Chapter I: General Provisions

Article 1
These regulations are formulated in accordance with the Interim Measures for the Construction and Management of State Key Laboratories, the Interim Measures for the Construction and Management of Key Laboratories in Higher Education Institutions, and the relevant regulations of Shaanxi Normal University, in order to standardise and strengthen the construction and operational management of the Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry, Ministry of Education.

Article 2
The laboratory shall establish its disciplinary directions and layout based on international trends in related disciplines and the national needs of China. Interdisciplinary research is encouraged and promoted. The laboratory’s main research directions are as follows: (1) sensing thin‑film materials and soft matter; (2) surface chemistry in green chemistry and energy chemical engineering research; (3) interfacial chemistry in biosensing methods and device research; and (4) layered nanostructured materials and surface modification of materials.

Article 3
The laboratory is hosted by Shaanxi Normal University and operates under the leadership, supervision, and inspection of the Ministry of Education of China.

Article 4
The laboratory operates under the mechanism of "openness, mobility, collaboration, and competition" and adopts a director‑responsibility system under the leadership of the host institution.

Chapter II: Organisational Management

Article 5
The laboratory shall implement a Director‑responsibility system and an Academic Committee review system.

Article 6
The Laboratory Director bears full responsibility for the laboratory’s research and administrative management, strives to build a high‑quality key laboratory, and creates favourable research conditions and environment for outstanding scholars from various fields to work at the laboratory, with the goal of achieving high‑level research outputs. The laboratory shall have one Director and two Deputy Directors (including one full‑time Deputy Director). The Deputy Directors are responsible for corresponding areas of work. In the absence of the Director, the full‑time Deputy Director or a designated Deputy Director shall preside over the laboratory’s affairs. The Director is recruited nationally and internationally, recommended by Shaanxi Normal University, and appointed by the Ministry of Education. The Deputy Directors are nominated by the Director and appointed by Shaanxi Normal University.

Article 7
The Academic Committee is the academic review body of the laboratory. Its main functions are to deliberate and determine the laboratory’s research directions, approve research projects, supervise fund utilisation, coordinate open‑access activities, and address other major academic matters. The Academic Committee shall consist of approximately 15 highly qualified domestic and international experts in relevant fields. Experts from other institutions and related disciplines shall be included to the extent possible, and the number of experts from the host institution shall not exceed one‑third of the total membership. The Committee Chair is appointed by the Ministry of Education, and the Deputy Chair(s) are appointed by Shaanxi Normal University. Each term of the Committee is five years.

Article 8
To ensure scientific, democratic, and standardised decision‑making, a Laboratory Affairs Committee is established to be responsible for major decisions concerning the laboratory’s development.

Article 9
The laboratory shall establish research groups under its umbrella. Each research group shall have one Group Leader, whose responsibility is to manage the day‑to‑day operations of the group.

Article 10
The laboratory office shall have one Office Director and one Secretary, who are responsible for handling daily administrative affairs, managing the laboratory’s archives and documentation, and providing logistical support.

Chapter III: Management of Research Projects

Article 11
Research projects of the laboratory are broadly categorised, according to the source and nature of funding, into: vertically‑funded projects, open projects, and horizontally‑funded projects.

Article 12
Funding for vertically‑funded and horizontally‑funded projects comes from the approving authorities or sponsoring organisations. Project funds shall be managed by the principal investigator in accordance with the relevant funding regulations of the approving authorities, sponsoring organisations, and the university.

Article 13
Open projects are research projects that are applied for in accordance with the "Guidelines for Open Project Applications", reviewed and approved by the Academic Committee. The applicant is responsible for the project. When reporting research results or publishing papers, the affiliation must include "Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry (Shaanxi Normal University), Ministry of Education".

Article 14
For all open projects funded by the laboratory, an annual progress report must be submitted. Based on the nature and progress of the project, academic papers, research reports, and stage summaries shall also be provided.

Article 15
The Laboratory Director shall carefully monitor the implementation of projects. If it is found that a project cannot be completed or that the original plan has problems, the Director has the authority to suspend, adjust, or cancel the funding.

Article 16
Upon completion or termination of a project, the following materials must be submitted to the laboratory for archiving:

1. A final research summary or termination report;

2. Academic papers or research reports;

3. Original records, technical files, documentation, and a catalogue of materials generated during the research process.

Chapter IV: Financial Management

Article 17
The laboratory’s funding mainly comes from state and university allocations and is divided into two major categories: laboratory operating funds and laboratory construction funds.

1. Scope of laboratory operating funds:
        (1) Establishment of the open‑project fund for the key laboratory;
        (2) Purchase of small instruments, reagents, consumables, public facilities, and equipment operation and maintenance;
        (3) Academic exchange, expert review, and documentation expenses;
        (4) Administrative office, conference, travel, and remuneration expenses.

2. Scope of laboratory construction funds:
        Primarily used for the purchase of large‑scale instruments and equipment.

3. Scope of open‑project funds:
        Direct research costs related to the funded project; academic activity expenses; and relevant subsidies for research personnel.

4. The duration of open projects is generally two years. Major projects that require a longer period may be applied for in phases. The funding amount is approved in one lump sum but disbursed in instalments on an annual basis. Unused open‑project funds may be carried over to the next year. Upon project completion or termination, the remaining funds shall be returned to the laboratory in full.

Chapter V: Management of Instruments and Equipment

Article 18
Laboratory instruments shall be assigned to designated responsible persons. Complete archives shall be established, including acceptance reports, technical documentation, usage records, fault and troubleshooting records, and experimental data (including computer system data storage disks, etc.). Usage and safety rules shall be established and improved for each instrument, and their implementation shall be supervised by the laboratory.

Article 19
The laboratory shall establish a 1‑2 person instrument management team responsible for routine maintenance, usage, and management, as well as for preparing procurement plans for consumables and spare parts and submitting them to the laboratory for ordering. The team shall also provide the laboratory with information on domestic and international instrument developments relevant to the laboratory’s research directions and methods, so as to promptly propose plans for instrument acquisition and upgrades.