Rate My Professor Kate Nguyen

Professor Kate Nguyen is a Professor and ARC Future Fellow in the School of Engineering at RMIT University. She serves as Deputy Head of Department (Research and Innovation) in the Department of Civil and Infrastructure Engineering and leads RMIT's Innovative Fire and Facade Engineering Group. Since joining RMIT University in 2019, she has established herself as a leader in developing new materials and advanced construction solutions focused on sustainability and fire safety. Her research specializations encompass nanocomposites, renewable energy, recycling and supply chain management, modular and prefab construction, flame retardants, construction materials, engineered timber, facade engineering, fire safety design, computational fluid dynamics, automation and technology in building and construction, built environment, and fire-safe infrastructure for renewable energy and sustainable industry processes. Professor Nguyen has attracted over $16 million in research grants and industry funding, leading major projects including five CRC-Ps, a Global Innovation Linkage, the ARC Discovery Early Career Researchers Award (2019-2022), and the ARC Future Fellowship.

Professor Nguyen's contributions have been recognized with prestigious awards such as the ARC Future Fellowship (2025), appointment to the ARC College of Experts (2024), Fellow of Engineers Australia (2024), Victoria Young Tall Poppy Award (2023), Batterham Medal for Engineering Excellence by the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (2021), L’OREAL-UNESCO For Women in Science Fellowship (2020), and designation as Australia’s top researcher in composite materials by The Australian’s 2021 Research magazine. Key publications include 'Additive manufacturing (3D printing): A review of materials, methods, applications and challenges' (2018, Composites Part B: Engineering), 'Fire safety of composites in prefabricated buildings: From fibre reinforced polymer to textile reinforced concrete' (2020, Composites Part B: Engineering), 'Engineering Performance of Concrete Incorporated Supplementary Cementitious Materials' (2021), 'Residual stress-strain relationship for the biochar-based engineered timber products' (2021), and 'Assessing the combustibility of claddings: A comparative study of the modified cone calorimeter test method' (2022). She contributes to the field through roles such as State Chair of the Victoria/Tasmania/Overseas Committee for the Society of Fire Safety (Engineers Australia), member of Standards Australia’s FP-011 committee, Fire and Life Safety Working Group member for the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, and editorial board member for Frontiers in Built Environment (Fire Resistant Engineering).