Chemical Synthesis Young Scientists Forum Concludes Successfully
The Chemical Synthesis Young Scientists Forum concluded successfully on February 10, 2026, attracting 9,295 online participants. The forum, organized by Prof. Li-Hua Chen from the School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Life Sciences at Wuhan University of Technology (WUT), Wuhan, China, provided a dynamic platform for emerging scholars and leading researchers from academia and industry to exchange ideas, share insights, and promote innovation in sustainable energy conversion and functional materials.
A highlight of the event was the invited lecture by Dr.-Ing. Bo Peng from the SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing (RIPP), Beijing, China. In his talk, titled "Sequence and Competition for C-C Bond Cleavage from General Hydrocarbon Resources." Dr. Peng shared his latest research on catalytic pathways and reaction mechanisms for hydrocarbon activation and conversion, providing critical insights to advance sustainable energy technologies.
In addition to the keynote, the forum featured lively academic discussions and in-depth exchanges on emerging topics in energy and materials research. Interactive Q&A sessions fostered collaboration and inspired innovative research among young scientists, reinforcing the forum as a platform for knowledge sharing.
By organizing this forum, Chemical Synthesis continues to support academic communication and collaboration in the energy and materials communities. Looking ahead, the journal plans to organize similar events to promote scholarly exchange and foster the professional growth of emerging researchers in these fields.
Watch the full video of the forum:
About the Scholars:
Prof. Li-Hua Chen is from the School of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Life Sciences at Wuhan University of Technology (WUT), Wuhan, China. Prof. Chen specializes in the design and synthesis of hierarchical porous functional materials and their applications in energy and environmental catalysis. He has published more than 160 publications indexed by the Science Citation Index (SCI) in leading journals, including Chemical Reviews , Chemical Society Reviews, Nature Nanotechnology , Angewandte Chemie International Edition , Advanced Materials , and National Science Review, and holds over 60 Chinese invention patents, making him a recognized leader in the field.
Dr.-Ing. Bo Peng is the Deputy Director of the Department of Basic Research and Director of the Youth Academic Committee at the SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing (RIPP), Beijing, China. He earned his BS and MS degrees from Tsinghua University (Beijing, China) and Nanjing University (Nanjing, China), respectively, and his Doctor of Engineering (Dr.-Ing.) in Chemical Technology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), Munich, Germany, in 2016, becoming the first Asian recipient of this degree in his department. Following his doctorate, Dr. Peng conducted postdoctoral research at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA, USA, in 2017, and became a research engineer there in 2019. He returned to China later that year to join RIPP, where he was promoted to Institute Expert in 2022 and Research Fellow in 2023. He has published over 60 peer-reviewed articles, filed more than 60 patents, and delivered over 10 keynote and invited talks at international academic conferences.
Editor: Qian-Ni Bian
Language Editor: Catherine Yang
Production Editor: Ting Xu
Respectfully Submitted by the Editorial Office of Chemical Synthesis
