From May 26 to 29, 2023, the China-UK workshop on “Catalysis for a Sustainable Future” was held at Tianjin University. This workshop was co-hosted by the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology at Tianjin University and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Aberdeen.

Workshop chairmen Professor Ma Xinbin, Vice President of Tianjin University and Professor Russell F. Howe from UK and Chief Scientist in the Department of Chemistry of the University of Aberdeen, delivered speeches, retrospecting the continued academic communication and collaboration and the achievements funded by the Royal Society and the National Natural Science Foundation.

The conference featured keynote speeches by seven distinguished professors, including Shik Chi Edman Tsang from the University of Oxford, Yang Qihua from Zhejiang Normal University, Jiang Zhongyi from Tianjin University, Wang Ye from Xiamen University, Russell F. Howe from the University of Aberdeen, Wu Peng from East China Normal University, and Paul A. Wright from the University of St Andrews. Several outstanding young scholars from China and the UK also delivered presentations on frontier areas including thermal catalysis and biocatalytic conversion for low-carbon resources followed by enthusiastic discussions.

Three roundtable discussions focusing on "Molecular Sieve Catalysis" "Heterogeneous Catalytic Hydrogenation" and "Biocatalysis" were respectively hosted by Professor Russell F. Howe from the University of Aberdeen, Prof. Wang Yue from Tianjin University, and Dr. Wang Xiaodong from Lancaster University. Experts and young scholars from both parties discussed the progress and future work of their research as well as potential collaborations between universities and institutions in two countries.

After the conference, attendees visited the Technology Experiment Education Center, the Instrumental Platform and the C1 Chemistry and Technology Laboratory, where they attained an intuitive and in-depth understanding about the School and hope to pursue joint cooperation in teaching and scientific research.

The workshop represented a long-standing friendship and collaboration in catalytic area between Tianjin University and the University of Aberdeen. It provides a significant academic platform for outstanding researchers from both countries and leads to a solid foundation for future international collaboration.

By School of Chemical Engineering and Technology

Editor: Sun Xiaofang