prof. RNDr. Radek Zbořil Ph.D.

Scientific Director of the Centre for Nanotechnology and Head of the Materials-Envi Lab

Place of work

VŠB – Technical University of Ostrava

Field

Chemistry, nanotechnology, material sciences

Professor Radek Zbořil is a scientist of great visions. In the past, he recognized the potential of nanotechnology and focused on the development of low-dimensional nanomaterials with applications in medicine, energy and environmental protection. He pioneered his research path to atomic engineering, which allows controlling the properties of materials at the level of individual atoms. He considers the translation of discoveries into practice to be key in science – he is the originator of a number of European patents and licensed technologies that are used, for example, in wastewater treatment, food and medicine.

Thanks to the REFRESH project, an exceptionally strong international team of scientists has built up a living Materials-Envi Lab at VŠB-TUO.

Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW) awarded under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General

Member of evaluation panels of prestigious European Research Council Advanced Grants (ERC Advanced Grants)

Miloš Hudlický Prize awarded by the Czech Chemical Society, 2023

Award of the Minister of Education of the Czech Republic for outstanding results in research, 2011

Werner von Siemens Prize, 2018

Winner of two Visionary 2021 awards for work in water treatment and antimicrobial technologies

Repeatedly listed as one of the world’s most cited scientists in chemistry and materials science

“Cutting-edge interdisciplinary research needs strong leaders, great ideas, modern infrastructure and teamwork. Thanks to the support of the university and MSK leadership, I have found all this and I appreciate it very much. I am convinced that the new materials we design using modern supercomputers and produce with atomic precision will find applications in medicine, energy or environmental technologies and will help improve the quality of life of people not only in MSK.”

Prof. RNDr. Radek Zbořil Ph.D.

Scientific Director of the Centre for Nanotechnology and Head of the Materials-Envi Lab

Impact

The importance of research

His work represents a significant contribution to the development of new materials and technologies with broad applications in various fields of science and industry. His major achievements include the development of the world’s thinnest fluorographene-based insulator, organic non-metallic magnets, one-dimensional non-metallic conductors and the first two-dimensional carboxylic acid. His team has also contributed to the development of new antimicrobial materials, including so-called atomic antibiotics, which effectively kill even highly resistant bacteria. He has also developed a new generation of heterogeneous catalysts that can replace expensive noble metals and change approaches in current organic chemistry. He has led research to develop new types of energy storage devices (called supercapacitors) that in many ways surpass the limits of existing lithium ion batteries. Zbořil’s team has also been at the forefront of developing the technology to produce nano-particles of nulamocene iron, which have been used for groundwater purification at a number of sites in Europe and around the world.