Dr. Zhu received her B.S. degree in Chongqing University and Ph.D. degree from Nanjing University. Then she joined the group of Prof. Rongchao Jin at Carnegie Mellon University as a postdoctoral researcher studying catalysis of atomically precise gold clusters. She has been a full-time professor at Nanjing University since 2017. Her research focuses on rational design and synthesis of atomically precise metal catalysts with exact atom packing structure, attainment of atomic-level information on the nature of metal catalysis, and precise control of well-defined heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysts for the important chemical reactions. She has published more than 100 research papers in international journals, e.g., J. Am. Chem. Soc., Angew. Chem., Nature Commun. and ACS Catal. She received multiple awards with Distinguished Young Scholar of NSF, The Distinguished Lectureship Award of The Chemical Society of Japan, High-Level Entrepreneurial and Innovative Talent Introduction of Jiangsu Province, and Distinguished Woman Young Scientist of Jiangsu Province. She is also selected as young editorial board members for Nano Research, Physical Chemistry, and as editorial board members for Green Energy & Environment and Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry.

Prof. Zhu's research focuses on rational design and synthesis of atomically precise metal clusters with exact atom packing structure, attainment of atomic-level information on the nature of metal catalysis, and precise control of well-defined heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysts for the important chemical reactions.

Recent publications

Y.Tian, C.Shen, M.Yang, Q.Zhai, G.Wu, W.Ding, Y.Zhu. Elevating the efficiency of Ammonia Synthesis by Dredging the Migration Hinges of Reactive. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2026, 148, 16204.

X.Liu, Q,Yuan, Y.Zhu.Distinct Contributions of the Surface/Interface/Core of Metal Clusters to Catalytic Properties. Acc. Chem. Res. 2026, doi:10.1021/acs.accounts.6c00147.

E.Yu, X.Jiang, S.Huang, X.Liu, W.Ding, J.Li, C.Xu, Y.Zhu. Cooperative Au_vertex-Au_shoulder Pair Sites of Biicosahedral Au25 Cluster for Highly Oxidative Carbonylation of Diamine to Cyclic Urea. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2026, e21717.

X.Liu, X.Zhou, X.Lei, J.Kong, W.Zhang, M.Zhou, L.Wang, W.Xu, Y.Zhu. An Unprecedented Two-Dimensional Pattern in Gold Nanoclusters Bred by Interlocking Au4 Blocks. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2025, 147, 42758.

J.Lu, C.Shen, Y.Tian, Q.Zhai, M.Han, X.Liu, Y.Zhu. An Atomically Precise Ru1Au6(TBBT)6(PPh3)6 Cluster Catalyst for Ammonia Production. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025, e202516398.

T.Song, C.Shen, Y.Tian, Q.Zhai, S.Tang, Y. Zhu. A Heterodimeric Cluster-based Pair Catalyst for Electrochemical Synthesis of Cyclohexanone Oxime. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025, e202507569.

X.Liu, J.Tang, F.Zhao, M.Zhou, S.Ye, D.Hong, Y.Tian, Y.Zhao, F.Tian, T.Song, X.Cai, Y.Tian, W.Zhang, Q.Li, Y.Zhu. Atomically Engineered Trimetallic Nanoclusters Towards Enhanced Photoluminescence and Photoinitiation Activity. Adv. Mater. 2025, 37, 2417984.

T.Sun, B.Ge, S.Huang, X.Wang, Y.Tian, X.Cai, W.Ding, Y.Zhu. Heterogeneous Catalysis of Molecular-Like Au8M(PPh3)8n+ Clusters Cultivated in Mesoporous SBA-15. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025, e202420274.

X.Cai, Y.Tian, H.Wang, S.Huang, X.Liu, G.Li, W.Ding, Y.Zhu. Catalytic N-Formylation of CO2 by Atomically Precise Au8Pd1(DPPF)42+ Clusters into a Two-Dimensional Metal-Organic Framework. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025, e202414030.

T.Song, B.Ge, C.Juan, S.Huang, D.Li, Q.Zhai, X.Cai, X.Liu, W.Ding, Y.Zhu. Cooperative Communication Between the Active Sites and Surrounding Environments in a Supported Ag₄Pt₂(SR)₈ Cluster on Carbon Black. CCS Chem. 2025, 7, 731.

General Chemistry

Industrial Catalysis and Application