Preface: 9th International Conference for Young Chemists (ICYC) 2024

The 9th International Conference for Young Chemists (ICYC 2024) convened in George Town, Penang, Malaysia, from October 9 to 11, 2024. This biennial meeting, organized by the postgraduate students at the School of Chemical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), continues to serve as an influential academic platform that foregrounds early-career chemists’ scientific contributions and intellectual development. Since its inaugural edition in 2007, ICYC has emerged as a prominent regional initiative that nurtures interdisciplinary dialogue and strengthens global scientific networks within the chemical sciences.

The 2024 edition, themed “Green Innovation in Chemistry: Catalyzing Sustainable Solutions for a Greener Tomorrow”, emphasized research at the confluence of sustainability, innovation, and chemical technology. The principal scientific domains represented at the conference included green synthesis pathways, catalytic conversion processes, advanced energy storage and environmental remediation materials, biopolymer and bio-ceramic engineering, and emerging membrane technologies for wastewater valorization. A notable emphasis was placed on circular chemistry frameworks, decarbonization strategies, and developing cost-effective, resource-efficient solutions aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The technical program comprised five plenary lectures from globally recognized experts, 10 invited keynote addresses, and over 80 rigorously selected oral presentations. The presentations showcased fundamental and applied chemistry advances, spanning organometallic catalysis, computational molecular design, bio-nanomaterials, chemical process intensification, and analytical method development. More than 90 presentations provided a complementary medium for disseminating preliminary findings and fostering constructive peer review (Figs. 1–4).

Fig. 1:

Mohd Ridhwan Adam (Co-Advisor of ICYC 2024) hosting the session of the opening plenary session.

Fig. 2:

Plenary session speaker, Prof Ts. Dr. Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman (Universiti Teknologi Malaysia).

Fig. 3:

Plenary speaker 1, Prof Ts Dr Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman (right, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia), plenary speaker 2, Prof Dr Nicolas Brosse (second from left, Université de Lorraine, France), keynote speaker 1, Prof Dr. Nobuto Yoshinari (second from right, Osaka University, Japan), and keynote speaker 2, Prof Dr. Jalel Labidi (left, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain).

Fig. 4:

Group photo of the participants at the 9th international conference for young chemists (ICYC 2024).

Scientific diversity was a hallmark of the event, with participation from researchers representing more than 12 countries, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, Spain, France, Thailand, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom. The active involvement of early-career researchers from ASEAN nations underscored the conference’s role as a regional nexus for capacity-building in the chemical sciences.

In parallel to the technical sessions, ICYC 2024 featured targeted workshops on grant proposal writing, scholarly communication, and sustainable research practices. These sessions addressed current gaps in research capacity and were designed to equip young chemists with practical tools to enhance scientific productivity and translational impact. A panel discussion, “Chemistry for Sustainable Futures,” brought together industrial chemists, academic leaders, and representatives from international scientific unions to examine the evolving role of chemistry in the Anthropocene critically.

The present special issue of Pure and Applied Chemistry features selected contributions from the conference, reflecting the scientific merit and thematic coherence of ICYC 2024. The included articles have undergone rigorous peer review and cover a spectrum of topics such as metal-organic framework (MOF)-based adsorption systems, novel green synthetic routes for pharmaceutical intermediates, bioactive composite characterization, and kinetic and thermodynamic modelling of pollutant degradation. Each article contributes to the discourse on how chemistry can drive transformative change in energy, environment, and health.

We sincerely thank all contributing authors for their scholarly work and the reviewers for their critical insights. The success of ICYC 2024 was made possible through the collective effort of the scientific and organizing committees, keynote speakers, academic sponsors, and institutional partners. We are particularly grateful to Universiti Sains Malaysia for its unwavering institutional support for advancing research excellence among early-career scientists.

We hope this special issue will serve as a scientific record of the conference proceedings and catalyze further interdisciplinary collaboration and high-impact research in the global chemical sciences community.

We sincerely thank all contributing authors for their scholarly work and the reviewers for their critical insights. The success of ICYC 2024 was made possible through the collective effort of the scientific and organizing committees, keynote speakers, academic sponsors, and institutional partners. We are particularly grateful to Universiti Sains Malaysia for its unwavering institutional support for advancing research excellence among early-career scientists. We hope this special issue will serve as a scientific record of the conference proceedings and catalyze further interdisciplinary collaboration and high-impact research in the global chemical sciences community.