On December 9, at the invitation of Associate Dean Professor Baochang Sun and Professor Zhipeng Li from the College of Chemical Engineering, Professor Kai Wang from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, and Researcher Xin Feng from the Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IPE, CAS) visited our School and delivered academic lectures entitled “Principles and Applications of Electrochemical Microreaction Technology” and “Multiphase Reactor Modeling, Measurement, and Industrial Applications”, respectively. Faculty members and graduate students of the School actively participated in the academic exchange.

In his lecture, Professor Kai Wang gave a detailed introduction to microreactor technology as an effective approach for intensifying electrochemical synthesis and addressing the limitations of conventional electrolyzers, such as large reactor volumes, low electrode specific surface areas, insufficient mass and heat transfer performance, severe thermal effects, and difficulties in precise control. He emphasized that electrochemical microreaction technology represents a frontier direction at the intersection of microchemical engineering and electrochemical reaction engineering. Professor Wang further presented his group’s latest research progress, including the development of visualized electrochemical microchannel reactors, micro-scale experimental and modeling methods based on machine learning, and systematic investigations into the effects of electrolytic gas bubble generation and coalescence on reaction overpotential. He also introduced clean electrochemical oxidation, reduction, and coupling processes based on microchannel reactors, as well as scale-up and optimization strategies for electrochemical microreactors, which have guided technological innovations in the production of high-end chemicals such as oxalamide compounds and musk ketone intermediates.

In his lecture, Researcher Xin Feng provided a comprehensive overview of the applications of multiphase reactors in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and defense industries. He introduced his research team’s reactor scale-up technologies based on theoretical modeling, numerical simulation, and advanced measurement techniques, which enable accurate prediction of flow, transport, and reaction processes within reactors. Researcher Feng further elaborated on the team’s developments in entrainment vortex image measurement systems and micromixing evaluation methods, the proposed bubSAM image-processing approach based on general neural networks, and laser-enhanced high-magnification telecentric imaging systems. He clearly demonstrated how fundamental theoretical research can effectively guide performance regulation, design, and scale-up of industrial multiphase reactors.

This academic event broadened graduate students’ academic horizons and, as part of the School’s “Chemical Engineering for Grand Craftsmanship · Young Scholars Forum” series, successfully promoted the enhancement of young faculty members’ research capabilities, effectively supporting the sustained development of the School’s research endeavors.