Faculty Profile

Zhongyuan Xu received the Ph.D. degree from the University of Delaware, USA, in August 2021. In 2022, he was selected for the Sichuan Province Overseas High-Level Talent Program, and in 2023 was admitted to the Young Talents Program of Southwest Jiaotong University.

Xu has long been engaged in teaching and research in the fields of hydrogeological numerical analysis, geological hazard monitoring and early warning, and engineering/environmental geology. Driven by the needs of major national and regional infrastructure development, ecological and environmental protection, and geological safety, Xu's research focuses on groundwater numerical modeling, early warning of engineering hydrogeological hazards, 3D geological modeling, and interdisciplinary applications of machine learning in geosciences. The research aims to integrate classical hydrogeological theories with modern numerical simulation, data analytics, and artificial intelligence to advance the mechanistic understanding, risk identification, and predictive decision-making of complex geological and environmental problems.

Xu has led several competitive research projects, including the National Natural Science Foundation of China and projects funded by the Sichuan Provincial Department of Science and Technology, as well as multiple industry-collaborative projects. Xu has published more than 30 papers in leading journals, including Water Resources Research, Journal of Hydrology, and JGR: Earth Surface. Xu also serves as a reviewer for several major SCI journals, such as Journal of Hydrology, Marine Pollution Bulletin, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, and Advances in Water Resources.

The research group places strong emphasis on the systematic development of students' research capability, engineering thinking, numerical modeling skills, programming, and data analysis competence at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Students are encouraged to work on real-world engineering and scientific problems, and to build an integrated skill set that combines fundamental theory, modeling methods, data processing, and academic communication. For students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. degree, the group provides rigorous research training and close guidance on academic writing and publication. For those aiming at high-quality employment, the group also offers strong preparation in numerical simulation, machine learning applications, 3D geological modeling, and project-based collaboration, helping students develop the skills needed for both professional practice and long-term career growth.

Students with interests in geological engineering, hydrogeology, environmental geology, geoinformatics, and intelligent geoscience analysis are warmly welcome to join the group. Please contact via Email zyxu@swjtu.edu.cn.