Newcastle University in Singapore

Staff Profile

Dr Chun Yang Yin

Reader in Adv Materials & Sustainability (Associate Professor) & Director of Internationalisation

Background

Dr Yin received his PhD in chemical engineering (Malaya) and was appointed visiting scholar at Columbia University in the City of New York (Dec 2008 - March 2009) and Harvard University (Nov - Dec 2009) where he conducted research on liquid infiltration in nanoporous materials and microfluidics, respectively. His brief stint at Harvard was focused on hands-on PDMS microfluidic device fabrication for pharmaceutical and cell capture applications. 

His current interests are focused on sustainability themes particularly all aspects relating to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) topics. He holds an Advanced Certificate in Integrating Sustainability for a Future-Ready Business from Singapore Management University and a Certificate of Proficiency in GHG emissions accounting from the GHG Management Institute. As the Director of Internationalisation, he is responsible for the international presence of Newcastle University in Singapore (NUiS) and Newcastle Research & Innovation Institute (NewRIIS). 

He is currently an Editorial Board Member of Scientific Reports - a Q1 journal published by Nature Portfolio (formerly Nature Publishing Group) (www.nature.com/srep/about/editors#chemical-engineering) and Materials - a Q1 journal published by MDPI (www.mdpi.com/journal/materials/editors).  

Dr Yin is an Associate Member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, United Kingdom (AMIChemE), Member of Engineers Australia (MIEAust) and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), UK. His research and lecturing experience spans more than 18 years in which he has held various academic positions (Lecturer, Senior LecturerReader, Associate Professor) at universities in the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. He is currently a Reader in Adv Materials & Sustainability at Newcastle University in Singapore. He was involved as a contributing/supervising Murdoch University academic in Western Australia for a capstone metallurgical engineering design course for final year students under the banner of the Metallurgical Education Partnership (MEP) (2011-2012).

Dr Yin regularly gets invited as speaker/guest lecturer and has delivered several keynote/plenary lectures at several international conferences. He has acted as reviewer for many prominent Elsevier, John Wiley & Sons and American Chemical Society journals and examiner for 6 PhD theses. He is also a proposal reviewer/assessor for the British Council, Leverhulme Trust, Australian Research Council, CONACYT and Kazakhstan National Center of Science and Technology Evaluation. He is currently serving as a Member of the British Council-Newton Fund Engineering and Physical Sciences Review Panel (2015 - present) and has previously served as a UK Management Committee Member for EU COST Action ES1205. He is also currently serving as a Member of the Britcham Singapore Sustainability Committee.

Postgraduate/postdoc supervision forms an integral component of his academic career in which he has supervised 5 successful PhD project and is currently co-supervising PhD students with his UK and Australian collaborators. In recognition of his research accomplishments, he was awarded the 2013 Murdoch University Vice Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research (Early Career Development and Achievement) and included in the Stanford list of "Top 2% of scientists of their main subfield discipline". By working closely with UK, Australian and international collaborators, he has (jointly) procured more than £1.2 million-equivalent in competitive research, travel and infrastructure-based grants. Recent successfully obtained grants include:

  • 2021 - 2022 National Plan for Science, Technology and Innovation grant, Saudi Arabia (Work Package Leader)
  • 2017-2018 British Council Institutional Links – Newton Fund grant (UK Principal Investigator)
  • 2016 - 2017 Royal Academy of Engineering, UK - Newton Research Collaboration Programme (Principal Investigator)
  • 2015 - 2017 Innovative Research Universities (Australia) - IRU-MRUN Collaborative Research Programme (Joint Chief Investigator)
  • 2014 - 2015 Teesside University Research Fund (Principal Investigator)
  • 2014 - 2015 Teesside International Visiting Academics Scheme (Principal Investigator)
  • 2013 Australian Research Council - Linkage, Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Grants (Murdoch University Chief Investigator)
  • 2012 - 2014 Sir Walter Murdoch Distinguished Collaborator Program (Chief Investigator)

Dr Yin has published more than 85 indexed journal articles mostly as first/corresponding/joint corresponding author (http://scholar.google.com/citations?user=AyvBQgkAAAAJ&hl=en). Recent representative journal publications include:

  • Amri, A., Hendri, Y.B., Yin, C.Y., Rahman, M.M., Altarawneh, M. and Jiang, Z.T. (2021). Very-few-layer graphene obtained from facile two-shear exfoliation in aqueous solution. Chemical Engineering Science, 245, 116848 (selected as journal cover image - please see below)
  • Ha, N.N., Cam, L.M., Thi Thu Ha, N., Jiang, Z.T., El-Harbawi, M. and Yin, C.Y.(2018). Integrated QMMM and Monte Carlo methods for analysis of adsorptive interactions between goethite cluster, carbon nanotubes and arsenate. International Journal of Quantum Chemistry, 118, e25653 (selected as journal cover image - please see below).
  • Ha, N.N., Ha, N.T.T., Goh, B.M., Saunders, M., Jiang, Z.T., Altarawneh, M., Dlugogorski, B.Z., El-Harbawi, M. and Yin, C.Y.# (2017). Understanding the adsorptive interactions of arsenate-iron nanoparticles with curved fullerene-like sheets in activated carbon using a quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics computational approach. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 19, 14262-14268 (highlighted by Editors as a HOT manuscript in 2017).
  • Yin, C.Y.#, Ng, M.F., Goh, B.M., Saunders, M., Hill, N., Jiang, Z.T., Balach, J. and El-Harbawi, M., (2016). Probing the interactions of phenol with oxygenated functional groups on curved fullerene-like sheets in activated carbon. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 18, 3700-3705.
  • Yin, C.Y.#, Ng, M.F., Saunders, M., Goh, B.M., Senanayake, G., Sherwood, A., Hampton, M. (2014). New insights into the adsorption of aurocyanide ion on activated carbon surface: electron microscopy analysis and computational studies using fullerene-like models. Langmuir 30 (26), 7703-7709.
  • Rahman, M.M., Jiang, Z.T., Xie, Z., Duan, X., Wo, P.C., Yin, C.Y., Mondinos, N., Gu, Q., Widjaja, H., Jack, K., Yago, A., Amri, A. (2014). Understanding local bonding structures of Ni-doped chromium nitride coatings through synchrotron radiation NEXAFS spectroscopy. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 118 (32), 18573-18579.
  • Amri, A., Jiang, Z.T., Bahri, P., Yin, C.Y.#, Zhao, X., Xie, Z., Duan X., Widjaja, H., Rahman, M.M., Pryor, T. (2013). Surface electronic structure and mechanical characteristics of copper cobalt oxide thin film coatings: Soft X-ray synchrotron radiation spectroscopic analyses and modeling. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 117 (32), 16457–16467.
  • Golsheikh, A.M., Huang, N.M., Lim, H.N., Zakaria, R., Yin, C.Y. (2013). One-step electrodeposition synthesis of silver-nanoparticle-decorated graphene on indium-tin-oxide for enzymeless hydrogen peroxide detection. Carbon 62, 405-412.
  • Yin, C.-Y.#, Nikoloski, A.N., Wang, W. (2013). Microfluidic solvent extraction of platinum and palladium from a chloride leach solution using Alamine 336. Minerals Engineering 45, 18 – 21.

Work featured as front journal cover for Chemical Engineering Science - paper was co-authored with Prof Amun Amri, who was the project lead.


Research

Research Profile

Theme 1: Industrial Sustainability and Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG)

All aspects concerning industrial sustainability and ESG including sustainability reporting, greenhouse gas emissions quantification, carbon audit, carbon offsetting and carbon reduction.

Theme 2: Adsorption of Metal Ions onto Activated Carbon Surface: Electron Microscopy Analyses and Computational Studies

Though the use of activated carbon (AC) as an industrial wastewater "polisher" to remove pollutants as well as gold extractant in the carbon-in-pulp process are ubiquitous, the exact adsorption mechanisms in terms of metal ions affinity to the AC surface are still poorly understood. Computational and electron microscopy studies could potentially shed light on such fundamental aspects. 

Theme 3: Life Cycle Assessment and Industrial Ecology as Applied for Localised Chemical Industries

Life Cycle Assessment is a technique that provides quantitative assessment of the environmental impact of processes over their specified life cycles. Such technique could be used to aid improved plant designs in relation to environmental sustainability. 

Current Research Project

  • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) metrics and rankings
  • Synthesis of Carbon Microspheres and Hydrochar from Biomass Wastes and It's Application for Wastewater Treatment.  

Areas for PhD Supervision/Potential PhD Projects

  • Advanced carbon materials
  • Life cycle assessment
  • Adsorption processes
  • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

Teaching

Undergraduate 
  • CHE2014: Separation Processes 1 (SIT-NU module)
  • CHE2033: Sustainable Industry, Design and Manufacture (SIT-NU module)
  • CHE3031: Design Project (SIT-NU module)


Postgraduate

  • NUS8101: Environmental Impact Legislation and Engineering
  • NUS8201: Energy Resources and Technologies 

Publications