The joint IAHR symposium and junior workshop welcomed 229 participants from 20 countries for technical exchange, professional development and field visits.

 ISHS2026 & IJHREWHS2026 were successfully held in Chengdu

From 29 June to 2 July 2026, the 11th IAHR International Symposium on Hydraulic Structures (ISHS2026) and the 10th IAHR International Junior Researcher and Engineer Workshop on Hydraulic Structures (IJREWHS2026) were successfully held in Chengdu, Sichuan (China). The joint conferences were organised by the IAHR Technical Committee on Hydraulic Structures, co-hosted by the State Key Laboratory of Hydraulics and Mountain River Engineering at Sichuan University and POWERCHINA Chengdu Engineering Co., Ltd, and supported by the Hydraulics Committee of the Chinese Hydraulic Engineering Society.

The Local Organising Committee was chaired by Prof. Xu Weilin, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, with Liu Chao, Vice President of Sichuan University and Director of the State Key Laboratory of Hydraulics and Mountain River Engineering, and Xia Yong, Chief Engineer of POWERCHINA Chengdu, serving as Co-Chairs. Wang Hang from Sichuan University acted as Executive Chair. The Chair of the International Scientific Committee and the Chair of the Junior Workshop Organising Committee were held by Valentin Heller from the University of Nottingham and Daniel Valero from Imperial College London, respectively. 

Under the theme "Hydraulic Structures: Engineering Wisely and Responsibly with Nature", the conference attracted 229 experts, scholars, engineers and students from 20 countries, including 52 international participants from Australia, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Argentina, Japan, the United States, Sweden, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Portugal, Brazil, Canada, Thailand, and Malaysia.

 Opening Address and First Days of the Conference (29-30 June)

On the morning of 29 June, the opening address was held in the Wufu Hall of Wangjiang Hotel, with over 160 attendees. Lin Pengzhi, Professor at Sichuan University and Deputy Director of the State Key Laboratory of Hydraulics and Mountain River Engineering, and Xia Yong, Chief Engineer of POWERCHINA Chengdu, delivered welcome speeches on behalf of the local organising parties. IAHR President Philippe Gourbesville extended congratulations via video message, and Sean Mulligan, Chair of the IAHR Technical Committee on Hydraulic Structures, expressed gratitude for the preparatory work and officially declared the symposium open. The ceremony was moderated by Executive Chair Wang Hang.

The opening session was followed by three excellent keynote lectures:

• Keynote 1: Tetsuya Sumi, Kyoto University shared insights on sediment routing strategy for recovering sediment connectivity together with opportunities for collaboration across IAHR and International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD).

• Keynote 2: Sébastien Erpicum presented on nonlinear weirs as an efficient solution for enhancing dam safety and optimising spillway projects with various full scale case studies.

• Keynote 3: Bin Liu, discussed dispersed flood discharge and zoned energy dissipation for super-high dams in confined valleys, drawing on insights from POWERCHINA Chengdu.

The IAHR Hydraulic Structures Technical Committee also held its annual meeting, with strong participation both in person and online. The committee leadership team shared updates on recent progress, upcoming activities and future priorities, followed by valuable discussion on where the community can continue to grow and contribute.

In the afternoon, two parallel technical sessions were held simultaneously in the Juying Hall and the International Conference Hall of Wufu Building at Wangjiang Hotel, featuring in-depth exchanges on Dams & Reservoirs, Hydro-Environment Impact, and Modelling Technology. The first day's agenda concluded successfully at 6:00 PM.

On the morning of 30 June, Chris Nielsen from Engineers Australia and Wei Wangru from Sichuan University delivered keynote addresses on challenges in water infrastructure projects, and fundamental research and applications of high-speed air-water flows, respectively. Parallel sessions continued with discussions on Dams & Reservoirs, Sediment & Debris, Coastal Defence Structures, and Infrastructure Resilience. Over the two days, a total of 64 delegates presented in the parallel sessions. 

 Phil H.Burgi Best Paper Award 2026

During the closing address of the ISHS the International Scientific Committee presented the Phil H. Burgi Best Paper Award to the team led by Ismail Albayrak from ETH Zurich for his paper Influence of Secondary Currents on Hydro-Abrasion at the Solis Sediment Bypass Tunnel, co-authored by Pauline Haver, Elena Pummer, Dila Demiral Yuzugullu and Robert Boes.

• The paper presents rare prototype-scale insights from the Solis Sediment Bypass Tunnel in Switzerland, using high-resolution 3D laser scans from 2012 and 2025 to analyse abrasion patterns in a high-speed, sediment-laden tunnel.

 Last Days of the Conference (1-4 July)

On 1 July, two technical tours were organised: 51 participants visited the Dujiangyan Irrigation Project, Yingxiu Earthquake Ruins, and Zipingpu Hydropower Station on the northern route, while 43 participants visited the Jianzishan Navigation-Power Hub, Leshan Giant Buddha waterway, and Angu Hydropower Station on the southern route, integrating academic exchange with engineering practice and historical culture.

On 2 July, the Junior Workshop was held at the College of Water Resources and Hydropower at Sichuan University's Wangjiang Campus, with over 50 young scholars and senior experts from various countries in attendance. This year marked the 20th anniversary of the workshop's founding. Organising Committee Chair Daniel Valero reviewed the workshop's history and presided over keynote presentations by Michele Palermo from the University of Pisa on jet-driven scour theory, and by Valentin Heller from the University of Nottingham on scientific paper writing. Zhang Gangfu from Australia shared his career journey from academia to industry and eventually to entrepreneurship. Subsequently, eight postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers presented their research progress and engaged in in-depth interactions with senior experts present. At noon, some participants, led by Wang Hang, toured several hydraulic experimental model facilities at the State Key Laboratory of Hydraulics and Mountain River Engineering. The workshop concluded successfully at 5:30 PM.

From 3 to 4 July, a two-day post-event technical tour was organised, with 35 delegates visiting the Ertan Hydropower Station dam and powerhouse, as well as the Panzhihua Third-Line Construction Museum, to appreciate the milestone achievements in China's hydropower development history.

 About the Conference

Since its inception in 2004, the IAHR International Symposium on Hydraulic Structures has been held across five continents, consistently serving as a premier international academic platform for innovation in hydraulic structure design, facilitating the sharing of cutting-edge findings and engineering breakthroughs, and fostering forward-looking dialogues on emerging challenges and future directions. The IAHR International Junior Researcher and Engineer Workshop on Hydraulic Structures, established in 2006, is dedicated to providing a relaxed and open exchange environment for young researchers and practitioners, enhancing the quality of academic presentations through senior expert feedback, and building bridges between academia and industry. 

The joint conferences continued the high academic standards of the series. The proceedings, containing 86 peer-reviewed papers, will be officially published by IAHR, with outstanding papers recommended for a special article collection of the Journal of Hydraulic Research, subject to content expansion and independent peer-review. The successful hosting of this conference not only showcased to the international community Sichuan University's remarkable achievements in integrating research and engineering practice in hydraulic engineering hydraulics but also further expanded the university's international academic influence in this field. The conference received support from Polytec (China), and 29 student volunteers from Sichuan University provided support and services throughout the event, making significant contributions to its smooth operation.

The 12th edition of the IAHR International Symposium on Hydraulic Structures will take place from 26 to 29 June 2028 in Porto, Portugal.

 Related 

IAHR Committee on Hydraulic Structures