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Sustainable and Adaptive Built Environment Group

The Sustainable and Adaptive Built Environment (SABE) Group at University of Tennessee (UTK) strives to pursue cross-discipline and cross-cutting research for our future buildings and communities that are more sustainable, energy efficient, and resilient to natural disasters. 

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The research group is led by Assistant Professor Hongyu 'Nick' Zhou, and pursue research in areas of:

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  • Biomimicry and bioinspired materials and structures

  • Energy-efficient and adaptive buildings, building envelope (NSF CMMI-1663302)

  • Sustainable and carbon neutron (negative) construction materials (DOE BENEFIT Project DE-EE-06687, DOE FE, DOE REMADE )

  • Multi-scale, multi-physics study of infrastructural materials  

  • Additive and robotic construction, Multi-sensory inspection, Large-scale 3D Printing

  • Building weatherization and hardening for vulnerable  communities

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Join SABE! - We are continuously hiring talented and motivated students. 2 Graduate Research Assistant/ Graduate Teaching Assistant position available. Click here for more details. 

Recent News:

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10/11/2021 Graduate student Adam Brooks, together with Research Assistant Prof. Nima Farzadnia and Dr. Zhou, carried out neutron imaging experiments at ORNL's High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) to study 1. the phase change and phase separation behavior of salt hydrates PCM and 2. water kinetics in cementitious material with superabsorbent polymers as internal curing agent. Many thanks to the helps from ORNL staff Dr. Yuxuan Zhang and Erik Stringfellow and the support from DOE's user program.

8/2/2021 Graduate student Yawen He and Dr. Zhou presented at the ASCE EMI virtual conference on bio-inspired building envelope and multiscale study of functional cementitious composite materials for additive construction (3DP). 

6/8/2021 ASCE Bio-inspired Structures Committee organized a lightening talk session with panelists: Dr. Nick Zhou (UTK), Dr. Xiong Yu (CWRU), Dr. Juliang Tao (ASU), Dr. Wei Zhang (CSU), Dr. Rui Liu (Kent State), Dr. Nan Hu (SCUT), and Mr. Austin Data (UC Denver). The talks can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/Ki6J03Wvik0 

6/1/2021 Dr. Zhenglai Shen joined the Building Envelope and Materials Group at Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) as Post-Doc associate. Congratulations Zhenglai and good luck to your future!

4/1/2021 Emily Stanton and Griffin Bedell joined the group as Undergrad Research Assistants. Welcome Emily and Griffin!

2/1/2021 Our proposal on "Cross-industry reuse of waste plastics as quality asphalt modifiers", in collaboration with Prof. Baoshan Huang (UTK), Dr. Pengfei Cao (ORNL), and Dr. Gaylon Baumgardner (Paragon Inc.), was selected for funding by DOE REMADE Institute: https://remadeinstitute.org/projects

1/22/2021 Dr. Zhou was appointed as Associate Editor for Journal of Sustainable Cement-based Materials (https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/tscm20/current). Look forward to contributing to the journal!

1/15/2021 Our paper entitled "Evolution of elastic and thermal properties of cementitious composites containing micro-size lightweight fillers after exposure to elevated temperature" was published on Cement and Concrete Composite. Click here to download.

1/5/2021 Hsun Jui (Ray) Chang joined the group as an undergraduate research assistant. Welcome Ray! 

12/15/2020 A student team advised by Dr. Zhou won the runner-up position for the DOE "JUMP-into-STEM" competition (under Advanced Construction Technologies topic). Graduate student Adam Brooks and undergraduate assistant Shayan Seyfimakrini are two of the team members. Congratulations!

12/10/2020 Our research on "Coal-derived material for multi-functional pavements" (in collaboration with Dr. Baoshan Huang) is selected for funding by Department of Energy Fossil Energy Office. Visit here for more details.

12/1/2020 Our paper on "LCC-based framework for building envelope and structure co-design" (Zhenglai Shen as leading author) is published on Journal of Building Engineering. 

10/1/2020 Our paper on "Risk-informed multi-criteria decision framework for resilience, sustainability and energy analysis of reinforced concrete buildings" (in collaboration with Dr. Yue Li's group at CWRU) is published on Journal of Building Performance Simulation. 

8/1/2020 Shayan Seyfimakrini joined the group as an undergraduate research assistant. Welcome Shayan! 

5/1/2020 Our paper on "3-D printing of concrete: Beyond horizons" is published on Cement and Concrete Research. 

2/1/2020 Our review paper on "Energy saving potential of 3D printed green building" (Yawen He as leading author) is published on Energy and Buildings. 

11/1/2019 Our paper on "Micro-mechanics based modeling of functional cementitious materials" (Zhenglai Shen as leading author) is published on Cement and Concrete Composite. 

10/15/2019 Our paper on "Fly-ash derived synthetic foam for thermal insulation" (Adam Brooks as leading author) is published on Journal of Cleaner Production. 

8/1/2019 Our project on "Low-cost microencapsulation technology for phase change materials for large scale building application" (in collaboration with University of Alabama, Texas A&M and Oak Ridge National Lab, and funded by DOE EERE) kicks starts.  Look forward to a fruitful project.

8/1/2019 Dr. Zhou moved to University of Tennessee, Knoxville from University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). The guidance, support, and friendship from the colleagues and students at UAH are greatly appreciated! Look forward to a new journey! 

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