Sili Li (born January 1988, Dandong, Liaoning) is a Senior Engineer and a young/mid-career chief expert at the Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport. His long-term work focuses on theoretical research, key technology development, and engineering practice in the construction and maintenance of transportation infrastructure in polar ice and snow environments, prefabricated rapid repair of cement concrete pavements in airport flight areas under non-suspension conditions, and the design and construction of cement concrete pavements. He has led or participated in more than 10 national, provincial, and ministerial research projects. As principal investigator, he has led one National Natural Science Foundation of China project and one National Key R&D Program task; as a subtask leader, he has participated in three National Key R&D Program projects and seven provincial transportation science and technology projects. He has received six first prizes, three second prizes, and two third prizes in industry, provincial, and ministerial science and technology awards. He has contributed to one national standard, two industry standards, and three local or group standards, including the Technical Standard for Cement Concrete Pavement. He has been granted three international patents, including U.S. and PCT-related patents, all as first inventor, 76 Chinese invention patents, including 51 as first inventor, and 14 software copyrights. He has published 19 high-level academic papers, including seven indexed by SCI or EI. He has delivered academic presentations at international conferences including the TRB Annual Meeting in the United States and the ISCP International Conference on Concrete Pavements in Germany. He serves as a member of the Youth Expert Committee of the China Highway and Transportation Society, Vice Chair of the WTC Technical Committee on Airport Pavement Construction and Maintenance, a member of the WTC Technical Committee on Airport Infrastructure, a youth editorial board member of Journal of Highway and Transportation Research and Development, a jointly appointed Senior Engineer at the Polar Research Institute of China, and a reviewer for Transportation Research Record. He was selected for the first Young Talent Support Program of the China Highway and Transportation Society, received the Science and Technology Innovation Youth Award from the China Communications and Transportation Association, and is a member of China's 42nd Antarctic Scientific Expedition Team.
Research Areas
Construction and maintenance of transportation infrastructure in polar ice and snow environments
Prefabricated rapid repair of cement concrete pavements in airport flight areas under non-suspension conditions
Structural design, construction, and maintenance of highway cement concrete pavements
Intelligent monitoring of highway infrastructure construction processes
Education
2010.09-2013.07, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, M.Eng. in Road and Railway Engineering
2006.09-2010.07, Tongji University, B.Eng. in Traffic Engineering
Professional Experience
2023.01-present, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, Center for Basic Research and Innovation, Senior Engineer
2021.12-2023.12, Ministry of Transport, Highway Planning Division, Department of Comprehensive Planning, special secondment
2020.10-2022.12, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, Road Research Center, Senior Engineer
2019.01-2019.06, Texas A&M University (TAMU), Visiting Scholar
2017.07-2020.09, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, Road Research Center, Assistant Researcher
2015.08-2017.06, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, Highway Engineering Research Center, Assistant Researcher
2013.07-2015.07, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport, Highway Engineering Research Center, Research Intern
Science and Technology Awards
2026, First Prize, Invention and Entrepreneurship Award, China Association of Inventions, "Key Technologies for Resilience Retention and Material Microstructure Regulation of High-Plateau Highways in Extreme Environments," ranked No. 2
2025, First Prize, Technology Invention Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Microstructure Regulation and Durability Improvement Technologies for Cement Concrete in Complex Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Environments," ranked No. 8
2023, First Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Communications and Transportation Association, "Research and Application Demonstration of Key Technologies for Heavy-Duty Traffic on Ordinary Arterial Highways," ranked No. 9
2021, First Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Communications and Transportation Association, "Research on the Structural Design Theory and Construction Technology of Functionally Graded Cement Concrete Pavements," ranked No. 10
2019, First Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Key Technologies and Applications for Pavement Construction on Tibet Highways in Complex Environments," ranked No. 9
2013, First Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Research on Durability-Based Structural Design Technology for Cement Concrete Pavements," ranked No. 8
2025, Second Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Early Warning of Pavement Performance Deterioration and Rapid Improvement Technologies for Mountain Arterial Highways," ranked No. 3
2024, Second Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Digital Construction and Health Monitoring Technologies for Large-Section Road Structural Layers," ranked No. 2
2016, Second Prize, Yunnan Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award, "Research on Remote Intelligent Control Technologies for Pavement and Bridge Construction Quality on the Suolongsi-Mengzi Expressway," ranked No. 9
2021, Third Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Research on Rapid Prefabricated Construction Technologies for Concrete Pavements in Large Logistics Parks," ranked No. 2
2017, Third Prize, Science and Technology Award, China Highway and Transportation Society, "Research and Application of Technologies for Enhancing Cement Pavement and Structural Safety in Long Tunnels," ranked No. 3
Honors
2025, Young/Mid-Career Chief Expert (Leading Researcher), Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport
2025, Science and Technology Innovation Youth Award, China Communications and Transportation Association
2021, Touching Transportation Annual Figure, Ministry of Transport and All-China Federation of Trade Unions, as part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Highway Research Team of the Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport
2021, Young Leading Talent in Science and Technology, Research Institute of Highway, Ministry of Transport
2018, Young Talent Support Program, China Highway and Transportation Society
Research Projects
Projects Led
National Key R&D Program task, "Networked Observation and Investigation of Long-Term Structural Safety Performance of Cement Concrete Pavements," 2022.10-2025.09, task leader, RMB 1.50 million, completed
National Natural Science Foundation of China project, "Construction Method for an Aggregate-Graphene Thermal Conductive Network in Low-Warping Cement Concrete Pavement Slabs," 2020.01-2022.12, principal investigator, RMB 250,000, completed
National Key R&D Program task, "Rapid Decimeter-Level Digitization and Data Distribution Technologies for Road Infrastructure," 2019.03-2022.06, subtask leader, RMB 13.92 million, completed
National Key R&D Program task, "Full-Scale ** Engineering Technology Application Demonstration in the Antarctic Environment," 2024.12-2027.11, subtask leader, RMB 1.80 million, ongoing
Guangxi Key R&D research project, "Collaborative Compaction of Wide Subgrade Rolling Clusters and Full-Domain Intelligent Detection Technology," 2021.10-2024.09, task leader, RMB 800,000, completed
Shanxi Provincial Transportation Construction Science and Technology Project, "Applied Technologies for Intelligent Monitoring of Heavy-Duty Traffic Ordinary Highway Construction Processes," 2018.01-2021.12, task leader, RMB 600,000, completed
Science and Technology Demonstration Project of the Ministry of Transport, "Highway Engineering Quality Monitoring and Control Demonstration Project in Alpine and High-Altitude Regions," 2016.11-2019.10, task leader, RMB 250,000, completed
Projects Participated In
National Key R&D Program project, "Key Technologies and Application Research for Big-Data Evaluation of Road Infrastructure Service Performance," 2017.12-2019.11, key team member, RMB 4.50 million, completed
National International Science and Technology Cooperation Special Project, "Crack Resistance and Safety of Transportation Infrastructure Concrete in Cold Regions with Large Temperature Differences," 2014.04-2017.04, key team member, RMB 3.05 million, completed
Ministry of Transport science and technology project, "Intelligent and Remote Monitoring Technologies for Highway Engineering Quality and Safety Process Control," 2011.03-2014.12, key team member, RMB 5.00 million, completed
Ministry of Transport science and technology project, "Research on Durability-Based Structural Design Technology for Cement Concrete Pavements," 2007.07-2010.06, key team member, RMB 5.40 million, completed
Publications and Books
Papers (First Author or Corresponding Author)
Sili Li, Tian Bo, Hu Zhiqiang, et al. Research on three-dimensional modeling technology for road infrastructure based on laser point cloud data [J]. Journal of Highway and Transportation Research and Development, 2022, 39(S1): 8-13+40. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Sili Li, Tian Bo. Research on the interlayer contact state of cement concrete pavement under temperature effects [J]. Journal of Highway and Transportation Research and Development, 2020, 37(12): 9-14. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Sili Li, Tian Bo. Experimental study on early-age uniaxial direct tensile behavior of low-slump concrete [J]. Journal of Highway and Transportation Research and Development, 2020, 37(02): 22-30. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Chang Shi, Zhang Linling, Sili Li*, Nasir Gharaibeh, Amy Epps Martin, Darren Hazlett. Evaluation of the causal effect of the surface performance-graded (SPG) specification for chip seal binders on performance [J]. Construction and Building Materials, 2021. (Corresponding author, SCI)
Hou, Ziyi; Dang, Xiao; Yuan, Yezhen; Tian, Bo; Li, Sili*. Research on Intelligent Compaction Technology of Subgrade Based on Regression Analysis [J]. Advances in Materials Science and Engineering, 2021. (Corresponding author, EI)
Li, Sili; Shang Qianli; Tian, Bo. Research on Pavement Skid Resistance Performance Prediction Model Based on Big Data Analysis and XGBoost Algorithm [J]. FUZZY SYSTEMS AND DATA MINING V (FSDM 2019), 2019. (First author, EI)
Li, Sili; Tian, Bo; Niu, Kaimin; Sun, Zhengfu; Zhou, Wenhuan. Characteristics of base friction for concrete pavement structure in China [J]. Transportation Research Record, 2013. (First author, SCI)
Sili Li, Tian Bo, Zhang Zhigeng, et al. Application of comparative markings in the design of markings on cement concrete pavements [J]. Highway, 2013, (02): 194-197. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Sili Li, Tian Bo, Wang Dapeng, et al. Research on slab division for different grades of cement concrete pavement [J]. Journal of China & Foreign Highway, 2012, 32(06): 96-99. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Sili Li, Tian Bo, Niu Kaimin. Research on critical load positions of cement concrete pavement [J]. Journal of Highway and Transportation Research and Development, 2012, 29(07): 1-8. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Sili Li, Yu Lei, Tian Bo, et al. Research on axle-wheel classification and geometric parameters of highway loads in China [J]. Highway, 2011, (07): 1-7. (First author, Chinese core journal)
Standards and Specifications
National Standards
Technical Standard for Cement Concrete Pavement, contributor, under development
Industry Standards
Testing Methods of Cement and Cement Concrete for Highway Engineering (JTG 3420-2020), contributor, issued
Technical Specification for Maintenance of Highway Cement Concrete Pavement, contributor, under development
Local Standards
Design Specification for Reconstruction and Expansion of Cement Concrete Pavements (DB45/T 1328-2016), contributor, issued
Group Standards
Construction Control Specification for Intelligent Compaction of Highway Asphalt Pavements, contributor, under development
Invention Patents
The following invention patents list Sili Li as first inventor and are ordered by grant year in descending order.
International Invention Patents
2024, United States (PCT), US12180661B1, Method For Rapid Demolishing Of Cement Concrete Pavement Slab And Device Thereof
2025, ZL2025112782775, Low-temperature ice and snow environment material weatherability testing method
2025, ZL2024114141263, Device and method for detecting water content in polar snow layers
2025, ZL2025111442812, Ice and snow environment simulation testing method based on multi-field coupling
2025, ZL2024106299260, Field rapid detection device and method for layered density of deep natural snow
2025, ZL2024106499727, Layered structural design method for compacted snow runways based on elastic layered theory
2025, ZL202210646939X, Method and system for detecting spatial distribution of underground ice in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau permafrost regions
2025, ZL2023104630748, Rapid detection device for surface cracks in highway tunnel linings
2025, ZL2022109664661, Rapid detection method for large deformation and settlement of highway surfaces based on three-dimensional laser point clouds
2025, ZL2022104463454, System and method for verifying geographic information accuracy in highway infrastructure modeling
2025, ZL2024106525632, Device and method for detecting surface-layer strength of compacted snow runway surfaces at polar airports
2024, ZL2024106166907, Construction equipment system and method for compacted snow runways at polar airports
2024, ZL202410503051X, Portable rapid ice and snow coring device and method for polar environments
2024, ZL2024105999449, Strength detection device and method for prefabricated concrete pavement slabs
2024, ZL2024105791154, Concrete pavement slab state-sensing device and three-dimensional analysis system thereof
2024, ZL2024105590545, Device and method for detecting water content in polar snow layers
2024, ZL2024104053139, Equipment and system for controlling compacted snow runway surface smoothness based on laser leveling
2024, ZL2024104671371, Dynamic detection system for compactness of compacted snow runway surfaces at polar airports
2024, ZL2024105085141, Device and method for testing particle gradation of snow crystals on snow surfaces
2024, ZL2024102462210, Repair method and slab replacement equipment for thick concrete pavements
2024, ZL2024100578960, Rapid removal method and equipment for cement concrete pavement slabs
2024, ZL2022103974823, Method for enhancing transverse load transfer capacity between airport concrete pavement slabs
2024, ZL2022104116938, Post-construction real-time automated detection system and device for smoothness of cement-stabilized base layers on airport runways
2023, ZL2022104427176, Positioning device and method for concrete pavement slabs of prefabricated airport runways
2023, ZL2022104719102, Concrete pavement slab removal equipment and method based on high-pressure surface airflow
2023, ZL2022104913935, Exposed-aggregate concrete surface function detection device and method
2023, ZL2021111051825, Rapid construction method for large-scene digital models of road infrastructure
2023, ZL2022102611979, Three-dimensional spatial position detection system for load-transfer components in in-service concrete pavement slabs
