On 21 July 2018, the University Alliance of the Silk Road Chemical Sub-alliance initiated by the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology of Xi'an Jiaotong University was formally established. Chemical colleges or chemical engineering departments of 35 universities from nearly 10 countries joined the alliance. The first council meeting of the alliance was held concurrently.

The chemical colleges or chemical engineering departments from Xi'an Jiaotong University (China), Queensland University (Australia), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (China), Newcastle University (UK), Zhengzhou University (China), National Technical University of Ukraine (Ukraine), Taiyuan University of Technology (China), University of Technology of Prague (Czech Republic), King's University of Technology (Saudi Arabia), Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (Pakistan) and other universities was elected as the executive members unanimously. The Agreement of the Chemical Sub-alliance of UASR was signed by all the original members.

The Glamour Chemical Academic Forum was held concurrently. Nine outstanding experts and academics from well-known universities delivered academic reports. The Silk Road Economic Belt area is rich in the distribution of energy resources and mineral resources in the world.

Therefore, the protection and utilization of energy resources and mineral resources is of vital importance in promoting the economic and social development along the Silk Road and the Eurasian region.