Professor Liew Kim-meow, Chair Professor of the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering at City University of Hong Kong (CityU), has been elected Foreign Member of the Academia Europaea for his significant contributions in engineering science. 

Professor Liew pioneers nanostructured materials and green concrete research. The impact of his earlier work on eco-friendly flame retardant has impacted well beyond his field of civil engineering to chemical engineering and beyond.

He is internationally recognised for his academic excellence in computational mechanics, multiscale modelling, nanocomposite and functional materials, optimisation, and fire science. 

Joining CityU in 2005, Professor Liew was very appreciative of the facilities at the Heavy Structures Testing Laboratory. “This laboratory has taken years to build,” said Professor Liew. “Many of my research projects would never have got off the ground if not for the full support of CityU and President Way Kuo.”

As a member of Academia Europaea, Professor Liew is keeping the door open for more research opportunities. “I feel privileged to be elected,” he noted. “Academia Europaea membership allows me more opportunities to interact with experts in the fields of civil engineering and other disciplines. It can be beneficial to future research projects.”

Professor Liew’s research on carbon nanotube (CNT) as nanomaterials has received widespread attention within the context of engineered materials as a result of its unique multifunctional properties. His papers have introduced research on CNT dispersion and CNT reinforcement on various properties of cementitious composites, paving the way for further industrial applications for this nanomaterial. 

A major direction of his research on nanomaterials has much to do with green concrete, which uses waste material as part of its components in addition to nanomaterials, while its production process does not lead to environmental destruction. In a recent research, Professor Liew and his team have tried to assess the effects of recycled carbon fibres as reinforcement to cement-based materials and the mechanical performance and environmental impact of the composites.

Professor Liew has completed broad-based research on recycled and green concrete, which can bring numerous environmental, technical and economic benefits, including lower energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions in manufacturing, increased strength and stiffness, and cost effectiveness. Green concrete promotes sustainable and the innovative use of waste materials and unconventional alternative materials in concrete.

Professor Liew has published over 800 articles in top-tier international journals including The Proceedings of the Royal Society Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences; Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering; and Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids.
He is listed by several renowned organisations including the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) as a Highly Cited Researcher in Engineering, and Clarivate Analytics as a 2018 Highly Cited Researcher in Engineering, and 2019 Highly Cited Researcher in Cross-Field Research. His publications have been cited by other professionals over 40,000 times and his current h-index is 97.

He is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Institution of Mechanical Engineers in the UK and the Institution of Engineers in Singapore; a Chartered Engineer registered under the Engineering Council of the UK, and a Registered Professional Engineer under the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers.

Founded in 1988, Academia Europaea is a European, non-government association acting as an Academy. Among its members are scientists and scholars who work to promote learning, education and research.