On 14th October, the main competition for the high-end equipment sector of the 2025 China Youth Science and Technology Innovation “Challenge Cup” National College Student Extracurricular Academic and Scientific Works Competition concluded in Changsha, Hunan Province. YCIT won the national first prize with their project — Self-Powered Piezoelectric Erosion Monitoring System, realizing the first breakthrough of this competition.
Submitted by the School of Mechanical Engineering, guided by Professors Ji Chao and Gu Jintong, and jointly developed by five undergraduates including Gu Quanye and Wang Dong, the project addressed the challenge titled Intelligent Monitoring and Early Warning System for Scouring of Offshore Wind Turbine Piles issued by Huaneng International Power Jiangsu Energy Development Co., Ltd. Focusing on offshore wind power, a core clean energy sector under China’s dual carbon goals, the project leveraged piezoelectric sensing and energy harvesting principles to develop a self-powered piezoelectric scour monitoring system. The system centers on “self-powered operation + precision monitoring”: piezoelectric elements convert mechanical energy from seawater scouring into electricity, enabling autonomous power supply. Integrated high-precision sensing modules and array data algorithms collect real-time data on pile scour depth and stress, wirelessly transmitting it to the terminal platform. This provides scientific and reliable technical support for safety early warning and maintenance decisions for offshore wind turbine pile foundations.
During routine competition preparation, YCIT leaderships placed high importance on the project, providing multiple rounds of guidance to clarify the direction of researching and developing. YCIT Youth League Committee fully leveraged its coordination role. It organized mock defense sessions and connecting with experts both on and off campus, and offered comprehensive guidance and full-process support for refining the project. The School of Mechanical Engineering actively supported the initiative, provided continuous follow-up, and facilitated industry connections, laying a solid foundation for the project's ultimate success.
The competition was jointly hosted by Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, China Association for Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and All-China Students' Federation. It focuses on national strategic needs and critical bottleneck technologies. Enterprises and research institutions propose challenges and problems, organizing young innovators to tackle them. This aims to guide youth in conducting targeted scientific research focused on solving real-world problems.
This award is not only a vivid demonstration of YCIT approach to “promoting learning through competition and integrating industry with education”, but also a significant achievement in fostering scientific and technological innovation among students. Moving forward, YCIT will continue to organize students to take part in the “Challenge Cup” series of competitions, focusing on major national strategic needs and encouraging students to engage in practical innovation, thereby injecting youthful energy into the high-quality development of the innovation and entrepreneurship initiatives of YCIT!
