On November 28th, Zhang Yukui, the famous analytical chemist and Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences was employed as Yang Shixian Professor. He delivered a cutting-edge academic report on proteome study. Vice-president Yan Chunhua met with Zhang, and presented him with a letter of appointment and a school badge. Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences Zhou Qilin presented Zhang a statue of Yang Shixian, and presided over the academic report. There are more than 200 people attending the lecture, including people from Yang Shixian Lecture Committee, representatives of the College of Chemistry.

Yan said that the position of Yang Shixian Visitor Professor was established in 2005. It is a great honor in Nankai University. Yang Shixian Visitor Professor is not only the best respect to Yang, but also the inheritance of Nankai spirit. Thanks to Yang’s outstanding contributions, Nankai University has become a great college. He devoted himself to Nankai and played an important role in training talents, scientific researches and social services. He is the representative of the older generation of scientists. He put forward that "Chemistry for China's economic prosperity, academic progress".

Zhou said that the establishment of Yang Shixian Professor is to inherit and carry forward the spirit of Yang, to develop the Nankai chemistry for China's economic construction. The candidates were all well-known chemists. Zhang Yukui in 2005 was hired as a part-time professor at Nankai University. He has made great contributions to Nankai chemistry, especially in the development of analytical chemistry. In order to express his thanks to Zhang and expect him to give more care and guidance to his alma mater, Yang Shixian Lecture Committee hired Zhang as a Yang Shixian Professor. 

Zhang Yukui thanked his alma mater to grant him the Yang Shixian Professor title. He recalled the years that he came to Nankai in 1960, and Yang Shixian’s speech in the opening speech is still in his ears. Yang has always inspired him to make contributions to science. He valued the honor of being Yang Shixian Professor and is willing to make contributions to further development of his alma mater.

After the ceremony, Zhang delivered a lecture on proteome study. He first introduced the current progress of proteomics research. He invented the protein imprinted polymers, ionic liquid and protein equalizer. They significantly improved the quantitative analysis of proteins and have been provided to domestic and foreign research institutes. In addition, Zhang shared his experience on how to transfer scientific achievements into practical applications.

Zhang obtained his B.S. from Nankai University in 1965, and after that he has been working in DICP, CAS. He worked as the duty director and the director of National Chromatographic R. & A. Center in 1990s. Now he is the expert member for National Key Research Project of Proteins. He is also the duty director-general of China Association for Instrumental Analysis, and the director of Chromatography Branch of Chinese Chemistry Society. He is now an editorial board member of Anal. Chem.

Prof. Zhang’s research is focused on the fundamental, new techniques and methods for chromatography. He developed systematic thermodynamic and kinetic research methods for chromatography, and made great contribution to the establishment of expert systems for liquid chromatography. In capillary electrophoresis field, he found the rules by studying the effect of operation parameters and molecular structure of solutes on the migration, and was one of the pioneer researchers in capillary electrochromatography in China. In recent study, with the consideration of great requirements put forward by important application fields, he has been working on the development of new techniques for both qualitative and quantitative proteome study. Prof. Zhang has published over 500 papers, written 7 books and applied more than 50 patents. He also has brought up over 30 Ph.D. students. Some of them are promoted to professors now, and some are the elites in instrumental companies, who are playing important roles in fundamental study, application and developments, as well as industrialization in analytical chemistry fields.