Rate My Professor Tiejun Zhang

Prof. Tiejun Zhang is Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director of International Relations under the Office of the President at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, UAE. He previously served as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Khalifa University, Visiting Assistant Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Postdoctoral Research Associate at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He earned a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from City University of Hong Kong in 2008, an MSc in Thermal Energy Engineering from Southeast University in 2004, and a BEng in Thermal Power Engineering from Southeast University in 2001. His research interests include phase-change heat transfer, thermal radiation, microfluidics, micro-3D printing, nano-fabrication, smart manufacturing, solar power and hydrogen production, desalination, radiative cooling, and the water-energy-food nexus with precision agriculture in greenhouses. Prof. Zhang has authored over 100 peer-reviewed journal publications and holds 10 international patents or inventions. He has mentored more than 60 PhD and MSc students along with numerous research staff and interns, and has served as principal investigator on research projects totaling approximately US$15 million focused on energy, water, and micro/nanotechnologies.

Prof. Zhang is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), a Member of the Mohammed bin Rashid Academy of Scientists, Theme Leader of the Abu Dhabi Virtual Research Institute for Sustainability (Energy), and ranked among Stanford University’s list of the world’s top 2% scientists. He received the UAE National Research Foundation University-Industry Research Collaboration Award, the Abu Dhabi Award for Research Excellence, the US National Academy Arab-American Frontiers Fellowship Award, and recognition as an Outstanding Associate Editor by ASME. In 2025, his team won first place in the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award. He is an Executive Board Member of the Asian Union of Thermal Science and Engineering, has co-chaired the Fourth Arab-American Frontiers of Science, Engineering and Medicine Symposium, and has reviewed proposals, dissertations, and manuscripts for numerous international bodies and over 60 scientific journals.