Research

Dr. Zhuang’s primary research field is hydrogen energy electrocatalysis. Focusing on key electrocatalytic processes across the hydrogen value chain including production, storage, transportation, and utilization, he proposes a general design concept of integrated electrocatalyst (IEC), which (1) enables regulation of both the generation rate and reactivity of active hydrogen for efficient hydrogen production and electrochemical hydrogenation (Nat. Commun. 2022, 13, 2662; Energy Environ. Sci. 2023, 16, 619; Adv. Energy Mater. 2022, 12, 2200579; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2023, 62, e202212653; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2024, 63, e202411396; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025, 64, e202501649; etc.), (2) significantly enhances ammonia production as a hydrogen carrier for sustainable hydrogen storage and transportation (Adv. Energy Mater. 2021, 11, 2102138; Adv. Funct. Mater. 2024, 34, 2400849; Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2024, 63, e202412740; Nat. Commun. 2024, 15, 9020; etc.), and (3) develops new strategies for efficient oxygen reduction to meet the demands of high-performance hydrogen fuel cells (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2023, 62, e202212335; Nat. Commun. 2024, 15, 10758; Energy Environ. Sci. 2021, 14, 1016; Nat. Catal. 2022, 5, 300; etc.).

These related works have resulted in over 60 publications in international journals as first or corresponding author, including Nature Catal., Nature Commun. (3), Matter, Adv. Mater. (5), Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. (9), and Energy Environ. Sci. (2), as well as one English book chapter, and have been cited over 15,000 times, with an h-index of 67. He has been recognized in the Stanford University/Elsevier “World’s Top 2% Scientists” list (2023, 2024, 2025), the Clarivate “Highly Cited Researchers” list (2024), and the “Hundred Talents Program” (10th batch, 2025) of Fujian Province. He serves as a Youth Editorial Board Member of Nano Res. and Natl. Sci. Open.