Yan, the Henry B. du Pont Chair in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, is an expert in electrochemistry and electrochemical energy engineering. Inducted into the National Academy of Inventors last year, he has been an inventor on more than 25 patents and is the founder of W7energy.
VERY INFLUENTIAL RESEARCHERS
Article by Tracey Bryant Photos by Office of Communications and Marketing November 20, 2019
Six University of Delaware professors are among the most influential scientists in the world, according to the 2019 Highly Cited Researchers list released by the Web of Science Group.
The global indexing service identifies researchers in the sciences and social sciences who produced multiple publications ranking in the top 1% by citations for their field and year of publication over the past decade, demonstrating significant research influence among their peers
UD’s Cathy Wu, Cecilia Arighi, and Hongzhan Huang were recognized for their impact in biology and biochemistry; Wendy Smith in economics and business; and Rodrigo Vargas and Yushan Yan in the “cross-field” category. This is the second year that researchers with cross-field impact — those with exceptional broad performance based on high-caliber papers across several fields — have been identified.
Yushan Yan
Yan, the Henry B. du Pont Chair in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, is an expert in electrochemistry and electrochemical energy engineering. Inducted into the National Academy of Inventors last year, he has been an inventor on more than 25 patents and is the founder or co-founder of several startups including W7energy, which designs, develops, and manufactures polymer membranes for platinum-free fuel cells and clean hydrogen generation.
“Being recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher means to me that my publications may have had some impact on the work of others,” Yan said. “I am honored to be included in the list.”
He does most of his scientific writing in the quiet of his office or at home, although a fair portion is done on planes and at airports where he just tunes out the background noise.
“Although I try hard to advance fundamental science, what motivates me the most is the translation of that science into technology and innovation,” Yan said. “It has long been my aspiration that my work will someday make a difference.”
He has a doctorate in chemical engineering from the California Institute of Technology.