Yuanyuan Liu is a faculty member in the School of Material Science and Chemical Engineering at Xuzhou University of Technology. Liu holds a PhD in Engineering from the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Southeast University and teaches and conducts research in applied chemistry.
Education and teaching
Liu graduated from the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Southeast University with a PhD in Engineering. At Xuzhou University of Technology, Liu teaches in the applied chemistry program and conducts research on functional-material design and catalytic applications.
Research interests
- Photocatalytic materials: structural control, light absorption and charge separation in materials such as carbon nitride, with applications in photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production and pollutant degradation.
- Electrocatalysis and biosensor materials: development of functional materials for these applications.
- Structure–activity relationships in catalysis: recent collaborative work addresses formic acid dehydrogenation using palladium supported on defect-rich carbon nitride and defect engineering for photocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction.
Student development and competition supervision
- “Zhuifengzhe” (追砜者) team, 2025: Co-supervised with Yanling Han, Changchun He, Chunling Shi and Lulu Lian. The team received second prize in the East China regional competition of the 19th National College Student Chemical Engineering Design Competition. Confirmed award list, page 8.
- “Fenghua Zhengmao” (砜华正茂) team, 2025: Co-supervised with Peng Wang, Shuai Wei, Hui Liang and Yan Xu. The team received third prize in the East China regional competition of the same event. Confirmed award list, page 14.
These are student-team awards, with Liu serving as a co-supervisor.
Research collaboration
The university’s 2023 list of recognized research institutes names Liu as a member of the Institute of Hydrogen-Energy Catalytic Materials at Xuzhou University of Technology.
Research and university–industry projects
- Development of bifunctional hydrophilic films with photocatalytic self-cleaning properties: Jiangsu Province University–Industry Research Collaboration Project, BY20240305, with a 2024–2025 period in the approval schedule. Liu is a project participant; the principal investigator is Yanling Han. The lead institution is Xuzhou University of Technology and the industry partner is Jiangsu Weina Optical Film Technology Co., Ltd. The project addresses photocatalytic, hydrophilic and self-cleaning functions on glass. Approval schedule, page 155.
- Development of bifunctional nanomaterials for antireflection and self-cleaning: Jiangsu Province University–Industry Research Collaboration Project, BY20240306, with a 2024–2025 period in the approval schedule. Liu is a project participant; the principal investigator is Peng Wang. The lead institution is Xuzhou University of Technology and the partner is Xuzhou Shengtang Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. Approval schedule, page 155.
Selected publications
1. Small · 2026
Yuanyuan Liu; Yanling Han; Yidong Miao; Jing Li; Congcong Luo; Shaolei Song; Hua Sun; Kaichi Chen; Lin Tian; Hui Liang; Peng Wang; Wenyi Tan; Xinli Guo. Molecular Benzene-Heptazine Junction Over Carbon Nitride Frameworks for Dual-Pathway Photosynthesis of Hydrogen Peroxide. Small, 2026, e74758 (Early View). DOI: 10.1002/smll.74758.
Role of Yuanyuan Liu: Co-first author and corresponding author.
Research focus: Benzene–heptazine molecular junctions tune light absorption and charge separation in carbon nitride for dual-pathway photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production.
2. Rare Metals · 2026
Shuai Wei; Yuanyuan Liu; Wenzhu Yu; Yan Xu; Yanling Han; Hui Liang; Ming Song; Wenchang Zhuang; Zhenzhou Zhang; Wenyi Tan; Peng Wang. Biomass-Engineered Defect-Rich g-C3N4 Anchors Pd2+-Rich Ultrafine Particles for Highly Efficient Formic Acid Dehydrogenation. Rare Metals, 2026, 45(4), e70268. DOI: 10.1002/rar2.70268.
Role of Yuanyuan Liu: Co-first author.
Research focus: Biomass-engineered, defect-rich carbon nitride supports ultrafine palladium particles to investigate palladium–support interactions in hydrogen production from formic acid.
3. Langmuir · 2026
Yanling Han; Jiari He; Lin Tian; Fengjuan Ge; Jie Zhu; Peng Wang; Jing Li; Ming Song; Yuanyuan Liu; Xiao Feng; Wenyi Tan. Recent Development of Defect Engineering in Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction. Langmuir, 2026, 42(18), 12398-12414. DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.6c00088.
Role of Yuanyuan Liu: Corresponding author.
Research focus: A review of defect types, construction methods and their roles in light absorption, charge transfer and active sites for photocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction.
4. Langmuir · 2024
Peng Wang; Shuai Wei; Yanling Han; Suning Lin; Lijuan Zhang; Qian Li; Yan Xu; Lulu Lian; Yingmei Zhou; Ming Song; Wenchang Zhuang; Yuanyuan Liu. Metal-Free C60-Doped Mesoporous Carbon Nitride Drives Red-Light Photocatalysis. Langmuir, 2024, 40(27), 14045-14056. DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c01452.
Role of Yuanyuan Liu: Corresponding author.
Research focus: A metal-free C60/mesoporous carbon nitride composite is studied for red-light-driven rhodamine B photodegradation and photogenerated charge-carrier behavior.
5. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental · 2020
Yuanyuan Liu; Xinli Guo; Zhongtao Chen; Weijie Zhang; YiXuan Wang; Yanmei Zheng; Xuan Tang; Ming Zhang; Zhengbin Peng; Rui Li; Ying Huang. Microwave-synthesis of g-C3N4 nanoribbons assembled seaweed-like architecture with enhanced photocatalytic property. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 266, 118624 (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.apcatb.2020.118624.
Role of Yuanyuan Liu: First author.
Research focus: Microwave preparation of a seaweed-like assembly of carbon nitride nanoribbons and the effects of architecture, doping and defects on photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants.
Patents
Granted invention patents (selected)
- Preparation of a carbon nitride catalytic material through precursor pretreatment. Application 202310106393.3; grant publication CN116174006B, 15 September 2023. Liu is a co-inventor, listed fifth; the grant document names Xuzhou University of Technology as the patentee. Grant document.
- Preparation of a high-performance nickel–cobalt selenide/three-dimensional graphene/nickel-foam binder-free electrode material. Application 201811381555.X; grant publication CN109524245B, 18 September 2020. Liu is a co-inventor, listed sixth; the grant document names Southeast University as the patentee. Grant document.
- Preparation of an ultra-flexible translucent conductive film. Application 201810156131.7; grant publication CN108468036B, 10 December 2019. Liu is a co-inventor, listed third; the grant document names Southeast University as the patentee. Patent record.
Published invention patent applications (selected)
Preparation of a Pd-loaded walnut-shell-doped carbon nitride catalyst by deposition–precipitation and its application to hydrogen production from formic acid. Application 202510463396.1, filed 14 April 2025; application publication CN120394058A, 1 August 2025. Liu is a co-inventor, listed third; the applicant is Xuzhou University of Technology. Published application.
Other patents recorded by Southeast University
The Southeast University profile of Xinli Guo lists the following additional inventions co-invented by Liu in its “Granted and published patents” section. The ZL patent numbers and application-record numbers below follow that institutional listing.
- Preparation of a gold–reduced graphene oxide–nickel foam composite: listed as ZL201710578823.6; Liu is the second inventor.
- Preparation of a silver nanoparticle–graphene–loofah composite: application record 201710668977.4; Liu is the second inventor. Application publication CN107570209A, published 12 January 2018. Published application.
- Mild preparation of a graphene–polyurethane sponge composite: application record 201710668971.7; Liu is the second inventor.
- Green preparation of a silver–zinc oxide–graphene–nickel foam material: application record 201610937856.0; Liu is the second inventor.
- Rapid preparation of a silver nanocube–graphene–nickel foam composite: listed as ZL201710396680.7; Liu is the third inventor.
- Preparation of a cubic copper nanoparticle–graphene–nickel foam material: listed as ZL201710187603.0; Liu is the third inventor.
- Preparation of a flower-like copper nanocluster–graphene–nickel foam material: item 7 in the university profile’s patent list; Liu is the third inventor.
- Preparation of a nickel nanoparticle–graphene–nickel foam material: listed as ZL201711084219.4; Liu is the third inventor.
Academic contact and links
Email: liuyuanyuan@xzit.edu.cn.