Li Pengfei

Li Pengfei is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTC) in Shenzhen, China. He serves as Deputy Head of the Chemistry Department and holds additional administrative roles including Member of the University Discipline Inspection Commission and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Department of Chemistry. Dr. Li is recognized as a Shenzhen "Peacock Plan" high-level overseas talent (Category B) and a Shenzhen "reserve-level talent."

Dr. Li received his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2009 under the supervision of Researcher Xinmiao Liang. He then conducted postdoctoral research at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2009-2011) and Hong Kong Baptist University (2011) in Prof. Albert S. C. Chan's research group. He joined SUSTC in January 2012 as an Assistant Professor (Associate Researcher) and was promoted to tenured Associate Professor (Researcher) in August 2019.

His research focuses on two main areas: (1) Asymmetric catalysis research, particularly remote stereocontrol for efficient construction of stereocenters, development of novel organic catalysts, and strategic synthesis of high-value-added chemicals; and (2) Chemical biology, including the development of multifunctional probes, protein labeling techniques, and phosphorylated protein standards. His work demonstrates expertise in organocatalytic enantioselective transformations, with a particular emphasis on the synthesis of complex chiral molecules including axially chiral allenes and heterocyclic compounds.

Analysis of his recent publications shows a strong focus on organocatalytic asymmetric reactions, particularly remote stereocontrolled additions, annulation reactions, and the construction of chiral molecules with axial and central chirality. His research frequently appears in top chemistry journals including JACS, Angewandte Chemie, Chemical Science, and Organic Letters, with many papers highlighted by chemical news platforms. There's a clear progression in his work from fundamental methodology development to applications in chemical biology.

• Shenzhen "Peacock Plan" high-level overseas talent (Category B)
• Shenzhen "reserve-level talent"
• SUSTech Excellent Staff Award (multiple years: 2012, 2015-2021, 2023)
• SUSTech Research Awards for Young Scholars (2018)
• SUSTech Five-year Service Award (2018)
• Excellent Mentor of Shude College (2016, 2022, 2023)

Dr. Li leads the Organo-Biomimetic Catalysis Group at SUSTC and has successfully secured competitive grants from external sources including General Program and Youth Program from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). His research group has published over 90 peer-reviewed papers as corresponding author, demonstrating significant research productivity and impact. The group maintains active collaborations with other researchers both within SUSTC and internationally, as evidenced by co-authorship patterns in publications.