Dr Li Jiaxuan | Ocean Engineering | Best Researcher Award

PhD student, Harbin Institute of Technology, China

Jiaxuan Li, born in 1998 in Heilongjiang Province, is a passionate and driven ocean engineering researcher currently pursuing a PhD in Civil and Hydraulic Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology. His academic journey spans from a Bachelor’s in Safety Engineering at Chang’an University to a Master’s in Resource and Environmental Sciences at China University of Geosciences (Wuhan). Under the mentorship of Professor Dagang Lv, his PhD research centers on the reliability of offshore wind turbines under multi-hazard conditions. Li’s interdisciplinary expertise in geotechnics, fluid mechanics, and dynamic modeling informs his contributions to several nationally funded projects, where he excels in finite element analysis and coding. He has authored multiple peer-reviewed journal articles in leading Q1 journals and has garnered recognition for innovation, academic excellence, and leadership. With deep curiosity and technical rigor, Li is making significant strides in ensuring the resilience and safety of marine and offshore structures.

Profile

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🎓 Education 

Jiaxuan Li has pursued a rigorous academic path focused on engineering and environmental resilience. He began with a B.Eng. in Safety Engineering from Chang’an University (2016–2020), where he gained a strong foundation in safety systems, mechanics, and electronic technologies. He then earned his M.Sc. in Resource and Environmental Studies from China University of Geosciences (Wuhan) (2020–2023), specializing in marine geotechnical engineering. His master’s thesis examined the dynamic behavior of offshore pipe piles, under the supervision of Professor Hao Liu. Currently, he is a second-year PhD student at Harbin Institute of Technology (since 2023), majoring in Civil and Hydraulic Engineering. His doctoral research delves into the reliability of offshore wind turbines subjected to complex environmental stresses. Throughout his education, he has mastered advanced analytical tools such as MATLAB, ABAQUS, and AutoCAD, and taken key engineering courses including geotechnical, structural, and thermodynamic systems to support his multifaceted research.

🛠️ Experience 

Jiaxuan Li has hands-on research experience across four major national and provincial scientific programs. He actively contributed to the National Key R&D Program focused on transportation infrastructure resilience by developing finite element models and coding analytical simulations. In the National Natural Science Foundation of China’s General Program, he supported studies on offshore foundation safety and cyclic load responses through theoretical analysis and algorithm development. His work on the Hubei Natural Science Foundation Youth Project centered on soil-plugging effects in pile foundations, while a separate Guangxi-funded project explored safety design of pile-bucket foundations under lateral loads. In every project, Li played key roles in theoretical modeling, data processing, and co-authoring research papers. His experience bridges academic theory and practical engineering with strong computational and structural insights. His skills in MATLAB, ABAQUS, and SOLIDWORKS complement his field knowledge, enabling him to simulate real-world marine and offshore geotechnical challenges with high precision.

🏅 Awards and Honors 

Jiaxuan Li has received multiple awards recognizing both his academic excellence and entrepreneurial innovation. As an undergraduate, he was twice awarded the title of “Excellent League Cadre” and received two university-level scholarships. He excelled in the Internet+ Innovation and Entrepreneurship competitions, earning a Silver Award for his platform on elderly travel and residence, and a Bronze Award for an IoT-based fire escape guidance system. His projects were selected as national and university-level innovation incubators, including “Green Intent Network Technology Co., Ltd.” and subway carriage monitoring applications. During his master’s studies, Li again earned the “Excellent League Cadre” title, won third prize at a university scientific paper presentation, and secured a first-class academic scholarship. These accolades underscore his leadership, creativity, and scholarly rigor in both technological development and scientific research—traits that continue to drive his contributions to the field of ocean engineering and offshore structure safety.

🔬 Research Focus

Jiaxuan Li’s research focuses on the reliability and dynamic behavior of offshore wind turbines under multi-hazard effects. His investigations combine geotechnical engineering, structural dynamics, and marine environmental modeling to assess how wind, waves, seismic activity, and soil-structure interaction impact the performance of offshore energy systems. At the master’s level, he explored the lateral and horizontal dynamic responses of offshore pipe piles, particularly the effects of superstructure and soil plugging, which laid the groundwork for his doctoral research. His PhD project now advances this work by modeling complex multi-hazard scenarios that influence the operational stability and fragility of wind turbine foundations. He employs numerical simulations (e.g., ABAQUS), meta-damping models, and reliability analysis tools to predict failure mechanisms and optimize foundation design. His work supports the development of resilient, cost-effective offshore infrastructure vital to sustainable energy systems. He also contributes to national projects on coastal infrastructure safety and disaster mitigation.

📄 Publication Top Notes

1. 📘 Lateral kinematic properties of offshore pipe piles embedded in saturated soil considering soil plug effect 

2. ⚙️ Lateral dynamic response of offshore pipe piles considering the effect of superstructure 

3. 🌊 New method to calculate the kinematic response of offshore pipe piles under seismic S-waves 

4. 🏗️ Analytical solution for kinematic response of offshore piles under vertically propagating s-waves

Conclusion: 

His publication record, involvement in nationally significant research projects, strong academic background, and technical expertise make him stand out. His focus on renewable energy infrastructure is also very timely and aligns with global research priorities.