James D. Batteas, Co-Editor-in-Chief
Texas A&M University, USA
ORCID: 0000-0002-6244-5000
Professor James Batteas is a Regents Professor and D. Wayne Goodman Professor of Chemistry, and a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University (TAMU). He earned a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990, and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of California at Berkeley in 1995. He is an expert in the materials chemistry of surfaces and interfaces, with research activities spanning a broad range of fundamental surface and interfacial phenomena. These include organic molecular electronics, catalysis, plasmonics, tribology, “smart” surfaces, and self-organizing nanoscale materials. His research in tribology focuses on the bridge between chemistry and mechanics, where his lab conducts atomic-scale studies of friction and wear of materials. Here he has extended this work into fundamental studies of mechanochemistry, and he currently directs the NSF Center for the Mechanical Control of Chemistry. He has been recognized twice by TAMU for excellence in teaching, receiving Association of Former Students Distinguished Teaching awards at both the college and university levels. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2012. He previously served as an Associate Editor (2011-2014) and Editorial Board Member for RSC Advances (2011–2021) and on the Editorial Advisory Board of ACS Central Science (2014-2020).
Find out more about James Batteas here.
Tomislav Friščić Co-Editor-in-Chief
University of Birmingham, UK
ORCID: 0000-0002-3921-7915
Tomislav Friščić is a Professor and Leverhulme International Chair in Green and Sustainable Chemistry at the University of Birmingham. His team is developing the solid state as a medium for safer, environmentally-friendly synthesis and functional materials design – with mechanochemistry and photochemistry playing central roles. He received a B.Sc. in Chemistry with Branko Kaitner, focusing on Chemical Crystallography (University of Zagreb, 2001), Ph.D. in organic solid-state supramolecular chemistry and photochemistry with Leonard MacGillivray (University of Iowa, 2006), followed by post-doctoral research with William Jones at the Pfizer Institute for Pharmaceutical Materials Science, and a Herchel Smith Fellowship at the University of Cambridge (2008). He was a Professor and Tier-1 Canada Research Chair in Mechanochemistry and Solid-State Chemistry at McGill University until 2022.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, a member of the College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists of the Royal Society of Canada, and a corresponding member of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts. He is a co-founder of two “CleanTech” companies. His group’s work was recognised by awards, including the Royal Society of Chemistry Corday-Morgan Prize (2023), the NSERC John C. Polany Award (2022), the Brusina Medal of the Croatian Society of Natural Sciences (2021), the Royal Society of Canada Rutherford Medal (2018), Steacie Prize for Natural Sciences (2018), etc.
Find out more about Tomislav Friščić here.
Evelina Colacino, Associate Editor
University of Montpellier, Institute Charles Gerhardt, France
ORCID: 0000-0002-1179-4913
Evelina Colacino received her double Ph.D. (with European Label) in 2002 at the University of Montpellier II (France) and the University of Calabria (Italy). Associate Professor of Organic Chemistry at the University of Montpellier (France), she is a member of the International Mechanochemical Association (IMA) and on the Advisory Board of the Green Chemistry Commitment. She promotes sustainability in higher education by integrating green chemistry at the undergraduate level in organic chemistry courses, teaching laboratories and across the sub-disciplines of chemistry, with a special focus on the fundamentals and the practice of mechanochemistry. Her main research activities concern the development of eco-friendly mechanochemical processes for the preparation of value-added compounds for the industry, with a main focus on active pharmaceutical ingredients.
Find out more about Evelina Colacino here.
Franziska Emmerling, Associate Editor
Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, Germany
ORCID: 0000-0001-8528-0301
Dr Franziska Emmerling is Head of the Department of Materials Chemistry at the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing in Berlin, Germany, and a privatdozent (lecturer) at the Department of Chemistry, Humboldt University, Berlin. She received her M.Sc. in Chemistry from the Albert-Ludwigs University of Freiburg in 2001, her Ph.D. in Chemistry from the same university in 2004, and completed her Habilitation at the Humboldt University in 2018. Emmerling’s research focuses on the design, synthesis, and characterisation of novel materials, with particular emphasis on their applications in green energy and catalysis. Dr Emmerling has made significant contributions to the development of mechanochemical synthesis methods for a wide range of materials. Her expertise extends to the development and use of synchrotron-based X-ray techniques, including diffraction and spectroscopy, to characterise materials and observe structural changes in situ. Dr Emmerling is a recognised expert in materials chemistry and mechanochemistry and serves as a reviewer for prestigious journals such as Science, Nature Communications and Angewandte Chemie. With a strong record of mentorship, Dr Emmerling has guided the research of numerous Postdoctoral Researchers, and PhD, Masters and Bachelor's students, leaving a lasting impact on the field of chemistry.
Find out more about Franziska Emmerling here.
Hajime Ito, Associate Editor
Hokkaido University, Japan
ORCID: 0000-0003-3852-6721
Hajime Ito was born in 1968 in Osaka, Japan. He received his Ph.D. in 1996 from Kyoto University under the supervision of Prof. Yoshihiko Ito and Prof. Masahiro Murakami. He then joined the research group of Prof. Akira Hosomi at Tsukuba University before moving to the Institute for Molecular Science in Okazaki in 1999. He then worked as a visiting scientist in the research group of Prof. Kim D. Janda at The Scripps Research Institute. In 2002, he joined the research group of Prof. Masaya Sawamura at Hokkaido University. He was promoted to full professor in 2010. He became a distinguished professor in 2022. He is also appointed as the Deputy Director of the Institute of Reaction Design and Development (WPI-ICReDD) at Hokkaido University. He is also appointed as a PI for JST CREST “Innovative Reactions.”
His research interests include the development of new organic synthesis methods and organic crystalline materials through the use of organoboron, silicon, and mechanochemistry. He received the Chemical Society of Japan Award for Creative Work (2014), the SSOCJ Fujifilm Functional Materials Science Award (2017), and the HSFC DemoDay Hokkaido Governor's Award (2022).
Find out more about Hajime Ito here.
Kerstin G. Blank, Editorial Board member
Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria
ORCID: 0000-0001-5410-6984
Kerstin G. Blank obtained a diploma in Biotechnology from the University of Applied Sciences in Jena in 2000. After 3 years as a project manager in Industry, she returned to Academia. She obtained a PhD in Biophysics from Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich in 2006. After two short postdoctoral stays at the Universities in Strasbourg and Leuven, she became assistant professor at Radboud University in Nijmegen in 2009. In 2014, she moved to the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam where she led the Max Planck Research Group ‘Mechano(bio)chemistry’. Since October 2021, she is full professor at Johannes Kepler University Linz where she heads the Department of Biomolecular & Selforganizing Matter. She is co-founder of the Gordon Research Conference on Multiscale Mechanochemistry & Mechanobiology. The main themes of her research are 1) mechanical structure-function relationships of protein-protein and protein-surface interactions, 2) protein-based molecular force sensors, 3) molecularly controlled mechanoresponsive hydrogels and 4) mechanosensing at cell-material interfaces.
Find out more about Kerstin Blank here.
Lars Borchardt, Editorial Board member
Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany
ORCID: 0000-0002-8778-7816
Prof. Lars Borchardt is a Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the Ruhr-University Bochum, located in Germany. He obtained his doctoral degree in Chemistry in 2013 from the Technische Universität Dresden, where his research focused on the development of porous materials for energy storage applications. Subsequently, he pursued post-doctoral research in catalysis at ETH Zürich. In 2015, he established his own independent research group, dedicated to the exploration of mechanochemistry. This groundbreaking field encompasses a diverse range of areas, including the synthesis of materials such as polymers, porous materials, and graphenes, the advancement of novel mechanocatalytic concepts for organic synthesis, and the exciting realm of photo-mechanochemistry. His profound interest lies in unraveling the underlying mechanistic principles governing mechanochemistry, as well as devising innovative setups for scaling up mechanochemical processes. His contributions to the field have been honored with prestigious awards, including the ERC starting grant, Innovators under 35-Awards, as well as the esteemed Daimler-Benz and Max-Buchner fellowships.
Find out more about Lars Borchardt here.
James Mack, Editorial Board member
University of Cincinnati, USA
ORCID: 0000-0001-5717-8916
James Mack is a professor of chemistry with interests in the development of environmentally benign chemical reactions. After completing his Bachelor’s degree at Middlebury College (1995), he was awarded a New England Board of Higher Education Scholarship and earned his doctoral degree at the University of New Hampshire, studying the derivations of fullerenes under the supervision of Glen P. Miller (2000). After earning his doctoral degree, he was a postdoctoral fellow with Lawrence T. Scott developing a bench top synthesis of fullerenes and nanotubes using corannulene-based building blocks. He joined the faculty as an Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati (2003), was promoted to the rank of Associate Professor with tenure (2009) and promoted to the rank of Professor (2016). His research has been featured in the New York Times, Chemical and Engineering News and Chemistry and Industry. He is also the owner and CEO of Cinthesis, a company that uses mechanochemistry to develop environmentally benign synthetic alternatives. In addition to his research accomplishments, he received recognition for his mentorship and service by both graduate and undergraduate students.
Find out more about James Mack here.
Jeffrey Moore, Editorial Board member
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA
ORCID: 0000-0001-5841-6269
Jeffrey Moore received his B.S. in chemistry (1984) and Ph.D. in materials science and engineering (1989) from the University of Illinois. In 1990, he joined the faculty at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and in 1993 returned to the University of Illinois, where he was Professor of Chemistry and of Materials Science & Engineering until 2022. Jeff currently holds the titles of Stanley O. Ikenberry Research Professor of Chemistry, Stanley O. Ikenberry Endowed Chair Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Chemistry. Jeff is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Chemical Society (ACS). For 14 years he served as an associate editor for the Journal of American Chemical Society. He received the Royal Society of Chemistry’s 2018 Stephanie L. Kwolek Award. He has published over 400 articles covering a variety of topics. He served as Director of the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois from 2017-2022.
Find out more about Jeffrey Moore here.
Maria Elena Rivas, Editorial Board Member
Johnson Matthey Technology Centre, UK
Dr Maria Elena Rivas is the Materials Research Lead in the Core Capabilities Department at Johnson Matthey Technology Centre. Her team is focused on supporting Johnson Matthey to catalyse the world’s transition to net zero by developing sustainable advanced materials, with mechanochemistry playing an important role. She received a B.Sc. in Chemistry from the Central University of Venezuela and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering Heterogeneous Catalysis from the Complutense University of Madrid in 2008. This was followed by post-doctoral research projects at the Centre of Catalysis and Petrochemistry/Spanish Scientific Council (2009) and the Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials at Newcastle University (2010). She is an expert on inorganic materials synthesis, principally for the automotive, chemicals and energy markets. Facilitating technology transfer from laboratory to pilot scale and focusing on deeper understanding of solid-state synthetic routes, allowing for more efficient design of Johnson Matthey materials, by developing state-of-the-art techniques with advanced characterisation.
With a proven track record of delivering materials innovation, she has been recognised twice by the Innovating and Improving Science Award in Johnson Matthey. She is an inventor of 15 patent applications in the field of materials development, including mechanochemistry.
Find out more about Maria Elena Rivas here.
Wilfred Tysoe, Editorial Board member
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, USA
ORCID: 0000-0002-9295-448X
Wilfred Tysoe obtained first-class honours B.Sc. degree in chemical physics from the University of Manchester in England (1972), an M.Sc. degree in physical chemistry from the University of Sydney, Australia (1975) and a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Cambridge in England (1982) working on ultrahigh-vacuum surface science studies of catalytic reaction pathways. Before embarking on an academic career, he taught high-school physics and chemistry as part of the Voluntary Service Overseas program in Ghana in West Africa and worked for the Plessey Company in England designing optical storage devices. Following his post-doctoral studies, also on surface science and catalysis, at the University of California-Berkeley, he joined the Laboratory for Surface Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1984 where he is currently a Distinguished Professor of Chemistry. His work focuses on obtaining a detailed mechanistic understanding of processes occurring on surfaces, such as catalysis with a current focus on understanding heterogenous chiral transfer, self-assembly strategies for molecular electronics, chemical vapour deposition, and understanding tribo- and mechanochemical reaction pathways. He is a co-founding Editor-in-Chief of Tribology Letters. He has over 430 publications and over 300 invited and contributed presentations.
Find out more about Wilfred Tysoe here.
Guan-Wu Wang, Editorial Board member
University of Science and Technology of China, China
ORCID: 0000-0001-9287-532X
Guan-Wu Wang is a Chair Professor at the University of Science and Technology of China. He earned his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Lanzhou University in 1987, 1990, and 1993, respectively. He then did his postdoctoral work at Fudan University, Kyoto University, University of Kentucky, University of Chicago and Yale University. In May of 2000, he joined the University of Science and Technology of China as a full professor. He is a recipient of the ‘‘High-Level Talent Program’’ of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (1999) and the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (2001). His research interests include mechanochemical organic synthesis and fullerene chemistry.
Find out more about Guan-Wu Wang here.
