Xinjie Zhang

Dr. Zhang co-founded Novarials Corporation in 2010, and serves as its President since then. Dr. Zhang is a top industry expert on one-dimensional (1D) nanomaterials and an energetic entrepreneur. He has more than twenty years of industry research and development experience on nanomaterials, and a proven track record in commercializing new technologies. He was a group co-leader at SINOPEC Research Institute of Petroleum Processing in Beijing from 1992 to 1996. The work during this period led to eight issued patents. Jinlong Chemical Co., Ltd., one of the largest gamma-butyrolactone series manufacturing plants in China, was built in 1996 to commercialize the patented technology. Dr. Zhang also co-led the pilot production of the catalyst and the starting work of the commercial plant. Dr. Zhang was awarded the “Scientific and Technical Progress Award” in 1996, a ministerial award in recognition for this significant contribution to scientific and technological progress to China chemical and petroleum industry. From 2001 to 2003, Dr. Zhang worked in DOE Pacific Northwestern National Laboratory (PNNL) on developing novel solid acid catalysts and a new process for the conversion of sorbitol to isosorbide. This work led to three issued US patents, and the developed technology was licensed by Battelle to Iowa Corn Promotion Board in 2005. From 2003 to 2010, Dr. Zhang was a leading scientist on carbon nanotube growth in Hyperion Catalysis International - the world leader of carbon nanotube commercialization. He was one of the two scientists who first grew single-walled carbon nanotube forest back in 2004, and he also held two more groundbreaking breakthroughs on nanotube growths. Dr. Zhang is the inventor of 12 issued and 3 pending patents. His recent focus is on the preparation, processing, application, and commercialization of one-dimensional nanomaterials. Under his leadership, Novarials is commercializing over two dozens of inorganic nanowires and three nanowire membrane platform technologies. He earned his Ph.D. degree in Chemistry in 1999 at Peking University.