Pioneering at an atomic level

Under the national advocacy of "early talent development, fast talent development", Zhang, while in the first year of high school, was recommended by Ankang Middle School in Shaanxi province to take the college entrance exam early, and was admitted to the department of chemistry at a local university.

"Chemistry is the study of the mysteries of matter. After delving into it, I found synthesizing new substances quite fascinating," said Zhang, who, at the age of 15, was 20 years younger than the oldest student in his class.

Zhang dived into the world of chemistry and catalysis. Eleven years later, Zhang obtained his PhD from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics.

In 2011, Zhang and his collaborators reported the preparation of single-atom catalysts for the first time internationally, and based on this, they proposed the concept of "single-atom catalysis".

In these catalysts, all platinum atoms are in a single-atom dispersed state, exhibiting not only outstanding stability but also catalytic activity several times higher than traditional nanocatalysts, maximizing the utilization of precious metals.

In October last year, a research achievement in which Zhang participated moved from the laboratory to the real world. The technology involved the catalytic conversion of biological raw materials such as corn stalks into ethylene glycol, passing a 1,000-metric-ton experiment, indicating that mass production was feasible.

"This pioneering technology developed in China has bridged the gap from basic research discoveries to 1,000-ton scale applications, paving the way for the green production of ethylene glycol in the future," Zhang said.

Ethylene glycol is a crucial industrial raw material. Common items in daily life such as plastic bottles and fabrics made of synthetic fibers rely on ethylene glycol as a raw material. The global annual consumption of ethylene glycol exceeds 30 million tons, and as a major manufacturing country, China's annual consumption of ethylene glycol exceeds 20 million tons.

Zheng Mingyuan, a member of Zhang's team and a researcher at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, said: "It took us over 10 years to progress from basic science to practical applications. Having completed the 1,000-ton production test, we have cleared the final obstacle for the application of this technology on a 10,000-ton scale, marking the 'last mile' of industrial application.

"Next, we can establish a 10,000-ton production line to truly turn this technology from a theoretical concept in textbooks into practical production," he said.