Biography
Prof. Ming Yang
Prof. Ming Yang
Jilin University, China
Title: Epidermis-like smart coatings
Abstract: 
In this presentation, I will talk about our recent work on the biomimetic design of high-performance smart coatings. The epidermis-like coating structure is achieved by placing a top hard layer reinforced by 2D nanosheets mimicking the stratum corneum on a soft polymer layer replicating the living epidermis. The bilayer design allows the incorporation of high fractions of graphene oxide in the top layer, which can act as both fillers and diffusion barriers to enable the simultaneous improvements in mechanical and healing properties. The new smart coatings can achieve a synergetic healing effect enabled by the interlayer polymer diffusion and a record-high stiffness (31.4 ± 1.8 GPa)/hardness (2.27 ± 0.09 GPa) even approaching that of tooth enamel. The successful transformation of our biomimetic design into practical manufacturing is further achieved by an industry-compatible doctor blade coating process, allowing for a scalable synthesis of multifunctional epidermis-like smart coatings containing clay nanosheets. The rapidly produced smart coatings can be facilely applied on various substrates such as glass, plastics and fiberboard with good adhesions and are transparent, bactericidal and fire-retardant.
Biography: 
Dr. Ming Yang is a Professor in State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, Jilin University. He got his B.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in chemistry both from Jilin University and pursued his postdoctoral research in University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. He then joined Harbin Institute of Technology as a Professor in Key Laboratory of Microsystems and Micronanostructures Manufacturing. Before moving to his current position in Jilin University, he was a research scientist in University of California, Irvine and a visiting scholar in University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Dr. Ming Yang’s current research focuses on the design of high-performance nanocomposites using bioinspired strategies.