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The inaugural International Conference on Cesium Science and Technology (CCST 2026) opened at Tianjin University on November 6. During the conference, Wang Pingwei, Chairman and President of Sinomine Resource Group Co., Ltd. (“Sinomine Resource”), was appointed Industry Professor in the university’s discipline of Materials and Chemical Engineering. He also delivered a keynote address titled “Global Resource Deployment and the Strategic Development of the Cesium Industry: Sinomine Resource’s Perspectives on Critical Minerals,” becoming the first industry representative to deliver a keynote at the conference.
Tianjin University presented Wang with his appointment certificate at the event. Wang holds a doctorate, is a professor-level senior engineer, and is a nationally recognized Master of Geological Exploration. He also serves as a distinguished professor at Central South University. With more than 30 years of industry experience, he has led Sinomine Resource’s transformation from a geological exploration company into a leading global strategic resources enterprise and a major player in China’s lithium industry. He brings extensive practical experience and industry insight in overseas resource development and rare metal value chain integration.
The appointment recognizes Wang’s industry achievements and marks a new stage in cooperation between Sinomine Resource and Tianjin University in cutting-edge fields such as cesium-based advanced materials, perovskite photovoltaics, and catalysis. The two sides will leverage their respective strengths to advance technological innovation and high-value applications in the cesium industry.
Hosted by Tianjin University’s Institute for Molecular Plus, CCST 2026 is the world’s first interdisciplinary international academic conference dedicated to cesium. It brings together leading scholars and industry experts to explore advances in cesium science and its industrial applications.
As technological and industrial transformations accelerate, cesium is expanding beyond its traditional role as a specialty industrial material into emerging fields including new energy, advanced materials, fine chemicals, and catalysis. Its distinctive physicochemical properties and application potential are attracting growing attention. In recent years, cesium has demonstrated promising applications in perovskite solar cells, advanced catalytic systems, and optoelectronic functional materials. However, research remains dispersed across disciplines, underscoring the need for a dedicated interdisciplinary platform.
The conference focused on four key themes: cesium resource extraction and green recycling; high-purity cesium salts and cesium-based fine chemicals; the cesium effect in new chemistry, catalysis, and molecular manufacturing; and cesium-based halides, perovskite photovoltaics, and optoelectronics. The aim is to establish a high-level platform connecting fundamental research, technological innovation, resource development, and industrial applications.
In his keynote address, Wang outlined Sinomine Resource’s corporate profile, the characteristics and applications of cesium resources, the company’s global cesium resource strategy, and future directions for industry–academia–research collaboration. He called for closer cooperation in critical technology development, joint platform building, talent cultivation, and commercialization, with enterprises, universities, research institutions, and end users working together to create an innovation ecosystem spanning fundamental research through industrial application.
“Resource companies can provide raw materials, process environments, and conditions for scale-up. Universities and research institutions can contribute expertise in separation mechanisms, material structures, performance evaluation, and new applications. Jointly designing validation pathways is more effective than searching for application scenarios only after research has been completed,” Wang said.
He expressed hope that the conference would serve as a bridge connecting industry, academia, and end users, bringing resources, technologies, and market demand closer together to unlock new opportunities for the cesium industry.
Driven by the global green transition and technological revolution, the cesium-rubidium industry is entering a period of significant opportunity. As strategic rare metals, cesium and rubidium play important roles across both established and emerging high-tech sectors, including defense, new energy, specialty glass, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas exploration, electronic devices, industrial catalysis, and aerospace.
Through years of integrating resources, technology, and markets, Sinomine Resource has established itself as a leading integrated cesium-rubidium enterprise with strong resource advantages. The company will continue to strengthen its role as a value chain leader, deepen collaboration with universities and research institutions, and extend cesium products from basic materials into high-value-added functional materials, driving technological innovation and upgrading across the industry value chain.
