Microwave for electrification and decarbonization of the chemical industry

Xin Gao, Shuntaro Tsubaki, Huacheng Zhu, Daniel R. Slocombe, Daming Fan, Roger Ruan

Front. Chem. Sci. Eng. ›› 2025, Vol. 19 ›› Issue (4) : 27.

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Front. Chem. Sci. Eng. ›› 2025, Vol. 19 ›› Issue (4) : 27. DOI: 10.1007/s11705-025-2528-3
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Microwave for electrification and decarbonization of the chemical industry

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Xin Gao, Shuntaro Tsubaki, Huacheng Zhu, Daniel R. Slocombe, Daming Fan, Roger Ruan. Microwave for electrification and decarbonization of the chemical industry. Front. Chem. Sci. Eng., 2025, 19(4): 27 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11705-025-2528-3
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Prof. Xin Gao received his PhD degree in chemical engineering from Tianjin University in 2011, and did academic scholar from 2017 to 2018 at the University of Manchester, UK. He has been a Peiyang Talented professor in Tianjin University, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology. Prof. Xin Gao is the author or co-author of more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific publications and 50 patents, and worked in more than 20 research projects as principal investigator, include NSFC Excellent Young Investigator Funding. His research focuses on application of microwave energy in the process intensification of chemical processes, and energy saving of advanced distillation/reactive distillation technology

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Dr. Shuntaro Tsubaki is currently an associate professor at Faculty of Agriculture and WPI-I2CNER, Kyushu University, and invited associate professor at Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University. He received PhD Kyoto University in 2010. He became an assistant professor at Kochi University (2011–2014) and Tokyo Institute of Technology (2015–2020), then he moved to Osaka University in 2021. His expertise is biomass conversion and heterogeneous catalysis under microwave irradiation

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Prof. Huacheng Zhu is a doctoral supervisor of the School of Electronic Information at Sichuan University. He serves as the secretary general of the “Microwave Energy Chemical Application Special Committee of the Chinese Chemical Society”. He is mainly engaged in theoretical and applied research related to microwave heating, and has led more than 10 scientific research projects, including the National Natural Science Foundation General Program, the National Natural Science Foundation Youth Program, and the Sichuan Provincial Science and Technology Support Program. The relevant technologies have been applied in enterprises such as China National Nuclear Corporation, Nestle in Switzerland, Sinopec, and China National Heavy Duty Truck Corporation

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Prof. Daniel R. Slocombe BEng PhD FHEA is the director of research at Cardiff University School of Engineering. He carries out interdisciplinary research in engineering and chemistry, with a focus upon electromagnetics and materials. He was the recipient of the Philip Leverhulme Prize in 2022 for his pioneering work demonstrating the use of microwave fields in innovative new applications related to decarbonisation, energy and environmental science

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Prof. Daming Fan is the Vice-President of Southwest University. He also serves as the Vice-Chairman of the Frozen and Refrigerated Foods Sub-Committee of the China Food Science and Technology Society, and as a member of the China Food Codex Expert Consultation Committee. He has received numerous awards, including the Young Scientist Award from the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST), the special award at the 17th China Youth Science and Technology Awards, and the first prize for the outstanding achievement award from the Ministry of Education, among others. He has led over 20 research projects as the principal investigator, including the distinguished young scholars fund from National Natural Science Foundation of China and the National Key Research and Development Program of China. His research primarily focuses on both basic and applied studies in food physical processing, with particular emphasis on the application of microwave energy in food processing

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Prof. Roger Ruan is a fellow of the National Academy of Engineering (USA) and is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (USA). He has also been honored with numerous awards, including the International Bioprocessing Association’s Pandey Award, the CAFS Professional Achievement Award, and the Scientist of IAAM Award, among others. He is primarily focused on renewable energy and environmental technologies, as well as food engineering to support sustainable circular economy development. His academic contributions include over 600 papers published in refereed journals, 2 books, and 29 book chapters. He holds a portfolio of 21 US patents. He is also recognized as a top-cited author, ranking 83rd nationally and 190th globally in the field of engineering and technology according to research.com

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