On November 29, the inauguration ceremony of Haihe River Laboratory of Materials Green Creation and Manufacturing was held in Nankai District. Liao Guoxun, mayor of Tianjin, and Cheng Jinpei, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and professor of the College of Chemistry at Nankai University jointly unveiled the plaque. Liao Guoxun granted Cheng Jinpei the letter of appointment as the director of the Laboratory. Ma Shunqing, executive vice mayor of Tianjin, Wang Weidong, vice mayor of Tianjin, Cao Xuetao, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of Nankai University, Jin Donghan, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and president of Tianjin University, and Meng Qingsong, secretary general of the Tianjin Municipal Government attended.

Relying on insititutes such as Nankai University and Tianjin University, the Haihe River Laboratory of Materials Green Creation and Manufacturing is established to focus on the key issues on the theory, methods, and technologies of green synthesis and production for materials. Its main research is around four aspects, namely the catalytic synthesis of new carbon-based materials, the green manufacturing of high-end chemicals and membrane materials, high-performance new energy materials, and the green transformation and utilization of carbon-based resources and it carries out core scientific and technological research on the basis of the platform of comprehensive cross-cutting and intelligent creation. By solving the key core problems in chemical industry, it aims at providing innovative sources for green pharmaceuticals, new energy batteries, high-end chemicals, comprehensive utilization of energy, electronic information, etc. to promote the upgrading, economic transformation, and talents gathering of Tianjin's advantageous traditional industries such as fine chemicals, petrochemicals, aerospace, and other industries.

The director of the Laboratory is Academician Cheng Jinpei, and the chief scientists for the four major research fields are Zhou Qilin, Xie Zaiku, Chen Jun, and Xu Chunming, academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The Laboratory has gathered more than 590 researchers, technicians, postdoctors, and other key research fellows, as well as more than 1200 postgraduates. Among them, the core R&D backbone is nearly 200, including 16 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering and 49 winners of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars.

After the inauguration ceremony, Liao Guoxun presided over the first meeting of the first Laboratory Council to study and consider the regulations, relevant construction plans, the council regulations, and other institutional documents of the Laboratory.

Liao Guoxun said that the Laboratory will adhere to the strategic support of green development and the implementation of the double carbon target, unswervingly taking the road of high-quality development oriented by scientific and technological innovation. In the field of materials green creation and manufacturing, there are a large number of universities, scientific research institutions, and representative enterprises in Tianjin, such as Nankai University, Tianjin University, Sinopec, and Bohai Chemical. It is necessary to achieve the common sharing of talents between universities and enterprises, between universities, and between disciplines to stimulate the subjective initiative of scientific research personnel. The Laboratory shall aim at the key research direction, focus on the integration and cross fields of catalytic synthesis of new carbon-based materials, green creation of high-end chemicals and membrane materials, green transformation and utilization of high-performance new energy materials and carbon-based resources, and other areas, and create a clear chain of scientific research incubation towards industrial application.

It is understood that the high-quality promotion of the construction of the Laboratory is a major initiative taken by Tianjin to build an important source of independent innovation and original innovation in China. Based on the advantageous innovation resources of Tianjin, the Laboratory will carry out strategic, cutting-edge, forward-looking, basic, and comprehensive scientific and technological innovation activities in five major research areas, including materials green creation and manufacturing, advanced computing and key software (the information technology application innovation), synthetic biology, modern traditional Chinese medicine, and cell ecology.

(Reported by Fu Kun, edited and translated by Nankai News Team)