Prof. De-Yi Wang got his Ph.D. at Sichuan University in China in 2007. Part of his doctoral research was carried out at the University of Bolton in United Kingdom. Later, he joined Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research in Dresden (IPF Dresden) in Germany with the support of Alexander Humboldt Fellowship to develop new generation fire retardant polymer nanocomposites.

He is currently a Research Professor at IMDEA Materials Institute, and a Professor at Francisco de Vitoria University in Madrid. He created and directed the research line on high performance polymer nanocomposites at IMDEA Material Institute in 2012 after moving to Madrid from IPF Dresden.

Prof. Wang’s research addresses materials engineering challenges in fire safety. He combines materials chemistry, processing and structure–property relationships with engineering performance under fire, spanning polymers and fibre-reinforced composites, metallic structures and energy-storage materials. His work examines the coupled evolution of ignition, heat release and smoke/toxicant formation with the loss of load-bearing capacity, and develops halogen-free, environmentally responsible strategies informed by mechanistic understanding of combustion and fire-induced degradation, to enhance fire protection while maintaining mechanical reliability and durability. He is among the pioneers in developing flame retardant engineering technology to polymeric materials and in devising fire-safe engineering strategies for lithium-ion batteries and energy storage materials.

He has authored >380 peer-reviewed journal papers (h-index 92; >24,000 citations; Google Scholar) and edited the Elsevier monograph Novel Fire Retardant Polymers and Composite Materials (2016). He holds >24 patent filings (20 granted) and has achieved demonstrable translation to practice, including protected know-how in industry. Professor Wang contributes strongly to research training and international capacity building. He has supervised 19 completed and 11 ongoing PhD theses and mentored >25 postdoctoral researchers, including 11 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fellows.

He has delivered more than 100 invited lectures and presentations. To date, he has coordinated over 40 research projects funded by the European Commission, international public entities, national and industrial sectors, etc. He is Guest/Adjunct Professor in several Universities in Spain, Switzerland and China. Moreover, he plays important advisory roles in international organizations, international conference committees and editorial responsibilities in journals in the field of materials science and engineering, such as Polymer Degradation and Stability, Composites Communications, Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, Advanced Nanocomposites, Chinese Journal of Polymer Science, etc.

His achievements have been recognized by several grants and awards in the world, such as DuPont Young Professor Awards from USA, Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship from Germany, International Foundation for Science (IFS) grant from Sweden, National Award for Technological Invention of China, Ramón y Cajal Grant from Spain, Lagrange Fellowship from Italy, Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) grant and Marie Curie Grant from European Commission. He was appointed as the Academic Consultant by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). In 2016, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. He founded the China–Spain Association for Science and Technology. He was awarded an Honorary Professorship at Xi’an Jiaotong University, China. In 2024, he was elected a Member of the European Academy of Sciences and a Member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts.