On November 24, 2021, Professor Zhu Yuanzhi received a congratulatory letter from Kuznetsov, President of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. In the letter, Kuznetsov congratulated Zhu Yuanzhi on being elected as a foreign academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, and issued the academician election certificate as well as work certificate for Professor Zhu.

The Russian Academy of Natural Sciences is the largest academy of sciences in Russia recognized by the United Nations. Its members are influential scientists and experts with significant achievements in the fields of natural sciences, humanities and social sciences. The Academy has 24 sections with 18 Nobel Prize winners, more than 270 members of the Russian Academy of Sciences and more than 30 members of the Russian National Academy of Medical Sciences. The foreign academicians of the Academy include outstanding scientists from 48 countries, including many Chinese academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Assessing candidates' academic achievements and their influence in relevant fields, the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences holds member selections every two years. Professor Zhu Yuanzhi was elected as a Chinese foreign academician of the Mining and Metallurgy Section of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences after member recommendation, formal review, material review, section selection, and presidium deliberation.

Working in the field of materials science and engineering, Professor Zhu Yuanzhi is affiliated to the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at NCUT. Professor Zhu has worked in large and medium-sized state-owned enterprises as well as higher educational institutions engaged in metallurgical materials. In 2010, he spent one year at Harvard University as a visiting scholar. He dedicated himself in the research on short-process (near net-shape) materials forming methods, three-dimensional characterisation techniques of bulk materials, new composite materials forming techniques, etc. Also, he has led more than 20 research projects, such as National Key R&D Program, projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, International Cooperation Key Project of Hubei Province, projects funded by Hubei Provincial Outstanding Youth Fund. Meanwhile, Professor Zhu published more than 150 academic articles with near 100 of them published on SCI/EI journals. Additionally, as the first author, Professor Zhu earned 13 provincial and ministerial-level awards including the first prize of Hubei Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award. A number of his scientific achievements have been applied in the field of high-end manufacturing.