The 6th International Conference on Electrical Materials and Power Equipment (ICEMPE 2027)

From August 3 to 6, the 5th IEEE International Conference on Electrical Materials and Power Equipment (2025 IEEE 5th International Conference on Electrical Materials and Power Equipment – ICEMPE 2025), jointly organized by our university and the IEEE Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Society (DEIS), was successfully held in Harbin. Vice President Shi Ying of our university, Professor Li Shengtao of Xi’an Jiaotong University (Honorary Chair of the conference), Professor Davide Fabiani of the University of Bologna (President of IEEE DEIS), and 14 other internationally renowned invited speakers, along with over 350 delegates from 8 countries, attended the opening ceremony.

ICEMPE is a high-level, well-known international conference in the field of high-voltage engineering and insulation technology, and one of the series of international conferences sponsored by the IEEE Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation Society (DEIS). ICEMPE originates from the National Conference on Engineering Dielectrics (NCED) in China. The first four editions of ICEMPE were successfully held in Xi’an (2017), Guangzhou (2019), Chongqing (2021), and Shanghai (2023), respectively. This edition (ICEMPE 2025) was hosted by Harbin University of Science and Technology.

At the opening ceremony, Vice President Shi Ying delivered a welcoming speech on behalf of the university, expressing sincere gratitude to all domestic and international experts and scholars attending the conference. She introduced the university’s development history, distinctive educational features, and the significant contributions made by its high-quality graduates to China’s electromechanical equipment manufacturing industry and local economic development in Heilongjiang Province. She expressed hopes that this conference would serve as a bridge connecting scholars worldwide to jointly address challenges brought by the transformation and upgrading of power and energy systems, and further promote technological innovation in electrical materials and power equipment.

Professor Wu Kai of Xi’an Jiaotong University and Professor Liu Ji of our university also delivered speeches, emphasizing that electrical materials and power equipment constitute the cornerstone of modern energy science & technology revolution and socio-economic development, remaining at the forefront of continuous innovation and advancement — from in-depth exploration of dielectric phenomena and breakthroughs in novel electrical insulating materials, to comprehensive digital upgrades in power equipment manufacturing, testing, and operation, and robust electrical insulation under extreme conditions — each theme directly relates to efficient energy utilization, stable grid operation, and sustainable human development. This conference aims to build a high-level, broad-spectrum, multi-tiered academic exchange platform, gathering global wisdom, sharing cutting-edge achievements, jointly tackling key technical challenges, and advancing research and engineering practice in electrical materials and power equipment to new heights.

The “Chen Jidan Achievement Award” was presented during the opening ceremony. Professor Li Shengtao of Xi’an Jiaotong University introduced the life and accomplishments of Professor Chen Jidan; Professor George Chen of the University of Southampton read the citation; and Professor Davide Fabiani of the University of Bologna received the award and delivered the commemorative keynote lecture titled “HVDC Cable Insulation: Advances, Challenges, and Future Directions”.

The conference invited 14 distinguished experts including Prof. Lu Jiazhen (Director of the National Key Laboratory of Grid Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, State Grid Hunan Electric Power Co., Ltd.), Prof. He Jinliang (Tsinghua University), Prof. Yoshimichi Ohki (Waseda University, Japan), Prof. Li Shengtao (Xi’an Jiaotong University), Senior Engineer Han Yu (China Electric Power Research Institute), Prof. George Chen (University of Southampton, UK), Prof. Wu Guangning (Southwest Jiaotong University), Prof. Du Boxue (Tianjin University), Prof. Yin Yi (Shanghai Jiao Tong University), Prof. Zhang Yewen (Tongji University), Prof. Xie Jia (Huazhong University of Science and Technology), and Prof. Hao Jian (Chongqing University), who addressed hot topics such as new materials, manufacturing, and operation of power equipment under new energy scenarios. Prof. Feng Yu of our university delivered an invited plenary talk titled “High Thermal Conductivity Insulating Materials For Electrical Equipment”.

A total of 280 papers were submitted from authors across China, the UK, Japan, Germany, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Malaysia, etc.; 236 papers were accepted for presentation. Topics covered fundamental and frontier areas including dielectric physical processes, comprehensive properties of insulating materials, design and evaluation of power equipment, insulation materials for extreme environments, energy storage and superconducting materials, among others. Many authors are principal investigators or key team members of major national science and technology programs, including National Key R&D Programs and other strategic projects. Participating institutions included Tsinghua University, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Chongqing University, Tianjin University, Wuhan University, Shandong University, Sichuan University, South China University of Technology, Southwest Jiaotong University, Hunan University, North China Electric Power University, Sun Yat-sen University, Tongji University, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Lodz University of Technology (Poland), University of Bologna (Italy), University of Southampton (UK), University of Miyazaki (Japan), Waseda University (Japan), China Electric Power Research Institute, Global Energy Interconnection Research Institute, State Grid Heilongjiang Electric Power Co., Ltd., China Southern Power Grid Research Institute, NARI Group, Harbin Electric Group, and State Energy Group — totaling 67 institutions.

The conference received strong support from nine journals: High Voltage, Transactions of China Electrotechnical Society, High Voltage Engineering, IET Nanodielectrics, and Electric Machines and Control, among others.

During six parallel oral sessions, 33 domestic and international experts delivered invited presentations, while 42 contributing authors presented their papers. Notably, the GIS/GIL & Outdoor Insulation session was live-streamed via the WeChat official account of High Voltage Engineering, attracting wide attention and active engagement from both on-site and online participants.

At the closing ceremony, Best Paper Awards and Best Poster Awards were conferred. Tianjin University, as the host of ICEMPE 2027, delivered a brief introduction to the next edition.

The successful hosting of this high-level international academic conference has established an important platform for researchers and engineers in high-voltage and insulation fields. It not only showcased cutting-edge research progress and latest technological achievements in electrical materials and power equipment, but also fostered interdisciplinary dialogue and extensive exchanges, opening new perspectives and directions for engineering applications. This event was not merely an academic feast, but also a solid bridge connecting theory with practice, and academia with industry. It significantly enhanced the depth and breadth of international academic exchanges among faculty and students of our university, substantially expanded the influence of our world-class discipline in Electrical Engineering both domestically and internationally. Moreover, faculty and students greatly improved their academic communication and presentation capabilities, broadened their research horizons, and elevated their academic literacy and scientific research competence through this platform.