Professor Liu Bin conferred the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Centenary Prize

NUS Vice President (Research and Technology) Professor Liu Bin has been conferred the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Centenary Prize this year. She was honoured for her work in the innovative design and synthesis of organic molecules and nanomaterials to advance biomedical research and applications, as well as for excellence in communication.

The Royal Society of Chemistry’s prizes have recognised excellence in the chemical sciences for more than 150 years. The Centenary Prize, first established in 1947, is an award granted annually to outstanding chemists, who are also exceptional communicators, from outside the United Kingdom. Winners are given a £5,000 cash prize, and a medal. 50 previous winners of a Royal Society of Chemistry Prize have gone on to win Nobel Prizes for their pioneering work, including 2019 Nobel laureate John B Goodenough.

On receiving the prize, Prof Liu said, “I am deeply honoured to receive this award, especially when I look at the list of the past awardees. Many of them are my role models since I was a graduate student. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my research team and collaborators and all those who have supported and inspired me through my career so far.”

Prof Liu, who is also the Head of NUS Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, leads a multidisciplinary team that has built a series of technology platforms to advance biomedical research with practical applications in sensing, imaging and image-guided therapy. Recently, her research group discovered that impurities can significantly contribute to the optical properties of many organic compounds. This opens up new opportunities to develop high-performance luminescent materials.

Dr Helen Pain, Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Chemistry, said, “From developing vaccines for COVID-19 to continuing to work towards a more sustainable world – the contribution of chemical scientists has never been more tangible or important. Professor Liu’s work is a prime example of what we are so passionate about and we are proud to recognise her contribution with this prize.”