Title: Structure activity relationships of active sites in zeolites
Speaker: Prof. Guangchao Li (Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University)
Invited by: Prof. Xuehui Li
Time: November 2, 2026 (Monday), 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
Venue: Large Conference Room, 4th Floor of the Shaw Engineering Building, Wushan Campus
Organizer: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
Biography
Guangchao Li is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a recipient of the Guangdong Zhujiang Young Top Talent Program. He earned his PhD from the Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and conducted joint doctoral training at the University of Oxford, UK. He joined The Hong Kong Polytechnic University as Research Assistant Professor at the end of 2023.
His research focuses on advanced characterization of active sites within porous materials such as zeolites by means of solid state NMR and synchrotron based techniques, as well as their applications in energy conversion related reactions. Over the past five years, he has published multiple papers as first or corresponding author in high impact journals including Science, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, and Advanced Materials. Notably, as the first author, he reported the precise atomic localization of isolated Al single sites and Al pair sites within H ZSM 5 zeolite in Science (2025). He is the principal investigator of the General Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, GRF grants from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council, and general research projects funded by Guangdong and Shenzhen authorities. He serves as a youth editorial board member for NSR Interface and was selected as a 2025 Journal of Materials Chemistry A Emerging Investigator.
Abstract
The precise site occupancy and spatial distribution of aluminum atoms within zeolite frameworks fundamentally determine the geometric configuration of acid sites, local microenvironmental charge, and resultant catalytic performance. Nevertheless, limited by insufficient scattering contrast for distinguishing Si and Al in conventional characterization techniques, accurate quantitative determination of framework Al positions has long remained challenging. Centered on the characterization of zeolite active sites, this presentation highlights the application of resonant soft X ray diffraction for pinpointing the site occupancy and spatial distribution of framework Al atoms in zeolites. Combined with neutron powder diffraction, solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, and probe molecule adsorption techniques, the adsorption behaviors toward probe molecules and corresponding microenvironmental responses of distinct acid sites are revealed at atomic to molecular scales. Through cross validation among multiple complementary characterization tools, this talk further elaborates the intrinsic correlation among “framework Al localization acid site microenvironment catalytic structure activity relationship”, delivering atomic level structural foundations for the rational design of zeolitic acid catalysts.
Announced by School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.