Prof. Takahiro Namazu
Kyoto University of Advanced Science, Japan
Speech Title: How can we make carbon nanotubes large enough
to be used as engineering materials?
Abstract: Single-walled carbon
nanotubes (SWCNTs), a representative nanocarbon material, are expected to
serve as a structural material for space elevators due to their exceptional
strength-to-weight ratio. To utilize SWCNTs as mechanical engineering
materials soon, it is strongly required to increase the size of SWCNTs while
maintaining their excellent mechanical properties. However, in practice, many
defects are introduced in bundled and yarned CNTs during the enlargement
process, resulting in a significant reduction in strength. In this
presentation, practical methods for bundling and sizing up SWCNTs based on
recent strength evaluation results are discussed to maintain their superior
mechanical strength values.
Biography: Takahiro Namazu is a Professor with the Faculty of Engineering, Kyoto University of Advanced Science (KUAS), Japan. He is currently engaged in studies on functional film materials, such as self-propagating exothermic materials, and their applications to micro/nano electro-mechanical systems (NMEMS). His research interests also include the development of material testing techniques for measuring the mechanical properties of micro/nanoscale materials, such as carbon nanotubes and silicon nanowires, which focuses on clarifying the nanomaterials’ size effect phenomena and these mechanisms. The evaluation of the reliability of NMEMS and semiconductor devices is included as well in his interests for realizing the design of ultra-long life microdevices.
Dr. Namazu has earned over 20 research awards for his outstanding materials research results and his contributions to the evolution of the micro/nanoscale materials science field in the world.
Prof. Kwang Leong Choy
Duke Kunshan University, China
Speech Title: Advanced Engineered Materials for Sustainable Energy
Solutions
Abstract: The use of advanced nanostructured materials to
address global challenges in energy will be highlighted. The design of earth
abundant and novel nanostructured materials for sustainability and renewable
energy will be presented. Furthermore, this keynote establishes
composition-structure-property correlations in nanoscale architectures
derived from abundant precursors, enabling their precise optimization for
energy conversion. A key innovation and highlight is the development of
transition metal-doped chalcogenide nanocatalysts, for solar-driven hydrogen
production via photocatalytic reforming. This approach achieves exceptional
H₂ evolution rates by synergistically enhancing visible-light absorption,
charge separation kinetics, and surface redox activity. Crucially, we
demonstrate the dual-function application of these catalysts: simultaneous
valorization of non-recyclable plastic waste (e.g., polyethylene, PET) and
generation of green hydrogen. This strategy directly addresses plastic
pollution while producing carbon-neutral fuel. The presentation will
elucidate catalyst design principles, mechanistic insights into plastic
photoreforming pathways. This work establishes a transformative paradigm for
circular economy solutions, converting waste hydrocarbons into sustainable
hydrogen energy using sunlight-driven earth-abundant materials.
Biography: Kwang Leong Choy is a Professor of Materials Science and
Co-Director of the Environment Research Centre at Duke Kunshan University
(DKU). She holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford and a
Doctor of Science from the University of Nottingham. Before joining DKU, she
was a faculty member at Imperial College London and the University of
Nottingham, and later served as a professor and the founding Director of the
Institute for Materials Discovery at University College London (UCL).
Professor Choy has been awarded Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Mining
and Minerals (FIMMM) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC).
Her outstanding contributions have been recognized with prestigious awards,
including the Grunfeld Medal Prize and the Kroll Medal & Prize. With over
330 publications, four authored books, and 20 patents to her name, she is a
prolific researcher and innovator.
Professor Choy has delivered more than
150 plenary talks, keynote addresses, and invited lectures at international
conferences. Her work has earned her the Award of Excellence from the
Association of American Publishers, and since 2019, she has been
consistently ranked among the world’s top 1% most-cited scientists by
Stanford University. Her research focuses on the fundamental and applied
studies of earth-abundant materials, eco-friendly processes, and
sustainability, with a strong track record of translating cutting-edge
technologies into real-world applications.
Prof. Gen Sasaki
Hiroshima University, Japan
Speech Titlte: Effect of the surface structure of carbon materials on
reactivity with aluminum
Abstract: Carbon materials dispersed
aluminum matrix composites are expected to be used as heat sink materials.
Unfortunately, carbon reacts with aluminum to form aluminum carbide
(Al4C3), thermodynamically, which reduces mechanical properties and thermal
conductivity. Therefore, this reactivity must be suppressed for practical
use. On the other hand, there are various types of carbon materials, for
example, graphite, carbon fiber, and carbon nanofiber, and their surface
morphologies differ. In this study, to clarify the effect of surface
morphology on reactivity, the difference in reactivity between carbon
nanofiber (Showa Denko VGCF), pitch-based carbon fiber (Mitsubishi
Chemical), PAN-based carbon fiber (Toray), and graphite and aluminum was
clarified. The surface structure of each carbon material was observed by
transmission electron microscopy. Each carbon material was mixed with
aluminum powder, and composites were obtained by solid-phase sintering using
a spark plasma sintering equipment. The carbon-aluminum interface in each
composite was observed by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. As
a result, the carbon nanofiber was covered with a hexagonal basal plane (C
plane), and reactive dangling bonds were hardly observed. On the other hand,
although the fiber axis of pitch-based carbon fiber and PAN-based carbon
fiber (Toray) is aligned along the C-axis, their fiber surface is covered
with a disordered structure, and it is expected that there will be a lot of
dangling bonds. At the interface in carbon nanofibers/ aluminum composites
fabricated by the spark plasma sintering, no clear reaction layer was
observed. On the other hand, Al4C3, which appears to be needle-shaped
crystalline, was formed in the other fibers. In particular, the growth of
needle-shaped crystals was observed by annealing in the obtained composites.
From these results, it is believed that carbon nanofibers, which are covered
with the C-plane and have a carbon surface with few defects, have low
reactivity and therefore excellent thermal conductivity and are excellent as
dispersion materials for carbon material/aluminum composites with excellent
mechanical properties.
Biography: Gen Sasaki was a professor at Hiroshima University since April
2006 and retired in March 2025. He is currently a professor emeritus at
Hiroshima University. In 1988, he graduated from the doctoral course at the
Graduate School of Engineering at Tohoku University. After obtaining his
doctorate in engineering, he worked at Toyota Automatic Loom Works Co. Ltd.,
and in 2000, he became a research associate at the National Defense Academy
of Japan. In 2002, he worked as a research associate and lecturer at the
Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of
Tokyo. In 2005, he became an associate professor at the Faculty of
Engineering at Hiroshima University. He subsequently became affiliated with
the Graduate School of Engineering and the Graduate School of Advanced
Science and Engineering. In academic circles, he has served as the head of
the Mechanical Materials and Materials Processing Division of the Japan
Society of Mechanical Engineers, director, editor-in-chief, and Western
Branch Chief of the Japan Society for Composite Materials, director of the
Japan Institute of Metals, and branch chief of the Chugoku-Shikoku Branch.
In particular, he has served as director and vice president of the Japan
Institute of Light Metals from May 2023 to the present. He is also currently
a fellow of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Japan Society
for Composite Materials.
In his research, he has been studying the
processing of metal matrix composite materials for many years, and has
clarified the relationship between mechanical and functional properties and
microstructure. With regard to processing, he has proposed a method of
spontaneously or at low pressure impregnation of porous reinforcing
materials, and a method of manufacturing composite materials using severe
deformation processing. He has also analyzed the structure of interfaces in
composite materials at the atomic level. In recent years, he has developed
models and simulations that clarify the effect of the microstructural
morphology of metal matrix composite materials on their electrical and
thermal conductivity, and is conducting research to explore new applications
for metal matrix composite materials.
Prof. Hisaki Watari
Tokyo Denki University, Japan
Biography: Hisaki Watari is a Professor in Divion of Mechanical
Engineering at Faculty of Science and Technology of Tokyo Denki University
(Hatoyama Campus) since April 2015. From 2017 to the present, he served as
Division Chair of the Division of Mechanical Engineering of the Faculty of
Science and Technology at Tokyo Denki University. He received a B.Engng.
from Kyushu University in Naval Architecture, 1985 in the School of
Engineering at Kyushu University. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical System
engineering from Gunma University in Japan, 2006. Since April in 1988, he
worked at Oyama National College of Technology as a Research Associate,
Lecturer and Associate Professor until November 2006. Between 1999 and 2000,
he visited at UMIST as a visiting researcher of Japanese Government. From
November 2006 to March 2015, he worked as a Associate Professor and a
Professor at Gunma University. From April 2015 to the present, he has been
working at Tokyo Denki University as a full-time Professor. He has served as
a chair of the Japan Association of Aluminum Forging Technology since 2014.
His research interests span both manufacturing process and material
science. Much of his work has been on improving the understanding,
manufacturing, material processing, mainly through the application of
casting of magnesium alloys and aluminum alloy, shaping such as cold roll
forming and hot forging. In the roll casting of magnesium alloys, he has
worked on characterizing the casting of rapid cooling of magnesium alloys by
twin-roll casting. He is now the chair of the Japan Association of Aluminum
Forging Technology. He has published a lot of research papers in journals
and conducting works relating materials processing technology of light
metals, such as aluminum and magnesium alloys.