Summit Program at a Glance
The program of the Transforming Chemistry Summit 2026 offers a blend of scientific excellence, forward‑looking perspectives, and opportunities for cross‑disciplinary collaboration. Over two days, participants will engage with plenary keynotes, session talks, poster presentations, and dedicated opportunities to connect with peers — all centered on advancing circular and sustainable chemistry. Explore the schedule below.
A detailed schedule will be published soon. Check back for updates!
Day 1 – Tuesday, 15 September 2026
8:00 – 9:00 am
Foyer
Registration
9:00 – 9:30 am
Welcoming
Room 30
Prof. Peter H. Seeberger, Scientific Director, Center for the Transformation of Chemistry
Prof. Eva Inés Obergfell, Rector, Leipzig University
Prof. Heike Graßmann, State Secretary, Saxon State Ministry for Science, Culture, and Tourism
9:30 – 10:30 am
Plenary Lecture 1
Room 30
Prof. Bartosz Grzybowski, UNIST
TBA
10:30 – 11:00 am
Foyer
Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:30 pm
Parallel Session 1
Session A — Data-driven Chemistry
11:00 – 11:30
Prof. Phillipe Schwaller, EPFL
Teaching Language Models to Speak Chemistry
11:30 – 12:00
Prof. Kevin Maik Jablonka, FSU-Jena
TBA
12:00 – 12:30
Prof. Jens Meiler, Leipzig University
How artificial intelligence is reshaping protein structure prediction and therapeutic design
Session B — Recycling and Circularity
11:00 – 11:30
Prof. Ulrich Schubert, FSU-Jena
TBA
11:30 – 12:00
Prof. Chris Slootweg, University of Amsterdam
Smarter Chemistry: Green, Circular and Safe by Design
12:00 – 12:15
Dr. Georg Künze, Leipzig University
Development of high-efficiency PET-degrading enzymes using structure-based design and machine learning
12:15 – 12:30
Dr. Rebecca Sebers, RWTH Aachen
catalaix: Transforming Plastic Waste into Circular Value Chains
12:30 – 1:30 pm
Foyer
Lunch Break
Enjoy a lunch break with time to connect, exchange ideas, and discuss the morning’s presentations in a relaxed setting.
1:30 – 2:00 pm
Foyer
Poster Session
2:00 – 3:00 pm
Plenary Lecture 2
Room 30
Prof. Alexei Lapkin, University of Cambridge
(SM3) Sustainable Molecules and Materials Manufacture – design of complete chemistry value chain for ‘net-zero chemistry‘
3:00 – 3:30 pm
Foyer
Coffee Break
3:30 – 5:00 pm
Parallel Session 2
Session A — Automated Synthesis
3:30 – 4:00
Prof. Leonidas-Dimitrios Syntrivanis, University of Colorado-Boulder
TBA
4:00 – 4:30
Prof. Victor Sans Sangorrin, Universitat Jaume I
TBA
4:30 – 4:45
Dr. Jose Danglad-Flores, MPIKG
Integrating automated platforms for chemical synthesis and reaction studies
4:45 – 5:00
Dr. Nicole Jung, KIT
Chemotion: Software to enable FAIR data and automation based on machine readable reaction processes
Session B — Sustainability Assessment
3:30 – 4:00
Prof. Liselotte Schebek, TU-Darmstadt
Assessing circular economy: what is it all about?
4:00 – 4:30
Prof. Peter Saling, BASF, TU Dresden
Sustainability assessments supporting decisions in circular economy of chemicals
4:30 – 4:45
Zoe Caterina Scarsella, Fraunhofer IKTS
Prospective LCA of Emerging Bio-based Technologies
4:45 – 5:00
Dr. Daniel Breite, Leibniz IOM
Life Cycle Assessment for Polymer Membrane Preparation and Modification – The Role of Recycled Polymers, Green Solvents, and Electron Beam Treatment
5:15 – 6:15 pm
Plenary Lecture 3
Room 30
Prof. Bert Sels, TU-Darmstadt
TBA
Day 2 – Wednesday, 16 September 2026
8:00 – 9:00 am
Foyer
Registration
9:00 – 10:00 am
Plenary Lecture 4
Room 30
Prof. Katalin Barta, University of Graz
TBA
10:00 – 10:30 am
Foyer
Coffee Break
10:30 – 12:00 pm
Parallel Session 1
Session A — Computational Chemistry
10:30 – 11:00
Prof. Julia Westermayr, Leipzig University
TBA
11:00 – 11:30
Prof. Ganna Gryn’ova, University of Birmingham
Data-Driven Design of Redox-Active Molecules
11:30 – 11:45
Dr. Stefan Zahn, Leibniz IOM
Uncovering Molecular Secrets of Deep Eutectic Solvents
11:45 – 12:00
Prof. Haojie Zhang, MLU Halle-Wittenberg
Automating ALD: A Self-Driving Thin-Film Growth Platform for Sustainable Materials Discovery
Session B — Renewable Feedstocks
10:30 – 11:00
Dr. Majd Al-Naji, Leipzig University
TBA
11:00 – 11:30
Prof. Francesca Toma, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon
TBA
11:30 – 11:45
Dr. Jakob Wolf, Nanyang Technological University
TBA
11:45 – 12:00
Nils Frank, Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung
The Photohydrolysis of Furans
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Foyer
Lunch Break
12:30 – 1:30 pm
Foyer
Poster Session
1:30 – 3:00 pm
Parallel Session 4
Session A — Sustainable Synthesis
1:30 – 2:00
Prof. Helen Sneddon, University of York
TBA
2:00 – 2:15
Dr. Ningyu Huang, Nanyang Technological University
Biphasic Electrocatalytic Reduction of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural to 2,5-Dimethylfuran over Oxygen-Vacancy-Rich Cu/TiO2 Catalysts
2:15 – 2:30
Dr. Tomasz Stawski, Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, BAM
Accelerating the discovery of High-Entropy Transition Metal Phosphates via automated synthesis and sequential learning
2:30 – 2:45
Dr. Gerrit Schaper, PTS — Institut für Fasern & Papier
Malaprade-Oxidation of Lignocellulosic Biomass: A novel Biorefinery-Concept for highly functional, sustainable Biopolymers
2:45 – 3:00
Dr. Marcus Lehnertz, SECARA | ITMC RWTH Aachen
Catalytic Depolymerization of Technical Polymers: From Unrecyclable Waste to Drop-In Monomers
Session B — Biobased Materials and Catalysis
1:30 – 2:00
Prof. Roger Gläser, Leipzig University
Epoxidation of Renewable Biodiesel with Hydrogen Peroxide over Enhanced Ti-Containing Silicate Catalysts
2:00 – 2:30
Prof. Antje Potthast, BOKU Vienna
TBA
2:30 – 3:00
Dr. Laura König-Mattern, CTC
TBA
3:00 – 3:15
Aybike Terzi, BasCat – UniCat BASF JointLab, Technische Universität Berlin
Exploring Large Catalyst Composition Spaces via Machine Learning
3:15 – 4:15 pm
Plenary Lecture 5
Room 30
Prof. Frank Rosowski, BASF, TU Berlin
TBA
4:15 – 4:45 pm
Room 30
Closing and Awards
