Associate Professor Dr. Chao Zhou is Deputy Dean of the School of Civil Engineering at Weifang University of Science and Technology, China. His research focuses on building energy efficiency and renewable energy applications, with particular interests in solar PVT heat pump systems for combined cooling, heating, and power generation, as well as low-carbon, high-efficiency environmental control technologies for agricultural greenhouses.
He has authored 27 papers in leading journals in the fields of energy and building engineering, including Energy Conversion and Management, Applied Thermal Engineering, Renewable Energy, and Energy and Buildings. He holds one international patent, two Chinese invention patents, and six utility model patents.
He has led several research projects supported by the Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation, the Youth Innovation and Technology Support Program of Shandong Provincial Higher Education Institutions, and the Weifang Science and Technology Development Plan. He has received multiple awards, including the First Prize for Science and Technology Innovation in the Service Industry from the China General Chamber of Commerce, the First Prize of the Tianqi Cup for Innovation in Construction Engineering Technology in Shandong Province, and the Outstanding Presentation Award at the Third International Conference on Renewable Energy Heating Technologies.
He serves on the Professional Committee of Building Integrated Photovoltaics and Building Energy Systems under the China Association of Building Energy Efficiency, and is a member of several academic societies, including the China Renewable Energy Society, the Solar Building Professional Committee of the China Renewable Energy Society, the Chinese Society for Agricultural Machinery, and the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ). He is also a recognised expert reviewer in the Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Expert Database, the Weifang Science and Technology Expert Database, the Weifang Engineer Association, and a member of the Shouguang Municipal People’s Congress Expert Think Tank. He serves as a peer reviewer for international journals including Energy Conversion and Management and Energy and Buildings.