YEuCat @ EuropaCat 2025
31 August - 5 September, Trondheim, Norway
31 August - 5 September, Trondheim, Norway
The 16th European Congress on Catalysis (EuropaCat) took place in Trondheim, Norway, from August 31 to September 5, 2025. The YEuCat team—Vera Truttmann, Veronica Piazza, Emanuele Moioli, Parviz Azimov, Lorenz Lindenthal, Verena Süß, Maya Ludwig, and Florian Schrenk—actively contributed to the event by organizing a variety of engaging activities. A heartfelt thank you goes to our sponsor Wiley, as well as EFCATS and all the supporters who made this event possible.
“Research in a Nutshell” Contest
The first YEuCat event took place on Tuesday afternoon with the contest “Research in a Nutshell”. This contest aimed to to recognize outstanding efforts by young researchers (PhD students and early-career PostDocs), who presented their work in an accessible and engaging way.
Ten outstanding finalists were selected. The high quality of submissions made the selection process incredibly challenging. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated.
Our finalists:
Satya Sireesha Rameswarapu, Monash University, Melbourne
Willow Dew, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim (Norway)
Daniel Pereira Costa, Centro de Química Estrutural, Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisbon, Portugal
Marc-Eduard Usteri, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zurich, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland
Angelos-Konstantinos Bonis, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, UK
Piercosimo Vedele, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Turin, Italy
Ariana Serban, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Elena Vicente Cayuela, Instituto de Tecnología Química (ITQ-UPV-CSIC), Valencia, Spain
Rasmus Svensson, Department of Physics and Competence Centre for Catalysis, Chalmers University of Technology, SE-412 96 Göteborg, Sweden
Sibylle Schwartmann, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
The talks were voted on by both the audience present and an expert jury. In the end, the presentation from Daniel Costa on “Machine Learning guided Zeolite Preparation using Literature augmented Datasets” took home first place. Congratulations again.
The jury, composed of distinguished experts in the field, played a crucial role in selecting the winner. Their expertise ensured a fair and thorough evaluation of each presentation. We extend our gratitude to the jury members for their dedication and valuable insights:
Jury:
Dr. Christophe Coudercy, Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oslo, Norway
Dr. Sandra González Gallardo, Editor-in- Chief at Wiley for the journals Advanced Synthesis and Catalysis and ChemCatChem
Prof. Dr. Karin Föttinger, Professor at TU Wien, Vienna, Austria
Dr. Thomas Schaub, Designated senior principal scientist and lab head of the Catalysis Research Laboratory, BASF Germany & Honorary professor at University of St. Andrews, Scotland
Thank you to everyone who made this event a success. We look forward to seeing more groundbreaking research in the future!
Panel Discussion: “The Metal Showdown”
Following the contest, YEuCat hosted a thought-provoking panel discussion titled “The Metal Showdown: Noble vs. Transition Metals in Modern Catalysis.” After a brief introduction by EFCATS President David Kubicka and our own Lorenz Lindenthal, the panel explored the advantages and challenges of using noble and transition metals in catalysis.
Our experts:
Dr. Florian Harth, Heraeus Precious Metals, Project lead heterogeneous catalysis
Prof. Dr. Georg Willis Huber, Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Dr. Jessica Michalke, PostDoc at Technical University of Leoben
Dr. Marissa Reigel, Saint-Gobain NorPro, Director of Research and Development
The lively discussion provided valuable insights into catalyst development and the challenges that lie ahead for the field.
Networking and Mingling
The end of Tuesday's YEuCat marathon was a mingling event held after the poster session. Tuesday concluded with a mingling event following the poster session. This informal gathering allowed participants to connect and exchange ideas with fellow young scientists. Thanks to our sponsor Wiley, food and drinks were provided, creating a relaxed atmosphere for meaningful discussions.
Career Workshop
On Wednesday afternoon, YEuCat organized a networking workshop designed to inspire and guide participants in their career journeys. Experts from academia, industry, and entrepreneurship shared their experiences and advice, covering topics such as securing European funding, succeeding in the chemical industry, and navigating the publishing world.
Our panel of speakers included:
Dr. Nikolaos Tsakoumis (SINTEF) and Dr. Liliana Lukashuk (Johnson Matthey): Insights into industrial career paths
Dr. Francesco Valentini (co2ol catalyst): Challenges and rewards of entrepreneurial science
Prof. Dr. Christoph Rameshan (Technical University of Leoben) and Dr. Bidyut Bikash Sarma (LCC-CNRS): Academic careers and European funding opportunities
Dr. Christopher Goodwin (ALBA synchrotron): Operando spectroscopy and large-scale research facilities
Dr. Sandra González Gallardo (Wiley): Tips for publishing and valorizing research
Participants also had the opportunity for one-on-one discussions with the speakers, making the workshop an invaluable experience for all attendees
Looking Ahead
We are already looking forward to the next EuropaCat conference in 2027, which will be hosted in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Stay tuned for more exciting updates!