On November 25th, the list of winners of the 2024 China Shandong Doctoral (Postdoctoral) Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition was announced. The project "Research on Chemical Recycling and Upgrading Technology of Waste Polyester Materials" by Dr. Ni Yanpeng, a specially appointed expert of Dawn Group and professor of Qingdao University, won the silver medal in the field of new energy and new materials in the talent attraction track. This was the second time that Dawn won an honor in the 2023 China Shandong Postdoctoral Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition, following the bronze medal won by Hao Yanping, a postdoctoral fellow at the Dawn Group Postdoctoral Research Station, for her project "Development and Application of Special Materials for Fully Biodegradable Ground Membranes".

The competition focused on attracting talent and solving the "bottleneck" technical problems of enterprises, and innovatively set up two tracks: talent attraction and technical research. As an expert company in the research and development, polymerization, production, sales and application of new materials, Dawn Polymer has released forward-looking and challenging technical topics, aiming to attract doctoral and postdoctoral talents to jointly overcome technical difficulties and inject new impetus into the company's high-quality development.

Dr. Ni Yanpeng, a provincial and ministerial-level expert, has carried out a series of specialized efforts addressing key scientific and technological challenges related to the greening, functionalization, and resource recycling of polyester-based polymer materials. In the Talent Recruitment Challenge category of the competition, Dr. Ni introduced the project background, technical solutions, core technological competitiveness, technical roadmap, research plans, and technological achievements. He also outlined the project implementation plan, as well as its potential social, economic, and ecological benefits.

It is reported that China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of polyester. However, the volume of waste polyester products is large and the recycling level is low, resulting in serious waste of resources and environmental pollution. Research on the chemical recycling and efficient recovery of polyester materials can help improve the recycling rate and technological competitiveness of waste polyester. At present, Dawn Polymer is focusing on the development of environmentally friendly, high-performance recycled polymer materials. The results of the award-winning project will provide strong support for the industrialization of the company’s high-end recycled polyester product chain.

Innovation and entrepreneurship are the twin engines driving the development of enterprises. The reason behind this award is highly consistent with the "Dedication, Professionalism, Capability, and Entrepreneurial passion" advocated by Dawn people. What is more coincidental is that the winning projects for two consecutive years are in the field of "green and low-carbon". With the transformation of scientific and technological achievements into new quality productivity, it will effectively practice the concept of "making recyclables easier to recycle and non-recyclables easier to degrade", which has important economic value and strategic significance for environmental and resource protection.