Professor XIAO Ping from the Shanghai Jiaotong University and the University of Manchester visited the Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics (LICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) on March 7. During his visit, he delivered a lecture entitled Ceramic coating for high temperature application.

　　In his lecture, Prof. XIAO introduced the preparation of ceramic coatings for aeroengines and nuclear fuel and the characterization of thermal barrier coatings. He employed electrochemical impedance spectroscopy to study the degradation of thermal barrier coatings and characterized the thermal barrier coatings during their service using residual stress method and mechanical properties testing. 

　　Prof. XIAO works for the Shanghai Jiaotong University and the University of Manchester. He joined University of Manchester, Materials Science Centre as a Lecturer in 2001, then became Senior Lecturer in 2003, Reader in 2005, and Professor in 2008. Ping Xiao did his undergraduate and postgraduate study of Chemistry in Jilin University, P. R. China. He went to Oxford University to study Materials Science for DPhil since 1989, and became a postdoctoral research fellow in Oxford since 1993. Then he joined Brunel University as a Lecturer since 1996, and became Senior Lecturer in 2000. 

　　Ping Xiao's research area covers three topics: 1) thermal barrier coatings for aeroengines and power generation; 2) ceramic coatings for nuclear industry applications; 3) ceramic layers for battery applications. The research focus is to examine degradation of ceramic coatings/layers in harsh environments, which involves characterization of microstructure, mechanical property, and residual stresses in ceramic coatings. In addition, coating techniques are being developed to manufacture new coatings with enhanced performance for various applications.