Sharon Robinson looks into a microscope while working in the lab. Photo: Paul Jones
Distinguished Professor Sharon Robinson who was ranked first in Australia for biophysics research.

UOW researchers named as best in 10 fields of research

UOW researchers named as best in 10 fields of research

National list of top institutions and researchers published

The Australian’s 2024 Research Magazine was released on Wednesday 8 November, with the University of Wollongong (UOW) leading the country in the fields of nursing, electrochemistry, and manufacturing and machinery.

The annual publication names the top Australian research institution and top researchers across 250 fields of research. The rankings are determined by impact scores based on the number of citations of works published over the last five years.

Professor David Currow, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Research and Sustainable Futures) congratulated UOW researchers on the industry accolade.

“Leading the country in nursing, electrochemistry, and manufacturing and machinery not only reflects UOWs unwavering commitment to research excellence, but also underscores our dedication to pushing the boundaries of knowledge and innovation.

“These are priority areas of inquiry for the University and our academic’s pursuit of cutting-edge research has made a significant impact on the scientific community and society at large,” Professor Currow said.

Seven individual researchers were also named as the top researchers in their fields, with two of those topping more than one research field.

Two academics from UOW’s Institute for Superconducting and Electronic Materials were named as leaders in their fields - Distinguished Professor Shujun Zhang for ceramic engineering and Emeritus Professor Shi Xue Dou who was named as the leading researcher in three fields, electrochemistry, materials engineering and nanotechnology.

Associate Dean of Higher Degree Research in the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences Senior Professor Huijun Li topped the list for metallurgy studies.

Professor Wanqing Li, also from the School of Computing and Information Technology, leads the country in multimedia research.

Associate Professor Michael Kirchhoff from the School of Liberal Arts was also named as the leader in the field of philosophy, and also in the field of epistemology and scientific history.

Antarctic scientist and climate change biologist Distinguished Professor Sharon Robinson, School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences, ranked first in biophysics research.

Distinguished Professor Aidan Sims with the School of Mathematics and Applied Statistics leads in algebra.