esteem Factors:

Clarivate World Top 1% Highly Cited Researcher (Engineering).

Elsevier Highly Cited Researcher in 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021.

David Kenning Award in two-phase heat transfer (2024).

My students received a number of prestigious awards including Geoffrey F. Hewitt prize for Best PhD Thesis in heat transfer of the UK (2024), University of Nottingham's Andrew Hendry Award for PGR (4 awards), China Scholarship Council's best students award (2 awards) and CIBSE President award (2 awards)

Keynote speaker at 18th International Heat Transfer Conference, 02 - 07 AUGUST 2026, RIO DE JANEIRO | BRAZIL

Plenary speaker at IWBE 2025, 23-27 September 2025, Vienna, Austria.

Plenary speaker at 10th International Symposium of Heat Transfer (ISHT-10) at Tsinghua University, Beijing, 3-6 July 2024.

Totally over 60 plenary, keynotes and invited talks at international conferences/workshops.

I have chaired more than 10 international conferences including IHTS 2014, Beijing; ICBE 2016, Ningbo, 16th UKHTC, Nottingham (2019), 7th ASME International Conference of MNHT (2024).

Editors/as member in editorial Board:

International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer

Case Studies in Thermal Engineering

Thermal Science and Engineering Progress

Scientific Reports (Nature)

Journal of Bionic Engineering

Biomimetics

Applied Thermal Engineering

International Journal of Thermal Sciences

Automotive Innovations

Energy Storage and Saving

Fellow of International Society of Bionic Engineering (2015).

Member/fellow of International Academy of Bionic Sciences (2025).

Member of the Board of Directors International Society of Bionic Engineering (2020-2026)

Member and Director of UK National Heat Transfer Committee (2019-)

Founding member (since 2002) and Deputy General Secretary of International Society of Bionics Engineering (ISBE) (2002-2019).

Fellow of WSBE (2020).

Panel members:

Member of European ERC Advanced Grant panel (2014-2017).

Member of EPSRC Peer Review College (since 2003) and attending invited grant peer review panels.

Panel Chair of Accreditation Panel for MSc Course of Mechanical Engineering and Building Service Engineering at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) 2023.

Other invited grants review panels

External Examiners for Degree Courses:

University of Manchester: MSc Thermal Power and Fluids Engineering (2020-2025)

Brunel University, London: Building Services Engineering, Building Services Engineering with Sustainable Energy (2017-2020).

Lancaster University: MSc in Mechanical Engineering (2012-2017).

PhD Supervisions: 40+

PhD Examinations at external examiner: 40+

I successfully run RobinHood Half Marathon with completion award in 2024, 2025, ...

Expertise Summary

I have experiences in single phase and two-phase fluid flow and heat transfer. My research areas in heat transfer cover heat transfer enhancement, efficient cooling and thermal management. also including nature inspired technology for energy storage and saving.

Teaching Summary

Modules of teaching:

BEng/Meng Year 3 : Heat Transfer and Cooling Technologies (20 Credits) (current)

BEng/MEng Year 1: Thermofluids-1 (Previous)

BEng/MEng Year 2: Thermofluids 2 (Previous)

Research Summary

Prof. Yan carries out wide-ranging researches of fluid flow and heat transfer encountered in engineering and the built environment. His current major cutting edge researches include multi-scale… read more

Selected Publications

Current Research

Prof. Yan carries out wide-ranging researches of fluid flow and heat transfer encountered in engineering and the built environment. His current major cutting edge researches include multi-scale modelling (based CFD, LBM and MD) of boiling in microchannel, micro nano fluids flow and heat transfer, biomimetics of functional surfaces with fluids (surface Wettability, hydrophobicity, drag/adhesion reduction); development of efficient cooling technology and various thermal management solutions for modern automotive, turbo machine and power electronics. He also works on innovative heat pipes and thermoelectric (TE) applications. His research has been supported by the UK Engineering Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC), Innovate UK, Royal Society, Royal Academy of Engineering, European FP7 and H2020 and the industrial companies.

Future Research

I welcome inquires from potential PhD candidates from Home, EU and international countries who are interested in the following research areas: heat transfer, efficient cooling and thermal management.

Department of Architecture and Built Environment

The University of Nottingham
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telephone: +44 (0) 115 95 14184