When GTIIT welcomed its first cohort of undergraduates, Jiali was among them. From bachelor's to master's, she has spent seven years here. It began with a gut feeling that "this 'new stock' is worth a shot," and led all the way to a PhD at EPFL. Her journey with GTIIT has witnessed both the rise of a young university and the transformative growth of a student.

Name: Tang Jiali

High school: Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town High School

Major (BSc & MSc): Chemical Engineering

Awards: 

• Best Innovation Award at the 4th China College Students' "Internet Plus" Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition

• 2nd Prize in the 6th China's Green Innovation Competition

• 1st Prize for Poster Presentation in the 1st Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Materials and Technologies for Energy Conversion Research Competition

• GTIIT Chancellor's Scholarship

PhD: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Program

Take root at GTIIT

Language was the first barrier to fall. "Now I use English fluently as a tool for learning and communication." What matters even more is a deeper shift in mindset. This change didn't happen overnight; it took root quietly through countless courses, labs, and discussions.

During her undergraduate years, she immersed herself in foundational math, physics, and chemistry, making it a habit to go over each course in "her own words" after class, reinforced by exercises and practice. "I've developed a scientific and engineering way of thinking. And that helps me a lot." 

This mindset shift, rooted at GTIIT, had grown into her ability to quickly adapt to new fields and tackle problems independently—soon bearing fruit on a bigger stage. During the summer holiday after her senior year, Jiali joined the Summer lnstitute for China's Green Innovators (SICGI), co-founded by Tsinghua University and Apple. In this fully-funded program, she attended lectures by professors from Tsinghua's School of Environment, visited government departments to learn about environmental policymaking, and conducted field research on hazardous waste treatment at companies, ultimately submitting a green innovation proposal.

Her team focused on the growing challenge of spent battery recycling amid the surge in battery power and energy storage, as green energy rapidly replaces fossil fuels. To address pain points such as difficult corporate recycling and high battery-swap costs for users, the team designed an innovative recycling model built on an integrated battery trading information platform, aiming to promote spent battery recycling. To validate their solution, they also traveled to Foshan to study its "Zero-Waste City" initiative. From concept to implementation, the team stood out and ultimately won second prize in the 6th China's Green Innovation Competition.

Never stop in scientific exploration

Jiali said that GTIIT offered students a solid curriculum, generous scholarships and excellent lab facilities. Together with the advantage of Technion's global reputation, these helped her secure offers from University College London, The University of Edinburgh, and other top universities upon graduation. Yet she chose to stay at GTIIT for her master's. "I'd already joined a research group as an undergraduate student. The fully funded research master's allowed me to dive deeper and work on topics I was truly passionate about."

For Jiali, the master's phase marked a shift from "learner" to "explorer". "Undergraduate studies are about absorbing knowledge, while master's studies are about learning how to do research."

Her growth as a researcher was shaped by both the environment she worked in and guidance from her mentors. She was deeply grateful to her supervisor, Prof. He Xuezhong. "He not only encouraged me to attend academic conferences but also gave me many opportunities to engage with industry." From labs to factories, she gradually shifted her focus from the project to the entire lifecycle, from lab-scale innovation to industrial scale-up.

Tang Jiali (right) with her supervisor Prof. He Xuezhong (center)

Her research footprint expanded from MOF synthesis as an undergraduate student to mixed-matrix MOF membranes for dye separation, polyimide-derived carbon membranes for CO₂ capture, pilot-scale membrane systems for shipboard carbon capture, and multi-stage membrane systems for blast furnace gas in steelmaking. To date, she has published 3 first-author papers, 10 co-authored papers, holds 1 patent, and has 2 more papers under review.

After her master's studies, Jiali stayed in the research group as a lab manager, advancing her own projects while handling daily lab operations. "It allowed me to continue my research while branching into new areas. Managing the lab also gave me a different perspective—I saw possibilities beyond the bench."

Outside research, she was an active member of the hip-hop, ballroom dance, and English clubs. Over seven years, she watched GTIIT evolve from a brand-new campus into a warmer, more vibrant place: more student clubs, better facilities, a livelier atmosphere, and stronger academic support systems. "You can really feel GTIIT growing fast. I believe it will keep rising."

Carry the dreams forward for a bright future

"Learning like a thirsty sponge" is how Jiali describes her current state. She has now begun her PhD at EPFL, working on graphene membranes—building directly on her master's research interests.

"There's so much to learn—skills, people, knowledge!" she said excitedly. "Collaboration is huge here. I need to get better at working with others, integrating resources efficiently, planning experiments more scientifically, and mastering characterization tools more systematically." She hopes to build a solid foundation, stay communicative, find her own work-life balance, complete her project successfully, and produce meaningful results.

"Do what you love. If you haven't found it yet, give it your all in the search." She advised younger students to start career planning early, think before acting, and avoid herd mentality. "If you're not sure what you're into, try a few labs first before you settle on one."

Text/Photos: GTIIT News & Public Affairs, Tang Jiali