News

Chinese National Final of the IoM3 Young Persons' Lecture Competition

22 April 2021

Juncheng Fan
Juncheng Fan
Yiran Li
Yiran Li

The IOM3 Young Persons’ Lecture Competition (YPLC) is organized by the Institute of Materials Minerals and Mining (IOM3) each year. The YPLC invites students and professionals up to the age of 28 to deliver a short lecture (12 to 15 minutes) on a topic related to materials, minerals, mining, packaging, clay technology, wood science or engineering, more information here.

Candidates compete in a series of heats organized (where appropriate) by IOM3 local co-ordinators, from which the regional finalists are selected to compete in National Finals. Last week the first ever YPLC China final was hosted by Queen Mary University of London’s Engineering School in Xi’an, China (QMES). The winner will go on to represent China in the Young Persons' World Lecture Competition final (details can be found here) which in 2021 will be held online in November.

Three talented young engineers made it to the first YPLC China final and delivered their presentation to a hybrid audience (face-to-face and online). QMES’ prestigious lecture theatre was filled with students and staff alike; due to international travel restrictions an online audience was also able to dial in and enjoy the presentations. The event was opened with a short introduction and then the contestants took over the show. Details of the presentations (in the order they presented) are given below along with links to their slides and presentations:

  • Mr Juncheng Fan - Polydopamine-based Antimicrobial Coatings: Mussel-inspired Smart and Versatile Platforms for Orthopaedic Implants
  • Miss Yiran Li - Application of Surfactants on Metal Corrosion Prevention
  • Mr Botao Huang – Fusion Energy

There are more details about each of our outstanding finalists at the end of this document. All presentations were well received, and it was a difficult decision for the three judges to separate the presenters for the various prizes.

  • 1st Place – Mr Juncheng Fan who will receive a cash prize
  • 2nd Place – Miss Yiran Li who will receive a cash prize
  • 3rd Place- Mr Botao Huang who will receive a cash prize

Dr Andrew Spowage CEng, one of the judges, is quoted as saying, “All of the presenters did a fantastic job. They showed considerable maturity and have promising careers ahead of them".

Faith Nightingale, one of the judges and the competition co-organiser, is quoted as saying, “The lectures given were all of an extremely high standard and really showed the knowledge and presenting abilities of the students. The students really did themselves proud and are an inspiration to other students in QMES”.

Further Information:

Details of the Finalists:

  • Full name: Juncheng Fan
    • Current age: 22 years old
    • Year of study: Fourth-year undergraduate
    • What you plan to do after you graduate: I will pursue postgraduate studies in nanotechnology at the University of Cambridge after my graduation.
    • Area of interest: Polymer Materials Science and Engineering
  • Full name: Yiran Li
    • Current age: 20 years old
    • Year of study: Third year Undergraduate
    • What you plan to do after you graduate: I intend to get into a graduate school and further my studies in polymeric materials
    • Area of Interest: Polymer Synthesis related to Biomedical Science
  • Full name: Botao Huang
    • Current age: 21 Years old
    • Year of study: Third year Undergraduate
    • What you plan to do after you graduate: Plan to continue my studies abroad.
    • Area of Interest: Engineering design, materials science, chemistry of materials
Contact:Andrew Spowage
Email:a.spowage@qmul.ac.uk
People:

Updated by: Andy Spowage