Rui Zhang is an A-tier Distinguished Professor in the “Shuanglong Scholar” Program at Zhejiang Normal University and a Zhejiang Leading Talent. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Alberta (Canada). His research focuses on East Asian monsoon evolution and global environmental change in the context of supercontinent dynamics, integrating paleomagnetism and environmental magnetism, geochemical and sedimentological proxies, and astrochronology/time-series approaches. He is particularly interested in how orbital forcing and tectonic boundary reorganization jointly modulate monsoon hydroclimate across orbital to million-year timescales.

He has published 60+ peer-reviewed papers in leading journals, including Earth and Planetary Science Letters (EPSL), Geophysical Research Letters (GRL), GSA Bulletin, and Journal of Geophysical Research (Solid Earth/Atmospheres), with 10 first/corresponding author papers in Nature Index (NI) journals. He has led multiple competitive research projects, including national-level grants and international collaborations.

PhD opportunities:

1. Fundamental science: Paleoclimate/paleomonsoon and Earth system evolution

2. Applied science: Functionalization of geological/mineral materials for environmental remediation (adsorption/degradation of pollutants)

3. Frontier exploration: Mars-analog indicators and Earth system simulations to advance planetary–Earth interdisciplinary research