Matthias Beller visited MEL and praised the research and facilities in Ostrava

Matthias Beller, a world-leading expert in catalysis and organic chemistry from the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (LIKAT) in Rostock, Germany, visited the Materials and Envi Lab of the Nanotechnology Centre at VSB-TUO. He discussed further possible cooperation with local researchers and gave a guest lecture entitled How to Achieve Sustainable Energy Technologies and a Circular Chemical Industry.

“Professor Beller and I share several joint publications and projects, including papers in the Nature family journals. We were pleased to present our new laboratories to him. I am glad my colleagues and I could personally discuss future research directions and identify further opportunities for cooperation, particularly in the design of new single-atom catalysts and photocatalysts. For these projects, we will make full use of the infrastructure acquired through the REFRESH project,” said MEL head Radek Zboril.

The Vice-President of the Leibniz Association, who directed LIKAT for over two decades and now leads its Department of Applied Homogeneous Catalysis, praised the unique equipment of the new MEL laboratories. He also spoke highly of the achievements of the Ostrava-based researchers. “It was a pleasant meeting full of lively discussions about science. Thank you for the excellent cooperation so far, and I look forward to keeping it up,” said Beller at the start of his lecture.

In his presentation, the distinguished chemist spoke not only about pathways toward sustainable energy and a circular chemical industry but also about the responsibility of researchers in tackling these global challenges. He concluded with a personal message underscoring the value of collaboration in science. “Scientific breakthroughs are often attributed to individuals. I believe the opposite is true. An idea alone is not enough—you need a strong team to make it real,” Beller emphasized.

Professor Beller is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, among them the European Sustainable Chemistry Award, the Gay-Lussac–Alexander von Humboldt Prize, and the Leibniz Prize from the German Research Foundation—often referred to as the “German Nobel Prize.” He regularly ranks among Clarivate Analytics’ Highly Cited Researchers and has received an ERC Advanced Grant. His record includes more than 1,200 scientific publications, several in Science and Nature, 183 patents, an H-index of 156, and over 98,000 citations.

Together with Professor Zboril, he agreed on specific plans for the future: a joint workshop next year, student exchange opportunities, and preparations for a collaborative project in the Teaming call. This project, now in the final evaluation stage, aims to establish a European Centre of Excellence in single-atom engineering and materials development using artificial intelligence tools.