This post was updated Oct. 14 at 11:14 p.m.
A former UCLA professor received the Nobel Prize in chemistry Wednesday for his contributions in developing organic frameworks.
Omar Yaghi, a former professor of chemistry and biochemistry at UCLA, joined Fred Ramsdell as members of the UCLA community to be awarded a Nobel Prize in the 2025 award cycle. Yaghi, who is now a professor at UC Berkeley, was jointly honored with Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto University and Richard Robson of the University of Melbourne, according to a Nobel Prize press release.
[Related: UCLA alumnus Fred Ramsdell awarded Nobel Prize for research on immune regulation]
Yaghi – who carried out much of his Nobel-recognized work at UCLA between 2006 and 2011 – pioneered the field of reticular chemistry, which focuses on connecting molecular components into complex crystalline frameworks. His work brought scientists closer to the goal of powering vehicles with clean hydrogen fuel instead of gasoline, marking a major step toward sustainable energy solutions.
The team’s work has a wide range of potential applications for the promotion of clean energy and environmental protections. Yaghi’s frameworks can store gases such as hydrogen and methane for use in alternative-fuel vehicles and capture carbon dioxide to help combat climate change, according to a Nobel Prize press release.
Ramsdell and Yaghi are invited to attend the award ceremony Dec. 10 in Stockholm.
“The Nobel Prize is a global recognition of discovery, progress and excellence,” Chancellor Julio Frenk and Vice Chancellor for UCLA Health Sciences John Mazziotta said in an Oct. 6 email to the UCLA community. “Receiving one is a profound acknowledgment of a person’s impact on their discipline and on society.”
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