In October 2025, a BJUT research team had an article published in Nature, an internationally recognised prestigious journal. The study, titled "A circular economy approach for the global lithium-ion battery supply chain", featured Zhai Mengyu, a young faculty member at BJUT, as its first author, and was finished in collaboration with Professor Wu Yufeng's team at BJUT as well as institutions including the CAS Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Jinggangshan University, and Beijing Normal University. Guidance and support were provided by Academician Zuo Tieyong and the State Key Laboratory of Materials Low-Carbon Recycling (MLCR). The study shows that BJUT has achieved vital progress in the circular economy and sustainable development of key new energy industrial chains.

This research received funding support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC).