Yi Zheng

About

Prof. Yi Zheng is an Associate Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, and the Director of Nano Energy Laboratory at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, United States. Prior to joining Northeastern, Prof. Zheng was an assistant professor from 2014 to 2019 and promoted to associate professor with tenure in 2019 at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, RI, United States. His research interests include theoretical, computational and experimental investigations on enhanced energy transport phenomena, thermal/optical/electromagnetic sensing, physical properties of nanoengineered metamaterials, and their applications in energy conversion, storage, and harvesting systems, thermophotovoltaics, wavelength selective thermal emitters/absorbers, near-field thermal diodes and transistors, and photon-based radiative cooling technique.

Prof. Zheng serves as editorial board member for Scientific Reports and associate editor for Journal of Photonics for Energy, and reviewer for peer-reviewed journals, such as Nature Communications, Nano Energy, Physical Review Letters, Applied Physics Letters, Scientific Reports, Nano Letters, and serves as topic/session chair at international conferences, such as ASME IMECE Conference and ASME Summer Heat Transfer Conference.

Selected Publications

• Liu, X., Tian, Y., Chen, F., Caratenuto, A., DeGiorgis, J., ELSonbaty, M., Wan, Y., Ahlgren, R., Zheng, Y. (2021). An Easy-to-fabricate 2.5D Evaporator for Efficient Solar Desalination. Advanced Functional Materials, 2100911. 10.1002/adfm.202100911
• Tian, Y., Shao, H., Liu, X., Chen, F., Li, Y., Tang, C., Zheng, Y. (2021) Superhydrophobic and Recyclable Cellulose-fiber-based Composites for High-Efficiency Passive Radiative Cooling. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 13, 19, 22521. 10.1021/acsami.1c04046
• Chen, F., Xu, L., Tian, Y., Caratenuto, A., Lium, X., Zheng, Y. (2021). Electrospun Polycaprolactone Nanofiber Composites with Embedded Carbon Nanotubes/Nanoparticles for Photothermal Absorption. ACS Applied Nano Materials, 4, 5, 5230. 10.1021/acsanm.1c00623

Faculty

Jun 18, 2024

Forum on Sustainable Energy in Cities and Communities Celebrates World Environment Day

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng moderated a forum on the impact of innovative technology in achieving efficient energy use and reducing carbon emissions at the Boston Urban Forum, which hosted the event to celebrate World Environment Day. Zheng is co-founder of the Boston Urban Forum. 

Faculty

Jun 06, 2024

$1M Air Force Award To Harness Solar and Thermal Energy for Spacecrafts

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng, in collaboration with Faraday Technology Inc., received a $1 million research grant from the U.S. Air Force, for a “Concentric Ultra-Dark Solar-Thermal Absorber and Metasurface Thermal Emitter for Thermophotovoltaic Power Conversion.”

Faculty

Apr 30, 2024

Zheng Receives Leadership for Inclusion and Diversity Award

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng received the 2024 Leadership for Inclusion and Diversity Award from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Asian American Pacific Islanders Commission, which recognized him “as an exceptional leader who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to fostering inclusivity and diversity.”

Faculty

Apr 24, 2024

Zheng Selected as 2024 NASA Glenn Faculty Fellow

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng was selected as a NASA Glenn Faculty Fellow. He will collaborate on a NASA project about the highly efficient Battery Thermal Management System (BTMS) during the summer of 2024.

Faculty

Feb 01, 2024

Faculty and Staff Awards 2024

The College of Engineering recognized faculty and staff at the annual faculty and staff awards event and thanked everyone for their hard work and dedication in support of our students, college, and university during the 2023-2024 academic year. View award recipients and photo gallery.

Faculty

Jan 19, 2024

Zheng Receives Energies 2023 Young Investigator Award

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng received the Energies 2023 Young Investigator Award. Zheng leads a growing research group focusing on nanoenergy in multiple disciplines, including materials science, physics, and engineering. He is the first recipient from the United States to receive this award, previous recipients were from Denmark, Singapore, Australia, and China.

Faculty

Jan 17, 2024

Zheng Selected as ASME Fellow

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng was selected as a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME) for his exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the engineering profession, particularly in the research field of micro/nanoscale heat transfer for sustainable energy harvesting, conversion, and storage.

Faculty

Oct 24, 2023

Using Spark Fund Award to Revolutionize Cooling Technology

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng is using the Spark Funds he received earlier this year to develop and commercialize more practical passive cooling products to combat the negative effects of climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Faculty

Oct 24, 2023

Zheng Selected as NECAA Scientist of the Year

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng was honored to be selected and conferred the title of the “Scientist of the Year” by the New England Chinese American Alliance at the NECAA Annual Gala.

Faculty

Sep 08, 2023

Developing Eco-Friendly Cooling Solutions

MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng’s spinout from his lab at Northeastern, Planck Energies, has received a $275,000 NSF grant for “Climate-Eco-friendly Biocoating for Passive Cooling of Infrastructure.”

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