Recently, Prof. Tao Zhang, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and researcher at the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, received the 2025 Dr. Karl Wamsler Innovation Award from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), Germany. This marks another important honor for Prof. Zhang following his receipt of the First Prize of the State Natural Science Award on July 8 this year.
The Technical University of Munich is a leading research university in Germany and is widely regarded as one of the most prominent German universities in the world, consistently ranking among the top universities in Germany. TUM ranks 22nd globally in the 2026 QS World University Rankings and 1st in the European Union, with its chemistry discipline also ranked 22nd worldwide. As of 2024, TUM has produced 19 Nobel laureates, including eight Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry. The Dr. Karl Wamsler Innovation Award is the highest international award established by TUM. Each year, it is presented to one outstanding scientist worldwide in recognition of significant contributions and influential research achievements in the field of chemistry.
According to TUM’s official website, Prof. Zhang was awarded the 2025 Dr. Karl Wamsler Innovation Award “in appreciation of his distinguished and groundbreaking contributions to the field of catalysis research, most notably in pioneering and establishing the concept of single-atom catalysis.”
Prof. Zhang has long been dedicated to fundamental and applied research in catalysis, achieving a series of internationally influential original accomplishments in single-atom catalysis, energy catalysis, green chemical engineering, and the creation of advanced materials. In particular, in the field of single-atom catalysis, the systematic research conducted by Prof. Zhang’s team has promoted the continuous development of this field from concept proposal and material construction to catalytic applications and mechanistic understanding, providing an important scientific foundation for precise catalysis and efficient green transformation. This award is also expected to further promote in-depth collaboration between the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics and German research institutions such as TUM, bringing new momentum to frontier breakthroughs in catalysis science and international scientific exchange.
It is reported that the 2026 Dr. Karl Wamsler Innovation Award was presented to Prof. Frances H. Arnold from the California Institute of Technology, who is also the recipient of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. On the afternoon of July 22, at the symposium celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Dr. Karl Wamsler Innovation Award, Prof. Zhang and Prof. Arnold delivered plenary lectures successively (https://www.crc.tum.de/crc/crc-symposium-perspectives-of-catalysis-research/ ). At the celebration banquet held on the evening of July 22, TUM President Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann and other representatives presented the award certificates to Prof. Zhang and Prof. Arnold.
From left to right: Susanne Wamsler, supervisory board member of Clariant International Ltd.; Prof. Tao Zhang; Prof. Frances H. Arnold; Conrad Keijzer, Chief Executive Officer of Clariant International Ltd.; and Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann, President of TUM.
Picture: A. Heddergott/TUM.
TUM award report: https://www.crc.tum.de/crc/dr-karl-wamsler-innovation-award/
