DALIAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL PHYSICS CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Their core work

The Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) is one of China's foremost chemistry research institutes, operating under the Chinese Academy of Sciences and internationally recognized for catalysis, energy chemistry, and chemical engineering. Their H2020 work focuses on two interconnected challenges: converting biomass waste into useful products while capturing CO2, and driving the conversion of CO2 directly into methanol using only sunlight. In both cases their contribution is at the catalyst level — designing and testing the materials that make these chemical reactions work efficiently. DICP brings deep synthetic chemistry expertise into international consortia, typically supplying specialized catalyst knowledge that European partners lack in-house.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

DICP entered H2020 collaboration through thermochemical routes — biomass gasification combined with CO2 capture, a relatively conventional (if ambitious) approach to negative-emission chemistry. Their more recent engagement shifted decisively toward light-driven chemistry: photocatalysis, Z-scheme heterojunctions, and direct sunlight-to-fuel conversion, which represents a fundamentally different technological family. The trend is a move from high-temperature process chemistry toward room-temperature, solar-powered catalytic systems — reflecting the broader global shift in energy chemistry research priorities toward solar fuels and artificial photosynthesis.

DICP is moving toward solar-driven artificial photosynthesis — if this direction continues, they will be a relevant partner for any consortium working on green hydrogen, solar fuels, or photocatalytic CO2 valorisation.

How they like to work

DICP participates exclusively as a partner or third party — they have never coordinated an H2020 project — which is consistent with the typical role of non-EU institutions in Horizon programmes, where coordination is restricted to EU/associated countries. Despite their peripheral formal role, they access a surprisingly wide network: 32 unique partners across 13 countries from just two projects, suggesting they join large, well-connected consortia. Working with DICP means gaining access to Chinese catalysis infrastructure and expertise that would be difficult to replicate within European institutions, in exchange for their entry point into EU-funded collaboration networks.

With 32 unique consortium partners across 13 countries, DICP punches well above its project count in terms of network breadth. Their geographic reach extends well beyond Asia — their EU project links connect them to a broad European and international research community in energy and chemistry.

What sets them apart

DICP is one of a very small number of Chinese Academy of Sciences institutes with active H2020 participation, giving them credibility in both Eastern and Western research systems simultaneously. Their specific combination of thermochemical process knowledge (gasification, carbon capture) and advanced photocatalysis (Z-scheme heterojunctions, solar CO2 conversion) is rare — most European institutes specialise in one or the other. For a consortium that needs a credible Chinese partner with deep catalysis capability and a track record in EU-funded projects, DICP is one of the few institutions that can genuinely fill that role.

Highlights from their portfolio

• METHASOL
  Tackles one of the most competitive frontiers in energy chemistry — direct solar conversion of CO2 to methanol — with DICP contributing advanced photocatalyst design including Z-scheme heterojunctions, a relatively sophisticated approach to charge separation.
• BIOMASS-CCU
  An MSCA-RISE project combining biomass gasification with CO2 capture and utilisation, notable for its negative-emission framing and for involving DICP as a mobility partner under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie scheme — enabling researcher exchanges between China and Europe.