We warmly congratulate Babar Amin on the successful defense of his PhD thesis focused on the valorization of biomass-derived HMF using Ru/TiO₂ catalysts.
It was a pleasure to have Babar as part of our group for the past 4.5 years. We sincerely thank him for his dedication and contributions and wish him all the best and great success in his new postdoctoral position.

Our PhD students recently took part in the 2nd International Doctoral Conference on Advances in Chemistry (IDCAC) held at the University of Chemistry and Technology (UCT), Prague, on November 7th to 8th. This yearly event is organized by PhD students for PhD students. It is a great chance for our researchers to share their latest work with international peers. Babar, Snehasis, Sharmistha, Evgeniya, Keren, and Racheal gave talks at the Chemical Engineering and Environmental Chemistry sessions. 
We are delighted to share two major accomplishments: Racheal received recognition for delivering the best presentation in the Environmental Chemistry session, and Snehasis was honored for his contribution in chairing discussions and managing the schedule in one of the sessions.

We are happy to use now new equipments to get closer to the analysis of materials and processes under real operating conditions

Rigaku Miniflex 600 benchtop X-ray diffractometer
This instrument will be used mainly for phase analysis of catalysts . The instrument is equipped with an automatic sample holder for 8 positions, an in situ temperature cell BTS500 for studying materials up to 500°C.

OMNISTAR mass spectrometer
The instrument serves as a flexible gas phase analyzer and can be used, for example, for connection with TGA, for in situ FTIR analyses or for gas phase analysis at the outlet of reactors.

The GreenCats research group is currently accepting applications for PhD positions. We offer exciting research topics focused on green chemistry, catalysis, and sustainable technologies.
A full list of available PhD topics can be found on our website: https://greencats.vscht.cz/student/phd 

Talented and motivated students with a background in chemistry, chemical engineering, or related fields are warmly encouraged to apply. Contact us till January 31st 2026 at greencats@vscht.cz 

Our colleague Jaroslav Aubrecht spent a week at the French university ENSICaen in Normandy, where he focused on the application of in situ  FTIR to study the surface of catalysts. This is an advanced method that allows you to monitor catalyst structure directly under specific reaction conditions. During his stay, he focused on the adsorption of carbon monoxide, CO, with which he described the chemical state of active sites on copper catalysts.
This research stay not only brought a valuable scientific contribution to the currently addressed issue, but also opened up new opportunities for international cooperation - for example, student exchange between the two institutions.

David Kubička was invited to celebrate 50 years of history of Instituto de Catálisis y Petroleoquímica. He participated on the round table on the Institute's international role. This was an honor to be part of this event.