Shubiao has dedicated to exploring efficient natural-based solutions for wastewater treatment and approaches promoting nutrients recycling from wastewater to agriculture.  He has a great research interest in biogeochemical interactions of various pollutants degradation pathways in wetland and soil systems.  His scientific contributions to date to his research field can be summarized:

 (1)   Shubiao has significantly improved the understanding of sulfur cycling in wetlands and its interactions with microbial carbon and nitrogen turnover. His findings strongly demonstrated the dynamics of sulfur transformations under change of pH and redox conditions in wetlands. In addition, he found that microbial nitrogen removal and plant growth under sulfur cycling could be influenced due to the toxicity of the chemically-reduced sulfur-compounds such as H2S, as well as competition for oxygen. He was the first to differentiate various bacterial sulfur transformations superimposing sulfate reduction, such as disproportionation of reduced sulfur compounds and re-oxidation of sulfide. Moreover, he quantitatively assessed re-oxidation of sulfide to sulfate by applying stable isotope investigation combined with hydro-chemical examination. Besides, he has explored various new intensification strategies in constructed wetlands and validated their promising performance.

 (2)   Shubiao has deeply explored the mechanisms of nutrient recovery from wastewater via biochar adsorption and struvite formation. He has comprehensively characterized the driving forces for effective and economical nutrients removal from wastewater by using various types of modified biochar. He also demonstrated the beneficial effect of nutrient-enriched biochar land application that could partly replace chemical fertilizers and promote organic farming in a circular economy concept. Moreover, his research results are the first to address an overestimated concern on interactions of organic substances in wastewater with struvite formation.

Shubiao completed his Ph.D. partially at China Agricultural University and partially in Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Germany. He has built a strong international network through a high degree of international mobility and visits. This has given him the opportunity to establish close collaborations with world-renowned experts in this field.

Shubiao has an excellent publication record as he has published more than 100 papers in scientific peer-reviewed journals since 2012 either with additional papers being submitted or under review. More than 50 of Shubiao´s papers have been published in field-top journals such Water Research and Environmental Science and Technology with an impact factor of >5.0. His papers have been highly cited. Besides, he received several academic awards when he was working in China at both provinces as well as the national level on education and technology innovations. He was also awarded Marie Sklodowska-Curie Co-founded fellowship from EU and Humboldt Experienced Researchers Fellowship from Germany.

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Research Keywords: Treatment Wetlands; Wastewater Bioremediation; Drainage Management; Nutrient Recovery; Biogeochemical transformations and interactions.