Sponsored by Dr. Jesse Zhu and his sister Yan Zhu in memory of their parents X. Bao and Z. Zhu.
The CSChE Bao and Zhu Innovation Award is presented to an individual, who has not reached the age of 40, for a distinguished contribution to the field of chemical engineering while working in Canada.
Nomination deadline for the 2027 CSChE Awards is Aug. 1, 2026, in preparation for the 2027 CSChE conference occurring in May 2027.
View the Terms of Reference and list of Past Winners
The 2026 winner of the CSChE Innovation Award is:
Yang Zhao, MCIC
The University of Western Ontario
Dr. Yang Zhao is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Western University, Canada. His research focuses on advanced materials and interfaces for energy storage devices. He has published over 160 journal articles, including top journals such as Nature, Science, Nature Materials, Nature Chemistry, Chemical Reviews, Chemical Society Reviews, Joule, Matter, Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, JACS, Angew, Energy & Environmental Science, etc. His works have received over 18,000 citations, and his personal H-index is 76. Dr. Zhao is a recipient of Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers (2025), The Western Engineering Junior Faculty Award for Excellence in Research (2024), and The Petro-Canada Young Innovator Awards (2023). He has been listed in Stanford’s List of the World’s Top 2% Scientists from 2019-2024. He currently serves as Editor for Materials Today and Editorial Board Member for Nano Letters, ALD Journal, Frontiers in Materials, Materials Today Energy and Renewables. He serves as the symposium co-organizer/co-chair for the 2022 ACS Spring Meeting, 2023 ACS Fall Meeting, 2024 MRS Spring Meeting, 2024 Canadian Chemistry Conference, 2025 MRS Spring Meeting, 2025 Pacificchem-The International Chemical Congress, and Canadian Societies for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering 2026 Conferences and Exhibition (x2026).