The 21st Joint Annual Conference of CSCST-SCI
25th October 2014 @ Univeristy of Surrey, United Kingdom (Programme)
Summary
On 25 October 2014, more than 70 participants convened at University of Surrey for the Conference on Integrated System Approaches to High Value Manufacturing jointly organised by the CSCST-UK (the Chinese Society of Chemical Science and Technology in the UK) and SCI (the Society of Chemical Industry). This was the 21st event of the joint conference series, and has attracted participants from 16 universities. This year’s conference had a very packed programme with 2 plenary talks, 6 keynote talks, 14 oral presentations, and 11 posters.
The opening session was hosted by Dr Shanning Dong, Chairman of CSCST-UK and the Conference General Co-Chair, who gave a welcome speech on behalf of CSCST-UK. In the speech, he acknowledged the generous support from the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering of University of Surrey, SCI, Royal Society of Chemistry, and the sponsorship from Unilever and the Yangtze Delta Region Institute of Tsinghua University (ZheJiang). Dr Tao Chen, who is a lecturer in the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey and the Conference General Co-Chair, gave a welcome speech on behalf of the local host. Dr Zhenxing Li represented the Science & Technology Section of the Chinese Embassy in the UK to recognise the important role that CSCST-UK has played in bridging the research communities between China and the UK and stated the Embassy’s continuous support to the Society. Professor Joseph Sweeney then introduced SCI and the activities of its Chinese UK group.
The conference featured two plenary lectures. Professor Jonathan Seville, the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Science at the University of Surrey, introduced the history of the University and the main research interests of his group. Dr Franjo Cecelja, a senior lecturer from the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, talked in detail his approach based on holistic optimisation modelling and ontology engineering approach to design the optimised supply chains for both first and second generation of bio-refineries.
The Conference also presented six keynote talks by Dr Rongjun Chen (Imperial College London), Dr Aidong Yang (University of Oxford), Dr Chenyu Du (University of Nottingham), Dr Xia Yongde (University of Exeter), Dr Jiawei Wang (Aston University) and Dr Tiancun Xiao (University of Oxford).
In the closing session, 
Dr Shanning Dong announced the winners of the RSC-CSCST Emerging Talent Prize and gave the Prize certificates to the winners on behalf of Royal Society of Chemistry. Tthe RSC-CSCST Emerging Talent Prize supports the younger generation of UK-based researchers to travel to China for meetings that are related to collaboration there.
The co-Chairs of the SCI Chinese UK group, Dr Cigang Xu and Dr Kenneth Chung, introduced activities of the group, and then presented the awards for the best oral and poster presentations. Dr Nigel Dong then wrapped up the programme by acknowledging all contributions from the participants, sponsors and the local organising committee.
Winners of the presentation awards:
| Best Oral Presentations | Best Poster Presentation | |
| 1st Prize | Mohammad Vaezi (University of Southampton) | Jianyi Zhang (University of Surrey) |
| 2nd Prize | Nannan Wang (University of Exeter), Bahareh Yazdani (University of Exeter) | |
| 3rd Prize | Olumayowa Kajero (University of Surrey), Anthony Wu (University of Surrey) |
Winners of RSC-CSCST Emerging Talent Prize:
| Dr Shan Jiang (University of Liverpool) |
| Dr Songsong Liu (University College London) |
More conference photos can be found here.
Introduction
On behalf of the Chinese Society of Chemical Science and Technology in the UK (CSCST-UK) and the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI), we cordially invite you to participate in the 21th Joint Annual Conference of CSCST-SCI, which will be hosted by the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering of University of Surrey on Saturday 25th October 2014.
This year’s annual conference will feature the theme Integrated System Approaches to High Value Manufacturing. Ever increasing global competition has driven developed and emerging economies towards "high value manufacturing" (HVM), i.e. "the application of leading-edge technical knowledge and expertise to the creation of products, production processes, and associated services which have strong potential to bring sustainable growth and high economic value" (to quote the UK TSB). HVM has a broad scope spanning from pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, consumer goods, advanced materials to energy products, which are of strategic importance to both UK and China. This conference aims to bring together leading UK-based Chinese researchers in this broad discipline to showcase the latest developments in HVM. The conference will highlight the use of holistic and systems approaches, through integrated data collection, computational modelling and informatics, for improved design, production and management in HVM. Abstracts that address all aspects of high value manufacturing, from fundamental research to applied developmental work, are welcome. Meanwhile, research work on any other topics relevant to chemical science and technology are also highly welcome.
With helps from our generous sponsors, the conference is free for UK-based students and researchers with free lunch provided. Also, the opportunity for a tour to the Ion Beam Centre at the University of Surrey will be offered to attendees.
CSCST-UK, established in 1994, is a professional organisation of Chinese researchers and scholars currently working in the UK. Its objective is to promote and strengthen communication between academia and industry, exchange of ideas and potential collaborations between China and the UK.
Originally established in 1881, the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) is an unique international forum where science meets business on impartial and independent ground. The society offers a chance to share information between sectors as diverse as food and agriculture, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, environmental science and safety. The SCI Chinese UK Group is the youngest of all SCI regional groups, which caters for the applied scientific interests of Chinese diaspora.
University of Surrey, obtained its charter on 9 September 1966, is a public research university located within the county town of Guildford, Surrey, in the South East of England. Ground-breaking research at Surrey is bringing direct benefits to many spheres of life – helping industry to maintain its competitive edge and creating improvements in the areas of health, medicine, space science,
the environment, communications, defence and social policy. The Department of Chemical and Process Engineering undertakes research in a wide range of interconnected areas including Water Processing Technology, Process and Information Systems Engineering, Particle Technology, Pharmaceutical Engineering, Electrochemical Energy Technology, Multiscale Modelling and Engineering Education Research. The department is also a joint winner of the Queen's Award for wide-ranging and global work improving access to safe drinking water and sanitation.
Conference Committee
Advisory Board:
Prof Rex Thorpe (Head of Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Surrey)
Prof Charley Wu (Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Surrey)
Conference Organisers:
Dr Tao Chen (University of Surrey)
Dr Nigel Dong (Chair of CSCST-UK, International Energy Agency Clean Coal Centre)
Prof Dongsheng Wen (Chair of Chinese Chemistry Society – UK Section, University of Leeds)
Dr Kenneth Chung (Chair of SCI Chinese UK Group, Phillips & Leigh)
Dr Chunlei (Marvin) Pei (University of Surrey)
International Communication:
Prof Tao Wu (Nottingham University (Ningbo), China)
Dr Chuang Peng (Notthingham University (Ningbo), China)
Dr Jingping Hu (Huazhong University of Science & Technology)
Dr Hongliang Zhang (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)
Webmaster:
Dr Songsong Liu (University College London)
Local Orgainising Committee:
Dr Pablo García-Triñanes
Mr Jiecheng (Jason) Yang
Mr Olumayowa Kajero
Dr Alexander Krok
Ms Serena Schiano
Mr Simone Loreti
Mr Jianyi Zhang