# Jiayin Yuan
Jiayin Yuan is a materials chemist who works on functional polymers, poly(ionic liquid)s and porous carbon materials, and has been Professor of Materials Chemistry at [Stockholm University](https://www.edgepedia.org/stockholm-university) since January 2019.[1](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266) His research targets functional polymers and carbon materials for carbon capture and utilization and clean water management.[1](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266) Born and raised in Shanghai, China, he studied and researched in Germany and the United States before moving to Sweden.[2](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/making-future-plastic-carbon-dioxide)
| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Position | Professor of Materials Chemistry, Stockholm University, since January 2019[1](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266) |
| Field | |
| PhD | University of Bayreuth, 2005–2009, with Axel H. E. Müller[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan) |
| Wallenberg | |[4](http://www.yuan-group.com/PI.html) • [6](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/porous-carbon-electrodes-bode-well-environment)
| Signature work | Thermal carbonization by poly(ionic liquid)s, *Angewandte Chemie International Edition*, 2013[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan) |
## Education and early career
Yuan completed a bachelor's degree (B.Sc.) at [Shanghai Jiao Tong University](https://www.edgepedia.org/shanghai-jiao-tong-university) from 1998 to 2002, with a thesis on polymer/CdSe and CdS nanocomposites under Prof. Dr. Xuefeng Qian.[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan) He then took an M.Sc. at the University of Siegen in Germany (2002–2004), studying reactions of melamine model compounds with isocyanates under Prof. Dr. Werner Mormann.[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan)
According to the Fund of the Chemical Industry, his PhD was at the University of Bayreuth from 2005 to 2009, with the thesis "One-dimensional hybrid nanomaterials based on cylindrical polymer brushes" supervised by [Axel H. E. Müller](https://www.edgepedia.org/axel-h-e-muller); the degree was awarded summa cum laude.[7](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/5677436/dozentenpreis-des-fonds-der-chemischen-industrie-geht-an-jiayin-yuan) After postdoctoral work with [Markus Antonietti](https://www.edgepedia.org/markus-antonietti) at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam-Golm, he started his independent career in 2011 leading a research group in the Department of Colloid Chemistry.[7](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/5677436/dozentenpreis-des-fonds-der-chemischen-industrie-geht-an-jiayin-yuan)
## Career record
The dated appointments run as follows: postdoc at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, 2009–2010; associate professor at Stockholm University, 2018; full professor since January 2019 per Stockholm University (his group CV dates the full professorship to December 2018).[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan) • [4](http://www.yuan-group.com/PI.html) • [1](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266) He joined Stockholm University's Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry in 2018 as a Wallenberg Academy Fellow.[1](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266)
**Beyond the laboratory.**
## Research: poly(ionic liquid)s and porous carbons
[Poly(ionic liquid)s](https://www.edgepedia.org/poly-ionic-liquid-s) (PILs) are a subclass of polyelectrolytes that feature an ionic liquid species in each monomer repeating unit, connected through a polymeric backbone, so that the properties of ionic liquids are incorporated into polymer chains.[8](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0079670013000361) The first PILs, vinylimidazolium-based ionic liquid monomers, were polymerized in the 1970s but attracted little attention; at the end of the 1990s, polymerizing numerous types of IL monomers was pioneered in pursuit of solid ion conductor materials.[8](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0079670013000361) PIL research has a strong application focus, including polymer electrolytes and liquid-crystal nanostructures, and PILs behave as distinctive polyelectrolytes with tunable glass transition temperature and broader solubility than achievable by other methods.[8](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0079670013000361)
The group also develops polymer-derived heteroatom-doped porous carbons used as electrodes or electrocatalysts in batteries, supercapacitors, electrolyzers, and fuel cells, for energy, sensing, and catalytic applications.[5](http://yuan-group.com/) PILs bring advantages for carbonization, including negligible vapor pressure, high thermostability, ease of shaping and processing, and heteroatom doping; PIL-derived carbons in shapes such as hollow spheres, nanofibers, and monoliths serve as fire-retardant materials, adsorbents and supports, and nitrogen-doped carbons generate fine, well-dispersed metal nanoparticles that show catalytic activity.[9](https://doi.org/10.1021/bk-2014-1173.ch002) A 2013 *Angewandte Chemie* paper on thermal carbonization by poly(ionic liquid)s (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 6028–6032) appears among his publications.[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan)
## Representative work
A representative paper is the 2013 *Angewandte Chemie International Edition* article on thermal carbonization by poly(ionic liquid)s (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2013, 52, 6028–6032), which appears among his publications.[3](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan)
## Funding and honors
**ERC grants.**
**Wallenberg Fellowship.** The fellowship supports the CatchCO2 project, which aims to convert carbon dioxide into fossil-free ethylene, a monomer precursor to polyethylene, using renewable electric energy; this both reduces atmospheric carbon dioxide and cuts the carbon footprint of fossil-based plastic production.[2](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/making-future-plastic-carbon-dioxide) The core of CatchCO2 is a new generation of metal/carbon membranes, currently tested on a small scale, with the goal of scaling to hundreds or thousands of flow cells for industrial use.[2](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/making-future-plastic-carbon-dioxide) His lab refines a type of electrode called a "porous hetero-doped gradient carbon membrane", whose nanoporous carbon membrane electrodes are more efficient at producing and converting energy than traditional carbon powder electrodes.[6](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/porous-carbon-electrodes-bode-well-environment)
**Earlier awards.** He received the Otto-Warburg Award in 2009, the Dr. Hermann-Schnell Award in 2015, and the Dozentenpreis of the Fund of the Chemical Industry.[7](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/5677436/dozentenpreis-des-fonds-der-chemischen-industrie-geht-an-jiayin-yuan)
## References
1. [Jiayin Yuan, Stockholm University profile](https://www.su.se/english/profiles/j/jiyu0266)
2. [Making future plastic from carbon dioxide, Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/making-future-plastic-carbon-dioxide)
3. [Dr. Jiayin Yuan | Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/155133/Jiayin_Yuan)
4. [Yuan Group, PI page](http://www.yuan-group.com/PI.html)
5. [Yuan Group, Functional Polymers and Carbons](http://yuan-group.com/)
6. [Porous carbon electrodes bode well for the environment | Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation](https://kaw.wallenberg.org/en/research/porous-carbon-electrodes-bode-well-environment)
7. [Jiayin Yuan has been awarded the Dozentenpreis from the Fund of the Chemical Industry](https://www.mpikg.mpg.de/5677436/dozentenpreis-des-fonds-der-chemischen-industrie-geht-an-jiayin-yuan)
8. [Poly(ionic liquid)s: An update (Progress in Polymer Science)](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0079670013000361)
9. [Poly(ionic liquid)-Derived Functional-Shaped Carbon Nanomaterials (ACS Symposium Series, 2014)](https://doi.org/10.1021/bk-2014-1173.ch002)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Physical world and mathematics › Physical and mathematical scientists › Chemists › Researchers in polymer, supramolecular, and materials chemistry › Polymer synthesis and macromolecular chemistry*
*Initially written Sep 21, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Sep 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license