Smart cars, hybrids, gasoline and diesel cars play a vital role in the world’s sustainability and air quality. A transportation specialist has joined The University of Alabama’s College of Engineering with hopes to further this research.
Dr. Xinwu Qian was welcomed to the civil, construction and environmental department this fall as an assistant professor. The University’s multiple transportation centers helped draw him to UA
“It is especially important that UA marks transportation research as one of its key research areas,” Qian said. “The Alabama Transportation Institute provides tremendous support for young faculty members to succeed.”
His research focuses on sustainable transportation, mobility data and optimizing system dynamics. Qian has been published in numerous academic journals and conferences.
“My current work has three parts: identifying efficient solutions to promote ridesharing among large-scale urban commuters, developing infrastructure preparation and operation strategies for electrifying on-demand mobility services, and understanding the propagation dynamics of infectious diseases through urban transportation systems,” he said.
Prior to joining UA, Qian worked as postdoc at Purdue University in the Lyles School of Civil Engineering. While there, he led a project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy to optimize transportation.
Qian is excited to contribute to the engineering college’s mission and UA’s research objectives.
“UA has one of the largest civil engineering departments and a number of outstanding faculty members,” he said. “There are also several centers and research clusters that bring faculty of different backgrounds together. All these ensure a vivid and active research agenda across the campus.”