ACS Publications hosts symposia series in China

To bring researchers together from around the world to share advances and exchange ideas, ACS Publications hosted two symposia in China as part of its innovation symposia series, which launched in 2016.

On Sept. 24–26, ACS Publications, in partnership with the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials, hosted the symposium Innovation in Energy Conversion. The event took place in Dalian, China, and was held in conjunction with the 3rd International Symposium on Energy Chemistry & Materials.

“The American Chemical Society shares a commitment to the value of research excellence in chemistry and allied fields,” says Thomas Connelly, ACS executive director and chief executive officer. “We are grateful to our partners in Dalian for hosting the second symposium in a groundbreaking series that provides a prominent forum for scientists, researchers, and students to share exciting research advances and to connect leading energy researchers from around the globe.”

Nearly 500 students and researchers from across China and around the world attended the meeting, where they learned about cutting-edge science, networked with speakers and ACS editors, and met potential collaborators and colleagues.

George C. Schatz, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Physical Chemistry, served as committee chair for the Innovation in Energy Conversion symposium. “I found that the meeting was especially good at bridging different scientific communities, from heterogeneous catalysis to solar fuels and storage,” Schatz says. “The discussions were lively, and it was especially good to see questions from the large number of students and postdocs who were participating.”

The following month, on Oct. 22–24, ACS Publications hosted the symposium Innovation in Molecular Synthesis in partnership with the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry (SIOC).

The event took place in Shanghai and focused on topics including synthetic methodology for efficient and selective reactions, interfacing chemical synthesis and biology, and advanced energy materials. More than 200 students and researchers from around the world listened to talks by 19 speakers from six countries.

“Although chemistry meets a lot of challenges for sustainable development of our society, I believe we have more opportunities than challenges,” says Kuiling Ding, director of SIOC and a member of the organizing committee. “Molecular synthesis is one of the fundamental, central, and cutting-edge areas in the 21st century.”

“The symposium provided a superb opportunity to learn about many cool projects across a tremendous range of topics in the field of organic chemistry,” says Scott J. Miller, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Organic Chemistry and a plenary session chair.

Chemistry Nobel laureate Fraser Stoddart presented a keynote titled “The Design & Synthesis of Artificial Molecular Machines.”