Seventeen faculty members and one doctoral student from the University of Miami College of Engineering have been ranked among the world’s top 2 percent of most-cited scientists in the latest database prepared by Stanford University researchers and released through Elsevier in August 2025.
The recognition spans a wide range of disciplines, from sustainable infrastructure and aerospace design to advanced materials, biomedical engineering, and artificial intelligence. Together, these scholars represent the breadth of the college’s expertise and its contributions to solving pressing global challenges.
Faculty recognized for career-long research impact
- Pratim Biswas: Internationally recognized for research in aerosol science and nanotechnology, especially in air quality and energy applications.
- Mingzhe Chen: Researches wireless communications and machine learning for next-generation mobile networks.
- Chao Luo: Focuses on electrochemistry and advanced battery technologies, aiming for safer and more efficient energy storage.
- Antonio Nanni: Leader in structural engineering and sustainable construction, pioneering work in fiber-reinforced polymers and concrete durability.
- Shahriar Negahdaripour: Expert in computer vision and robotics, with a focus on underwater imaging and navigation.
- Fateme Rezaei: Works on adsorption and separation technologies for environmental and energy applications, including carbon capture.
- Virender Sharma: Environmental chemist advancing water treatment technologies through oxidation processes.
- Xianming Shi: Researches sustainable infrastructure and climate-resilient construction, especially in transportation engineering.
- Helena Solo-Gabriele: Environmental engineer whose research focuses on water quality, coastal pollution, and environmental health.
- Prannoy Suraneni: Specializes in concrete durability and sustainable construction materials.
- Chunlei Wang: Specializes in micro- and nanotechnologies for sensors, energy storage, and flexible electronics.
- Qingda Yang: Materials scientist working on nanostructures and energy-related materials.
- Gecheng Zha: Aerospace engineer developing innovative aerodynamic concepts for energy-efficient aircraft.
Faculty recognized for single-year research impact
The single-year impact category highlights scientists whose recent publications have had exceptional influence in 2024. This year’s single-year list (excluding those already listed above) includes:
- Ali Rownaghi: Develops porous materials and catalytic systems for chemical separations and environmental remediation.
- Yingchun Zhang: Biomedical engineer with expertise in neural engineering, brain-computer interfaces, and rehabilitation technologies.
In addition to these faculty members, civil engineering doctoral student Nima Khodadadi was also included in the database, a rare distinction for an early-career researcher and a sign of the promising contributions being made by engineering students.
The Stanford/Elsevier dataset is regarded as one of the most comprehensive tools for measuring scholarly influence, using standardized citation-based metrics across disciplines. Miami’s strong showing highlights both the long-term contributions of renowned faculty and the emerging impact of rising researchers, reinforcing the College of Engineering’s research excellence.
