On November 28, 2022, at the closing ceremony of the 4th World Science and Technology Development Forum themed “Openness, Trust and Cooperation”, Shuai Zhigang, member of IUPAC Executive Committee and vice president of the Chinese Chemical Society, officially released the “2022 IUPAC Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry”, and the Film-based Fluorescence Sensors pioneered by Prof. Fang Yu’s group ranked fourth.

Shuai Zhigang said “we are very happy to see that there are more research led by Chinese chemists in the top ten technologies, such as this year’s nanozymes by Prof. Yan Xiyun’s group, film-based fluorescent sensor by Prof. Fang Yu’s group, liquid solar fuels by Prof. Li Can’s group, and fiber batteries and textile displays by Prof. Peng Huisheng’s group”. He hoped that it can attract more attention, support and participation from China’s scientific and technological circles.

IUPAC President Prof. Javier García-Martínez said in his video speech that “through the release of the top ten emerging technologies in chemistry, we hope to showcase how different chemistry technologies are so vital to improve our well-being, to have a more competitive industry, to fight climate change and emerging illnesses, and even more important to engage in a global conversation about the importance in chemistry in tackling our more present challenges.”

Since 2019, the 100th anniversary of its establishment, IUPAC has collaborated with chemical organizations from various countries and regions around the world, including the Chinese Chemical Society, to jointly launch the global annual activity “Top Ten Emerging Technologies in Chemistry”, in the hope to change the current global chemistry and industry landscape and contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by selecting from emerging scientific discoveries to innovative technologies with great potential that have been adopted by adventurous start-ups and bold industries around the world.