Name: Kai Yuan

Gender: Male

Academic Title: Professor / Doctoral Supervisor

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Major: Polymer Chemistry

E-mail: kai.yuan@ncu.edu.cn

Research Interests: Energy Chemistry

Education and Professional Experience

• 2006.09–2010.06:      Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Nanchang      University

• 2010.09–2013.06:      Master of Science in Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Nanchang      University

• 2013.09–2016.06:      Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry, School of Chemistry, Nanchang      University

• 2014.03–2017.02:      Doctor of Philosophy, University of Wuppertal, Germany

• 2017.02–Present:      Professor & Doctoral Supervisor, Nanchang University

Teaching Profile

Lectures on undergraduate and postgraduate courses including Discipline Introduction, Organic Chemistry, Fundamentals of Engineering Chemistry, Functional Polymers, and University Chemistry.

Research Profile

Dr. Yuan is mainly engaged in the research of electrochemical energy conversion and storage materials, as well as device integration. He has published more than 80 academic papers as the first or corresponding author in prestigious journals such as Nature Communications, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Advanced Materials, Energy & Environmental Science, and CCS Chemistry. One of his papers was selected as one of the Top 100 Most Influential International Academic Papers in China.

Research Projects (Principal Investigator)

1. General      Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.      52573228), 2026.01–2029.12, Ongoing

2. General      Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.      52373187), 2024.01–2027.12, Ongoing

3. General      Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.      52073137), 2021.01–2024.12, Completed

4. Young      Scientists Fund Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China      (Grant No. 21704038), 2018.01–2020.12, Completed

5. Regional      Science Fund Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China      (Grant No. 51763018), 2018.01–2021.12, Completed

6. Jiangxi      Provincial Distinguished Young Scientists Fund Project (Grant No.      2018ACB21021), 2018.01–2020.12, Completed

7. National      Natural Science Foundation of China Excellent Young Scientists Fund      Cultivation Project (Grant No. 20202ZDB01009), 2020.01–2021.12, Completed

Academic Affiliations and Social Services

• Young      Editorial Board Member, eScience, SusMat, SmartMat, CarbonEnergy,      Energy Materials

Awards and Honors

1. World's      Top 2% Scientists (2020–2025)

2. Excellent      Doctoral Dissertation Supervisor of Jiangxi Province (2023–2025)

3. Youth      Program of the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the CPC      (2023)

4. Jiangxi      Provincial "Double Thousand Talents Plan" (2022)

5. Provincial      Demonstration Innovation Team for Postgraduate Supervisors of Jiangxi      Province (2021)

6. Second      Prize of Natural Science Award of the Ministry of Education (2019)

7. Second      Prize of Jiangxi Provincial Teaching Achievement Award (2019)

8. Jiangxi      Provincial Outstanding Young Talents in Science and Technology Innovation      Training Program (2019)

9. Jiangxi      Provincial Distinguished Young Scientists Fund (2018)

10. Young      Jinggang Scholars Program (2018)

11. National      Postdoctoral Innovative Talents Support Program (2017)

12. Excellent      Doctoral Dissertation of Jiangxi Province (2017)

Representative Publications

1. Liansheng      Lan, Yonggan Wu, Yangfan Pei, Yuanhao Wei, Ting Hu, Dirk      Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*. High-Density      Accessible Iron Single-Atom Catalyst for Durable and Temperature-Adaptive      Laminated Zinc-Air Batteries. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(11):      2417711. (ESI Highly Cited Paper)

2. Mingtao      Huang, Qiao Gu, Yonggan Wu, Yuanhao Wei, Yangfan Pei, Ting Hu, Dirk      Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*. Linkage      Microenvironment and Oxygen Electroreduction Reaction Performance      Correlationship of Iron Phthalocyanine‐based Polymers. Angewandte      Chemie International Edition, 2025, 64: e202501506. (Hot Paper)

3. Yonggan      Wu, Yuqin Zhang, Liansheng Lan, Ting Hu, Shaobin Tang*, Dirk      Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*. Engineering      Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer to Break Activity-Stability Trade-off of      Oxygen Electroreduction Catalysts for Temperature-Adaptive Zn-Air Battery.      Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025, 64: e202502019. (Hot      Paper)

4. Bing Wu,      Haolan Yang, Longbin Li, Xiannong Tang, Yonggan Wu, Bingyu Huang, Dirk      Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Ming Qiu, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*. Integrating      PtCo Intermetallic with Highly Graphitized Carbon towards Durable Oxygen      Electroreduction in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells. Advanced      Materials, 2025, 37(12): 2500096. (ESI Highly Cited Paper)

5. Bing Wu,      Guanping Wei, Peipei Zhu, Qiang Huang, Kai Yuan*, Longbin Li*,      Yiwang Chen*. Unlocking Dual-Pathway Low-Potential Aldehyde Oxidation on      Chromium-Doped Copper Catalysts. Angewandte Chemie International      Edition, 2026, 65: e202525384.

6. Bingyu      Huang, Qiao Gu, Xiannong Tang, Dirk Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Kai Yuan*,      Yiwang Chen*. Experimentally Validating Sabatier Plot by Molecular Level      Microenvironment Customization for Oxygen Electroreduction. Nature      Communications, 2024, 15: 6077.

7. Longbin      Li, Xiannong Tang, Bing Wu, Bingyu Huang, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*.      Advanced Architectures of Air Electrodes in Zinc–Air Batteries and      Hydrogen Fuel Cells. Advanced Materials, 2024, 36: 2308326. (ESI      Highly Cited Paper)

8. Kai      Yuan*, Dirk Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Longbin Li,      Ling Shuai, Yizhe Li, Rui Cao, Ming Qiu*, Xiaodong Zhuang*, Michael K.H.      Leung, Yiwang Chen*, Ullrich Scherf. Boosting Oxygen Reduction of Single      Iron Active Sites via Geometric and Electronic Engineering: Nitrogen and      Phosphorus Dual Coordination. Journal of the American Chemical Society,      2020, 142: 2404-2412. (Cover Article, ESI Highly Cited Paper, ESI Hot      Paper, One of the Top 100 Most Influential International Academic Papers      in China 2020)

9. Mengke      Peng, Xiannong Tang, Kang Xiao, Ting Hu, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*.      Polycation-Regulated Electrolyte and Interfacial Electric Fields for      Stable Zinc Metal Batteries. Angewandte Chemie International Edition,      2023, 62(27): e202302701. (ESI Highly Cited Paper, ESI Hot Paper)

10. Bingyu      Huang, Xiannong Tang, Yaoshuai Hong, Longbin Li, Ting Hu, Kai Yuan*,      Yiwang Chen*. Electron-Donors/Acceptors Interaction Enhancing      Electrocatalytic Activity of Metal Organic Polymers for Oxygen Reduction. Angewandte      Chemie International Edition, 2023, 62(33): e202306667.

11. Longbin      Li, Xiannong Tang, Senhe Huang, Chenbao Lu, Dirk Lützenkirchen-Hecht, Kai      Yuan*, Xiaodong Zhuang*, Yiwang Chen*. Longitudinally Grafting of      Graphene with Iron Phthalocyanine-based Porous Organic Polymer to Boost      Oxygen Electroreduction. Angewandte Chemie International Edition,      2023, 62(22): e202301642.

12. Xiannong      Tang, Yuanhao Wei, Weijuan Zhai, Yonggan Wu, Ting Hu, Kai Yuan*,      Yiwang Chen*. Carbon Nanocage with Maximum Utilization of Atomically      Dispersed Iron as Efficient Oxygen Electroreduction Nanoreactor. Advanced      Materials, 2023, 35: 2208942.

13. Li Wang,      Mengke Peng, Jierui Chen, Ting Hu, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*.      Eliminating Micropore Confinement Effect of Carbonaceous Electrode for      Promoting Zn-Ion Storage Capability. Advanced Materials, 2022, 34:      2203744. (ESI Highly Cited Paper)

14. Longbin      Li, Kai Yuan*, Yiwang Chen*. Breaking the Scaling Relationship      Limit: From Single-Atom to Dual-Atom Catalysts. Accounts of Materials      Research, 2022, 3(6): 584-596. (Top 10 Most Downloaded Article in      2022, One of the Top-Cited Publications)

15. Kai      Yuan, Xiaodong Zhuang, Haiyan Fu, Gunther      Brunklaus, Michael Forster, Yiwang Chen, Xinliang Feng*, Ullrich Scherf*.      Two-Dimensional Core-Shelled Porous Hybrids as Highly Efficient Catalysts      for Oxygen Reduction Reaction. Angewandte Chemie International Edition,      2016, 55: 6858-6863.