Chinese scholar wins Germany's top research award

Chinese scholar Zhuang Xiaoying, along with 5 other international researchers, have received one of Germany's most valuable research awards, according to the awards' sponsor.

Winners of the 2015 Sofja Kovalevskaja Awards will each receive up to 1.65 million euros (1.71 million U.S. dollars) in award money to establish their own research groups in Germany, according to the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, which chose six researchers aged between 31 and 33 to receive the award this year.

Zhuang Xiaoying, associate professor of College of Civil Engineering at Tongji University, is the seventh Chinese to win this award since 2002.

The 32-year-old said at the awards ceremony that she would start her research project focusing on nano-composite materials in December at the Institute of Continuum Mechanics, University of Hannover.

She said she aims to help engineers and scientists design a new generation of composite materials by designing an open source computer simulation platform.

"I want to be able to design an analytical framework for multi-scale materials to support the design of the next generation of nano-materials," Zhuang said.

The president of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Helmut Schwarz said Zhuang performed very well in research, and her study and research experience in China, Britain and Norway also made her a deserving candidate.

The previous six Chinese award-winners have successfully completed their work in Germany, said Schwarz, adding "we are very satisfied with their performance."

The Sofja Kovalevskaja Award, financed by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, aims to integrate internationally sought-after research talents into collaborations with academics in Germany at the beginning of their promising careers.

Scientists and scholars of all disciplines from abroad who have completed their doctorates within the last six years are eligible to apply. Enditem