The 22nd (2022) Yamazaki-Teiichi Prize Winner Material
Invention of supercritical hydrothermal synthesis method and creation of Novel Nano materials
Winner | |||
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Tadafumi Adschiri Professor, Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University |
Reason for award
Dr. Adschiri has pioneered research on "materials synthesis using supercritical fluids as a reaction field." In the supercritical field, gaseous and liquid phases, or water and oil, which are not normally mixed together, form a homogeneous phase. By using this characteristic, it is possible to synthesize materials in a state of non-equilibrium that was difficult in the past, such as by freely controlling the oxidation and reduction of metal oxides, and simultaneously proceeding with organic and inorganic reactions. In the production of nanomaterials using the hydrothermal synthesis method, it is desirable to maintain a high-supersaturation state up to a supercritical reaction field with high temperature and pressure. However, in the conventional batch type method, precipitation reactions proceed during the heating-up period making it difficult to obtain an ideal supersaturation state. Dr. Adschiri has invented a supercritical, continuous, hydrothermal synthesis method with excellent originality that has solved this contradiction. This method can be regarded as "fundamental technology" that can synthesize various new nanomaterials industrially. In addition, it is expected that supercritical hydrolysis will be applied to resource recovery from wastewater. By vigorously publishing this technique in academic papers and at international academic conferences, Dr. Adschiri is linked to industrialization in various countries around the world. His academic and social contributions are considered to be enormous. For the above reasons Dr. Adschiri has been selected as the winner of the 22nd Yamazaki-Teiichi Prize in the field of materials.