On November 21, Springer Nature held the 5th Award Ceremony of the China New Development Awards in Beijing to commend Chinese scholars for their important research for the SDGs of the UN. The Encyclopedia of Ionic Liquids edited by Suojiang Zhang, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and president of HENU, won the 2023 China New Development Award of Springer Nature.

The book systematically introduces the theory, technology and industrial applications of ionic liquids. It covers a total of thirteen sections, introducing ionic liquids from their synthesis and characterization, physical and chemical properties, and electrochemical applications. In addition, the book also introduces the emerging applications of ionic liquids in pharmacology, food science, agriculture, nuclear technology, and optics.

Suojiang Zhang, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, president of HENU, and vice chairman of the Chemical Industry and Engineering Society of China, is mainly engaged in green energy, materials, and process research. He has made pioneering efforts in the fields of ionic liquids and green processes and has achieved demonstrations and industrial applications of multiple green technologies. So far, he has won the second prize of the National Natural Science Award, the Chemistry Award of the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), the Ho Leung Ho Lee Science and Technology Progress Award, and the Hou Debang Chemical Engineering Science and Technology Achievement Award.