On October 25, 2025, the 2025 World Laureates Forum (WLF) Material Science Conference was successfully held at the Lingang Center in Shanghai, jointly organized by the Shanghai Lingang Science and Technology Innovation Development Foundation and East China Normal University (ECNU). Centering on the theme “The Future of Catalysis, Energy, and Materials Science,” the conference built a high-level platform for in-depth dialogue among world-leading scientists and industry leaders. It not only focused on the “From 0 to 1” breakthroughs at the scientific frontier, but also aimed to bridge the “last mile” between innovation and real-world application, resonating with the industrial development pulse of the Lingang Special Area.
As one of the co-organizers, the Lingang Science and Technology Innovation Development Foundation remains committed to bringing the world’s most cutting-edge scientific ideas to Lingang, enabling active innovation resources to converge and collide here.
Professor SHI Guoyue, Standing Committee Member of the Party Committee and Vice President of East China Normal University hosted the opening ceremony.
Professor HE Mingyuan, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Lifetime Professor at ECNU, and Co-Chair of the Conference, delivered the opening speech. He elaborated on the strategic significance of material science as the foundation of natural sciences and modern technology, emphasizing that “greening” and interdisciplinary integration will be the core directions of future development.
He also encouraged young scientists to embrace exploration and shoulder the mission of scientific and technological innovation in this new era.
Professor Jürgen CARO, Co-Chair of the Material Science Conference, Member of the German Academy of Sciences, and 2020 Eni Award Laureate for Advanced Environmental Solutions, stressed in his speech that enabling scientific knowledge to move beyond laboratories and serve industrial practice is a driving force for transitioning societies toward ecological sustainability.
01 Focusing on “Green Carbon Science”: Tracing Innovative Pathways
Caption: Academician HAN Buxing, CAS, chaired the keynote session.
During the keynote presentations, multiple scientists shared their latest research achievements：
Professor LI Can, Academician of the CAS, highlighted China’s leading position in pursuing the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals through clean energy technologies such as wind, solar, and green electricity. He described how these renewable resources are used to produce green hydrogen, which can then react with carbon dioxide to synthesize liquid solar methanol fuels, placing China at the forefront of global innovation in this field.
Professor Jürgen CARO, Member of the German Academy of Sciences, presented on nanoporous materials with hierarchical pore structures, illustrating their unique advantages in gas transport and separation. He compared their working mechanism to that of human lungs, enabling precise gas intake, exchange, and exhaust.
Professor CHEN Zhongwei, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, pointed out that the core challenges for fuel cell development lie in cost, durability, and power density. He called for closer integration of artificial intelligence with battery management systems to drive breakthroughs from both materials innovation and system optimization.
Professor Makoto FUJITA, 2018 Wolf Prize Laureate, showcased how metal coordination-driven self-assembly can be used to construct cage-like coordination structures with defined cavities. His innovative “crystal sponge” technique enables structural analysis of non-crystalline molecules, opening new avenues for natural product identification and pharmaceutical discovery.
Professor SUN Licheng, CAS Academician, discussed that by 2025, China’s total wind and photovoltaic power generation capacity had reached 1.7 billion kilowatts. He proposed that developing cation exchange membrane electrolysis and related technologies can efficiently convert intermittent renewable power into storable chemical energy, providing a strong driving force for building a sustainable society.
Professor MA Dawei, CAS Academician, emphasized that metal-catalyzed coupling reactions offer new pathways for developing functional molecules, significantly accelerating innovation in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and advanced materials.
These breakthroughs in artificial photosynthesis, organic synthesis, and electrocatalytic energy storage together outlined a promising vision of a green transformation driven by material science.
02 Tackling Industrialization Challenges and Building an Innovation Ecosystem
One of the highlights of the conference was a roundtable discussion chaired by Academician HAN Buxing.
Panelists included Academicians LI Can, YANG Weimin, SUN Licheng, and CHEN Zhongwei, as well as LI Mingfeng, President of the SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing. They engaged in deep discussions on three core topics: “The Leading Role of Catalysis Science in Achieving the Dual-Carbon Goals,” “Reshaping Catalysis Research through Artificial Intelligence,” and “Bridging the Last Mile of Catalysis Industrialization.”
Experts agreed that fundamental catalysis research remains the core driving force behind transformation in energy and materials science. They noted that artificial intelligence will accelerate the shift from empirical trial-and-error to intelligent design, while overcoming industrialization bottlenecks requires an efficient collaborative ecosystem integrating industry, academia, and research.
In the subsequent case study session chaired by LI Mingfeng, President of the SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing Co., Ltd., experts including LIN Wei, Vice President of SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing Co., Ltd.; LI Yingcheng, Vice President of SINOPEC (Shanghai) Research Institute of Petrochemical Technology Co., Ltd.; WU Peng, Professor at ECNU; SHEN Wenjie, Associate Dean of the School of Physical Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University; and ZHONG Liangshu, Director of the Center for Low-Carbon Conversion Science and Engineering, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, CAS, shared their cutting-edge practices and innovative solutions in advanced energy, energy storage materials, and CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage).
Although the 2025 WLF Material Science Conference has concluded, the sparks of scientific thought and momentum for innovation it ignited will continue to resonate in Lingang. The Shanghai Lingang Science and Technology Innovation Development Foundation will continue to play the role of a connector, bringing together the world’s top intellectual resources, catalyzing more “from lab to market” success stories, and contributing to the vision of transforming Shanghai Lingang into a globally recognized hub for scientific innovation and industrial advancement.
Source: East China Normal University
