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Zheng Liu joined the ÿ�մ��� Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering Department as an Assistant Professor. His research bridges theoretical and applied aspects of AI in manufacturing and energy systems. He focused on physics-based modeling, physics-informed machine learning, and generative design for manufacturing and energy storage applications. He also evaluated the manufacturing processes through life cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis, helping the team win $1M Department of Energy’s (DOE) inaugural American-Made Geothermal Lithium Extraction Prize. He has collaborated on multiple projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the Future Manufacturing Research Grant (FMRG) program, as well as the Office of Naval Research (ONR). In addition, he served as a graduate fellow and STEM outreach coordinator at the NSF Engineering Research Center for Power Optimization for Electro-Thermal Systems (POETS). Zheng has received the Sharp Outstanding Graduate Student Award and the Tau Beta Pi Outstanding Graduate Student Award in recognition of his research contributions. He has published more than 15 peer-reviewed journal articles and 15 conference proceedings, and has served as a track chair for the IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference. Through his work, he continues to push the frontiers of AI-driven innovation in manufacturing and energy systems.

Ph.D. Systems and Entrepreneurial Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2025

M.S. Mechanical Engineering, Cornell University, 2019

B.E. Energy and Power Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, 2017

1. Liu, Zheng; Xu, Yanwen; Jiang, Yuan; Renteria, Anabel; Bansal, Parth; Xu, Chenlong; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Uncertainty Quantification of Additively Manufactured Architected Cellular Materials for Energy Absorption Applications." ASCE-ASME Journal of Risk and Uncertainty in Engineering Systems, Part B: Mechanical Engineering 11.3 (2025): 031204.
2. Kabirzadeh, Pouya*; Liu, Zheng *; Olyaei, Mostafa; Qiu, Haoyun; Gurumukhi, Yashraj; Tyagi, Harsh; Jiang, Yuan; Singh, Bakhshish Preet; Garimella, Vivek S; Li, Yumeng; Wang, Pingfeng; Miljkovic, Nenad. "Integrating Heat Transfer and Control Optimization: A Comprehensive Review of Battery Thermal Management Systems." Journal of Energy Storage 131 (2025): 117289. (equal contribution) 
3. Sederholm, Jarom G; Li, Lin; Liu, Zheng; Lan, Kai-Wei; Cho, En Ju; Gurumukhi, Yashraj; Dipto, Mohammed Jubair; Ahmari, Alexander; Yu, Jin; Haynes, Megan; Miljkovic, Nenad; Perry, Nicola H; Wang, Pingfeng; Braun, Paul V; Hatzell, Marta. "Emerging Trends and Future Opportunities for Battery Recycling." ACS Energy Letters 10.1 (2025): 107–119.
4. Jiang, Yuan*; Liu, Zheng *; Kabirzadeh, Pouya; Wu, Yulun; Li, Yumeng; Miljkovic, Nenad; Wang, Pingfeng. "Multi-Fidelity Physics-Informed Convolutional Neural Network for Heat Map Prediction of Battery Packs." Reliability Engineering and System Safety 256 (2025): 110752. (equal contribution)
5. Liu, Zheng; Wu, Hao; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Reliability-based Design Optimization of Additive Manufacturing for Lithium Battery Silicon Anode." ASCE-ASME Journal of Risk and Uncertainty in Engineering Systems, Part B: Mechanical Engineering 10.3 (2024): 031104.
6. Wu, Hao; Bansal, Parth; Liu, Zheng; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Uncertainty Quantification of Mechanical Behavior of Corroded Al-Fe Self-Pierce Riveting Joints with Statistical Shape Modeling." Journal of Manufacturing Processes 124 (2024): 909–917.
7. Xu, Yanwen; Wu, Hao; Liu, Zheng; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Multi-Task Learning for Design under Uncertainty with Multi-Fidelity Partially Observed Information." Journal of Mechanical Design 146.8 (2024): 081704.
8. Liu, Zheng; Kabirzadeh, Pouya; Wu, Hao; Fu, Wuchen; Qiu, Haoyun; Miljkovic, Nenad; Li, Yumeng; Wang, Pingfeng. "Machine Learning Enhanced Control Co-Design Optimization of an Immersion Cooled Battery Thermal Management System." Journal of Applied Physics 136.2 (2024): 025001.
9. Wu, Hao; Xu, Yanwen; Liu, Zheng; Li, Yumeng; Wang, Pingfeng. "Adaptive Machine Learning with Physics-Based Simulations for Mean Time to Failure Prediction of Engineering Systems." Reliability Engineering and System Safety 240 (2023): 109553.
10. Liu, Zheng; Sederholm, Jarom G; Lan, Kai-Wei; Cho, En Ju; Dipto, Mohammed Jubair; Gurumukhi, Yashraj; Rabbi, Kazi Fazle; Hatzell, Marta C; Perry, Nicola H; Miljkovic, Nenad; Braun, Paul V; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Life Cycle Assessment of Hydrometallurgical Recycling for Cathode Active Materials." Journal of Power Sources 580 (2023): 233345.
11. Wu, Jiaxin; Chung, In-Bum; Liu, Zheng; Wang, Pingfeng. "Co-Design Optimization of Combined Heat and Power-Based Microgrids." Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy 15.5 (2023): 056301.
12. Hamdan, Bayan; Liu, Zheng; Ho, Koki; Büyüktahtakın, İ Esra; Wang, Pingfeng. "A Dynamic Multi-Stage Design Framework for Staged Deployment Optimization of Highly Stochastic Systems." Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization 66.7 (2023): 162.
13. Zhang, Yi; Cui, Jinsong; Chen, Kuan-Yu; Kuo, Shanny Hsuan; Sharma, Jaishree; Bhatta, Rimsha; Liu, Zheng; Ellis-Mohr, Austin; An, Fufei; Li, Jiahui; Chen, Qian; Foss, Kari D; Wang, Hua; Li, Yumeng; McCoy, Annette M; Lau, Gee W; Cao, Qing. "A Smart Coating with Integrated Physical Antimicrobial and Strain-Mapping Functionalities for Orthopedic Implants." Science Advances 9.18 (2023): eadg7397.
14. Liu, Zheng; Pan, Wenyang; Wang, Kaiyang; Matia, Yoav; Xu, Artemis; Barreiros, Jose A; Darkes‐Burkey, Cameron; Giannelis, Emmanuel P; Mengüç, Yiğit; Shepherd, Robert F; Wallin, Thomas J. "Acoustophoretic Liquefaction for 3D Printing Ultrahigh‐Viscosity Nanoparticle Suspensions." Advanced Materials 34.7 (2022): 2106183.
15. Zheng, Zhuoyuan; Liu, Zheng; Wang, Pingfeng; Li, Yumeng. "Numerical Modeling on the Delamination-Induced Capacity Degradation of Silicon Anode." Journal of Energy Storage 43 (2021): 103190.
16. Li, Shuo; Bai, Hedan; Liu, Zheng; Zhang, Xinyue; Huang, Chuqi; Wiesner, Lennard W; Silberstein, Meredith; Shepherd, Robert F. "Digital Light Processing of Liquid Crystal Elastomers for Self-Sensing Artificial Muscles." Science Advances 7.30 (2021): eabg3677.
17. Wang, Kaiyang; Pan, Wenyang; Liu, Zheng; Wallin, Thomas J; van Dover, Geoffrey; Li, Shuo; Giannelis, Emmanuel P; Menguc, Yigit; Shepherd, Robert F. "3D Printing of Viscoelastic Suspensions via Digital Light Synthesis for Tough Nanoparticle–Elastomer Composites." Advanced Materials 32.25 (2020): 2001646.

• 2024 Tau Beta Pi Outstanding Graduate Student Award
• 2024 UIUC Industrial & Enterprise Systems Engineering Sharp Outstanding Graduate Student Award
• 2023 Department of Energy American-Made Geothermal Lithium Extraction Prize ($1M)
• 2023 IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference & Expo Student Travel Grant
• 2021 IISE Student Chapter at UIUC Member of the Year