서울대 화학생물공학부

The National Research Laboratory (NRL) Program is a government initiative that designates and supports outstanding research laboratories in key strategic technology areas to strengthen their core research capabilities.
Within the School of Chemical and Biological Engineering, a total of six laboratories have been selected under this program, as outlined below.

The National Research Laboratory (NRL) is a government-supported initiative that designates leading laboratories in strategically important technology fields to strengthen their core research capabilities. At the School of Chemical and Biological Engineering, a total of six laboratories have been selected under this program:

The Center for Nanoparticle Research is one of the external research centers of the Institute for Basic Science (IBS). Founded in August 2012 at Seoul National University, it focuses on fundamental research in nanoparticle synthesis with the aim of expanding into various application areas. The IBS, modeled after institutions like the Max Planck Institute and RIKEN in Japan, was established under the Special Act on the Establishment and Support of the International Science and Business Belt promulgated in January 2011. Its headquarters are located in Daejeon. IBS currently operates 31 research centers nationwide in fields such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, life sciences, and convergence technologies. Among these, three centers are based at Seoul National University.

Nanoparticles, which are on the scale of one-billionth of a meter, exhibit unique properties different from bulk materials, making nanotechnology a globally recognized core technology of the future. These properties—electrical, optical, magnetic, and chemical—are determined by size, shape, and structure of the particles. Leveraging these properties, nanoparticles have potential applications in life sciences and medicine, energy, and information technology. Therefore, the development of uniform nanoparticle synthesis processes and scalable mass-production technologies is crucial.

This research group focuses on synthesizing nanoparticles using chemical methods, investigating their chemical and physical properties, and exploring the mechanisms behind their formation to uncover the fundamental principles that govern their behavior. The group is actively researching key and challenging topics in nanoparticle synthesis, such as developing new methods for producing uniform nanoparticles with controllable size, shape, and composition, synthesizing ultrathin two-dimensional nanocrystals and doped nanoparticles, and producing heterostructured nanoparticles. Furthermore, they are working on assembling synthesized nanoparticles, modifying their surface properties, creating multifunctional nanostructures, and applying them to medical fields such as disease diagnosis and treatment, as well as to energy-related applications like electrochemical materials and catalysts.

This center was established to foster and advance polymer processing technologies, which form the foundation of Korea’s materials and parts industries, while also supporting related industrial sectors. Processing technology is not merely about operating equipment, but about understanding the fundamental principles behind the processes and applying them effectively. Mastery of such techniques can directly contribute to industrial gains through a virtuous cycle: optimal material design and process conditions → reduction in defect rates/enhancement in product competitiveness → increased productivity.

However, the reality in Korean academia and industry reflects a lack of awareness regarding processing and engineering technology, a rapid decline in trained professionals, high dependence on imported advanced equipment and components, and limited university-industry collaboration—all of which hinder the nation’s technological competitiveness.

With a sense of mission to overcome these challenges and elevate Korea’s processing capabilities, the center was established. It includes over 30 professors nationwide specializing in processing and manufacturing, and partners with more than 20 companies and Ulsan Technopark. It is equipped with outstanding human resources and state-of-the-art infrastructure and maintains collaborative relationships with domestic government-funded research institutes and renowned overseas labs to provide technological support and consultation.

The center aims to dismantle barriers between academia, industry, and research institutes, promoting the exchange of expertise, personnel, and technology. It is devoted to creative and collaborative technology development, talent training through educational programs, dissemination of emerging technologies, and widespread technical support. The “Center for Processing of Polymer-Nano Composite Materials” aspires to become a core hub for Korea's future competitiveness in materials and processing technology, setting an exemplary standard in both innovation and support.

This center, designated as one of the Leading Research Centers by the National Research Foundation, was founded to enhance the competitiveness of Korea’s coating industry through the development of particle-based coating materials and process technologies. Led by four Seoul National University professors (Kyung Hyun Ahn, Jong Chan Lee, Jae Wook Nam, and Kyu Tae Lee), the center includes 12 core faculty members from nine universities. The team is conducting collaborative research focused on developing fundamental technologies for electrode fabrication in lithium-ion batteries, a rapidly growing sector in the coating industry.

The center is undertaking key research in the following areas:

Developing foundational technologies for controlling the microstructure of particle-based solutions

Developing organic/inorganic coating materials and fabrication methods

Creating next-generation processes and applications for producing functional coating layers

With this foundation, the center aims to establish a technological platform for producing electronic component materials crucial to Korea’s industries—such as battery and display materials—and to contribute to industrial innovation. The center also leverages the synergy between materials development (Jong Chan Lee, Kyu Tae Lee) and process technologies (Kyung Hyun Ahn, Jae Wook Nam), along with various university-industry collaborations, to elevate the quality of domestic coating technologies.

The center benefits from active participation by LG Chem, Korea’s largest chemical company, which collaborates on projects that address real-world technological demands arising from business activities. Through this meaningful connection between academic research and industrial-scale production processes—vital in chemical engineering—the center is fostering future experts in chemical, materials, and electronics industries while strengthening the research capacity of Korea’s coating sector.

Despite Korea's extensive experience in securing plant engineering projects, it still lacks upstream capabilities in planning and design, resulting in heavy reliance on foreign countries for high-value-added processes. These capabilities are typically built through project experience, yet Korea’s engineering education system has been constrained by a shortage of experienced faculty and curricula, as well as an overemphasis on theory and publications.

To address these challenges, the EDRC was established at Seoul National University in 2014 with support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Its vision is to become one of the world’s top five engineering training centers. The center focuses on three main initiatives:

Training highly skilled professionals with hands-on experience

Enhancing the technical competitiveness of industry partners

Establishing a hub for university-industry collaboration in engineering

Since 2019, EDRC has been running the "Smart Digital Engineering Talent Training Program" to train professionals who can integrate Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies—such as AI, big data, and IoT—into chemical process design and operation. The program includes six universities (SNU, KAIST, Myongji University, Yeungnam University, Inha University, and Hanyang University) and over 30 companies in engineering, refining, petrochemical, and manufacturing sectors. The center also collaborates with leading global institutions such as MIT, Stanford, University of Pennsylvania, AspenTech, CII-Construct X, and Fluor to provide cutting-edge training in chemical process design and operations.

Over the next five years, the program aims to train over 400 master’s and doctoral students. From SNU’s Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Professors Jongmin Lee, Yoonwoo Lee, Dohee Kim, Wonbo Lee, and Jaewook Nam are involved, and approximately 70 graduate students from the department are participating in the program.

In the full cycle from materials design to commercialization, process development often accounts for the majority of time and effort. However, Korea’s R&D on materials processing technologies—especially for energy and environmental materials—lags significantly behind that of advanced countries. Most current research remains focused on developing new materials rather than optimizing large-scale production processes.

To bridge this gap, EPiC was established. Its goal is to accelerate material commercialization by integrating precision computational simulation analysis—combining computational materials science, AI, and design of experiments—and by developing an optimized design framework for the entire process chain (solution preparation, coating, solidification). The research group selects core demonstration materials and builds a testbed platform to unify Korea's fragmented research landscape.

Led by three professors from Seoul National University (Jaewook Nam, Jongmin Lee, Wonbo Lee), EPiC includes faculty from four universities and one government research institute (Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology). Each year, it identifies two core demonstration projects and builds service systems to play a central role in developing materials processing technologies for energy and environmental applications.

The process integration and optimization technologies developed by EPiC will provide scalable solutions for companies and labs, thereby accelerating the commercialization of both existing and new materials. These technologies will also enhance Korea’s competitiveness in the broader coating industry. EPiC’s service system enables comprehensive support—from material composition and microstructure analysis to simulation and big data analysis—bridging the gap between novel material development and industrial-scale production. In particular, the center is expected to contribute across all areas of Korea’s materials, parts, and equipment sectors, helping to resolve trade imbalances with countries such as Japan.