“Think beyond the possible” — Feature on Dr. Zhou Wenjuan

Dr. Zhou Wenjuan from Solvay China’s E2P2 Laboratory, has been awarded the “Shanghai Youth Top-notch Talent” honor this year. She has published over 20 research papers in renowned international journals such as JACS, ACS. Catal., J. Mater. Chem., Anal. Chem.. She has filed over 15 international patents; among them, four have been authorized by relevant institutions in the U.S. and Europe.

Wen-Juan, how long have you been with Solvay?

I joined the former Rhodia in October 2011 after returning from the U.S. I began working with Rhodia and later Solvay seven years ago.

Could you please tell us a little more about your work?

I have been working at the eco-efficient products and processes laboratory at corporate R&I in Shanghai. Our laboratory’s key competence is catalysis which is a major lever for sustainable chemistry. It improves atom efficiency, reduces CO2 emission and waste discharge while accelerating reaction time in various chemical processes.

Therefore, I’m very honored to be leading the catalytic oxidation platform in our laboratory with excellent research scientists.

Together, we focus on developing innovative catalytic routes for surfactants, monomers and H2O2-related new applications to serve our internal customers from various GBUs and Growth Initiatives from corporate R&I.

In the meantime, I also facilitate and promote external collaborations with Chinese and French universities, in order to leverage their competencies to promote Solvay’s projects.

You have recently been presented the “Shanghai Youth Top-notch Talent” award. How did that change your work and do you have any new plans?

Firstly, I would like to sincerely thank many managers and colleagues for their strong support. The “Shanghai Youth Top-notch Talent” award is the biggest recognition I have had in my career. Working with talented people at Solvay challenged me a lot about science and management. I am a committed researcher and I wish to find out more the root causes of certain chemical issues and propose rational solutions in this complex yet fascinating field.

We all know that the Shanghai R&I team is a fun family; do you have any interesting stories or things to share about you and your team?

We always share this joke among us that there are only two days in a year that we all dress up formally — during the annual scientific committee meeting!

During this meeting, we get top-notch scientists in the field of catalysis, material science and organic chemistry to visit us. You can imagine how nervous we all get, not to mention the pressure from our high heels and suits! Outside of our office routine, we like enjoy doing many fun activities together, like water sports and cooking.

Finally, could you share with us your favorite quote or statement?

“Think beyond the possible” We need to meet the high expectations of our customers and dig deeper with the help of science and technology to come up with the best solutions.