On the morning of 30 March 2026, the National Rail Transit Electrification and Automation Engineering Technology Research Center (Hong Kong Branch) (CNERC-Rail) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University held an academic seminar. The seminar took place at Z211, PolyU, under the theme of "A Revolutionary Laminated Plate Theory". The seminar featured Prof. Stephen W. Tsai, a renowned scholar in composite materials, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and a professor at Stanford University, as the keynote speaker. Prof. Otto Lin attended the seminar.
During the seminar, Prof. Tsai reviewed the development of laminated plate theory for composite materials and the key scientific issues in the field. He highlighted his key research contributions in areas such as lamination parameters, failure criteria, and material characterization, including the development of the Tsai-Hill and Tsai-Wu failure criteria and related theoretical frameworks. He also presented recent advances in lightweight structural design and engineering applications of composite materials, including innovative layup approaches such as double-double layups. These studies demonstrate the broad application potential of advanced materials in sustainable and resilient engineering.
