Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ping Li | Engineering | Best Researcher Award

Associate professor, Northwest University, China

Dr. Ping Li is an accomplished Associate Professor in the Department of Geology at Northwest University, Xi’an, China. With a robust academic and research background in geological and civil engineering, she has built her career around unsaturated soil mechanics, soil bioengineering, and soil microstructure analysis. Dr. Li is widely recognized for her extensive contributions to geotechnical research, particularly in the study of loess soils and their behavior under environmental influences. Her collaborative international work, especially during her joint PhD in Canada, reflects her commitment to advancing the understanding of sustainable soil engineering.

Professional Profile

Scopus

🎓 Education Background:

Dr. Ping Li holds a Ph.D. in Geological Engineering from Chang’an University (2013–2016) and a Joint Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Ottawa, Canada (2014–2016), where she conducted her thesis in English on predicting the wetting-induced collapse of unsaturated soils. She also earned her MSc (2011–2013) and BSc (2007–2011) in Geological Engineering from Chang’an University, graduating with a strong academic record and a GPA of 3.84.

💼 Professional Experience:

Dr. Li currently serves as an Associate Professor and Doctoral Supervisor at Northwest University, a position she has held since January 2023 after working as a Lecturer in the same department from 2017 to 2022. Her teaching responsibilities include courses like Foundation Engineering and Soil Testing Techniques. Throughout her career, she has played principal and collaborative roles in several national and provincial scientific projects focusing on loess deformation, soil stability, and eco-friendly soil improvement techniques.

🏆 Awards and Honors:

While specific awards are not individually listed, Dr. Li has successfully led multiple prestigious projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, China Postdoctoral Science Foundation, and the Shaanxi Provincial Department of Education, highlighting her respected status in the field and her capacity to secure competitive research grants.

🔬 Research Focus:

Dr. Ping Li’s research revolves around three major themes: soil bioengineering, unsaturated soil mechanics, and soil microstructure. Her work investigates how vegetation roots impact the physical and mechanical properties of compacted loess, how collapse behaviors can be modeled under different wetting scenarios, and how advanced imaging can be used to quantify microstructural changes. She also explores sustainable approaches using biochar and nanomaterials to stabilize loess soils and improve their hydraulic behavior. Her research is both theoretical and application-driven, aiming to enhance infrastructure stability and environmental resilience.

🔚 Conclusion:

Dr. Ping Li stands out as a leading geotechnical researcher with deep expertise in loess soil behavior, sustainability, and microstructural analysis. Her dedication to academic excellence, international collaboration, and real-world problem-solving in soil mechanics has significantly influenced the field. She continues to mentor future geoscientists and push the boundaries of eco-geotechnical engineering.

📚 Top Noted Publications :

1. Investigating the saturated hydraulic conductivity and its variation of a fine-grained soil with root exudates of Robinia pseudoaccacia – Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, 2025, Accepted.
   Cited by: Pending

2. Effects of vegetation roots on the structure and hydraulic properties of soils: A perspective review – Science of The Total Environment, 2024, Vol. 906.
   Cited by: 15+

3. Influence of biochar on the soil‑water retention behavior of compacted loess – Journal of Soils and Sediments, 2024, Vol. 24.
   Cited by: 10+

4. Effects of molding water content and compaction degree on the microstructure and permeability of compacted loess – Acta Geotechnica, 2023, Vol. 18.
   Cited by: 25+

5. Review of chemical stabilizing agents for improving the physical and mechanical properties of loess – Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment, 2021, Vol. 80.
   Cited by: 40+

6. Characterizing and modeling the pore-size distribution evolution of a compacted loess during consolidation and shearing – Journal of Soils and Sediments, 2020, Vol. 20.
   Cited by: 35+

7. Microstructural evolution of loess soils from the Loess Plateau of China – Catena, 2019, Vol. 173.
   Cited by: 50+

8. Simple method for prediction of the soil collapse behavior due to wetting – International Journal of Geomechanics, 2018, Vol. 18.
   Cited by: 70+

9. Prediction of the wetting-induced collapse behavior using the soil-water characteristic curve – Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 2019, Vol. 151.
   Cited by: 60+

10. Review of collapse triggering mechanism of collapsible soils due to wetting – Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, 2016, Vol. 8.
    Cited by: 80+