Foreign and Domestic Outstanding Young Scholar Forum of South China University of Technology (SCUT) set up on November 2015, aimed at inviting global outstanding young scholar with different academic background to have a discussion on frontier and hot issues.Through this platform, we can inspire each other, broaden our vision, enhance international communication and cooperation, and promote common development.

Time: March 20th, 2019 (Wednesday) 9:00 a.m.

Venue: Lecture Room 324, AISMST (Building #2, KeJiYuan, North Campus)

Agenda: 

Faculties and students are warmly welcome.

South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology

March 13, 2019

1.Linking rheological and mechanical properties of polymers to macromolecular structure（Dr. Qian Huang）

Abstract：

The rheological behavior of polymer melts and solutions in processing influences their final mechanical properties. While it is known that rheology of polymer liquids is highly sensitive to their macromolecular structure, the underlying physics is not fully understood even for the simplest structure (i. e. linear polymers).

In this presentation, we start from our latest work in which we show that conventional polymers can have unconventional properties by just changing their molecular conformation in processing. We point out the importance of sub-chain stretch of macromolecules, and then show how chain stretch is influenced by different macromolecular structures by comparing the rheological behavior between 1) polymer melts and solutions both with linear structure; 2) polymer melts with linear and star structures; and 3) polymer melts with random branched structure and blends with linear/ring structures. Interpretation of the rheological behavior will be compared with the results from small angle neutron scattering. Finally, we show the importance of fracture in polymer liquids which probably limits sub-chain stretch of macromolecules.

The results presented shed light into the fascinating flow properties of polymers with different macromolecular structures and advance the state-of-the-art in polymer physics. At the same time, they also open the route for molecular design of biodegradable polymers. 

Brief Biography:

Dr. Qian Huang received her bachelor's degree in polymer materials from Zhejiang University in 2004, and master's degree in polymer engineering from Technical University of Denmark (DTU) in 2006. In 2010 she got the Ph.D Fellowship from the EU 7th Framework - Marie Curie Initial Training Network (Dynacop). She received her doctoral degree in April 2013 from DTU Chemical Engineering. After that she continued her research at the same department as a postdoc and later as a researcher. Her work focuses on linking the mechnical and rheological properties of polymer materials to their molecular structure. She has published 33 papers in SCI indexed journals including PRL, ACS Macro Letters, Macromolecules and so on. She has also given several invited talks in international conferences.

2. Hidden pathways in molecular and colloidal self-assembly revealed through the development of in situ characterization methods（Dr. Yu Wang）

Abstract：

Molecular and colloidal self-assembly has been recognized as an important “bottom-up” approach to construct functional materials and self-organized systems for various applications. An understanding on the self-assembly pathways is significant for designing routes to the desired structures and the emergence of novel properties. However, it remains a great challenge to unveil the hidden pathways and translate states during self-assembly due to the difficulty of in situ characterizations, especially in complex hierarchical and/or multi-component systems. In this talk, we report our developments on in situ characterization methods and their effectiveness in revealing the hidden pathways during molecular and colloidal self-assembly. For instances, using in situ combined spectroscopies, we elucidate the transient structures during the self-assembly of organic cages and provide deep insights into the chiral amplification in multi-component supramolecular systems. Through a variety of in situ studies on molecular assembly, we discover and establish a new assembly mode that we name catalzyed assembly (catassembly) for its resemblance to catalysis. Finally, we highlight our discovery of the dynamic deformation of individual PbSe nanocrystals during colloidal assembly into superlattice through in-situ liquid-phase TEM. We show an unprecedented phenomenon that inorganic semiconductors are “soft materials” at the nanoscale.

Brief Biography:

Dr. Yu Wang obtained his B.Sc. degree from the department of intensive institution at Nanjing University in 2009, and his Ph.D. degree from the department of chemistry at Xiamen University in 2016. From May 2016 to Aug 2017, he was a post-doc researcher at the University of Akron. Since Aug 2017, he works as post-doc in the department of materials science and engineering at University of California, Berkeley. He is interested in self-assembled materials, nanotechnology and in situ characterizations. His research focuses on developing controllable assembly methods to construct (hierarchical) nanomaterials from small molecules, macromolecules, and nanocrystals and exploring their emergent properties in chemistry and physics. He has published 15 research papers. In recent five years, as the first or corresponding author he has published 9 papers on high-impact journals such as Nature Commun. (three times), Chem. Soc. Rev., and J. Am. Chem. Soc.。

3. Discrete Metal-Oxides: Functional Materials by Design（Dr. Peng Yang）

Abstract：

With characteristics of chemically tunable structures and precisely controlled functionalities, polyoxometalates (POMs) figure prominently in significant prospects, most notably catalysis, magnetism, biomedicine, and newly emerged proton conduction and lithium ion battery materials.

i)  The frontier of POMs based exclusively on noble metal centers (e.g., PdII, PtIII, and AuIII) as addenda is progressing rapidly, in particular polyoxopalladates(II), which possess great potential as noble metal-based catalysts. The first part of presentation is focused on the design and synthesis of guest metal ion-incorporated polyoxopalladates with fundamentally novel structures and physicochemical properties.

ii)  Recent developments on Lewis-acid functionalized POMs as enhanced proton conductors as well as polyoxometalate−cyclodextrin metal−organic frameworks with tunable structures and customized functions will be introduced in the second part.

Brief Biography:

Dr. Yang got his doctoral degree from Jacobs University Bremen on June 2016. Since December 2016, he has been a post-doc researcher at King Abdullah University of Science & Technology. His specialities are syntheses, structures and properties of novel polyoxometalates based on palladium. His interests also include design and preparation of polyacid proton conductor and porous material. He has published 25 research papers. As the first author he has published 14 papers on journals such as Acc. Chem. Res., J. Am. Chem. Soc., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. (three times), Chem. Sci. and so on. During his doctoral study, Dr. Peng Yang had in-depth cooperation with ExxonMobil of the United States, jointly applied for 4 international patents and obtained horizontal financial support in the industrial field for many times.