We are a team working together on membrane science and technology, from fundamentals of membrane transport through emerging materials and structures, to membrane development and applications. Our ultimate goal is to provide solutions for separation problems in water, energy and sustainability.
Our research focuses on engineering membrane transport pathways at the molecular-, nano- and micro-scales. Four main approaches are sought for:
1) Creating new transport pathways at the 2D and 3D dimensions through material design and engineering;
Materials of interest include nanoporous monolalyer graphene, laminar 2D membranes and polymers;
2) Understanding and engineering of surface 3D structure for controlling of flow and enabling fouling-resistant separations;
Patterned membranes;
3) Molecular manipulation of surface chemistry and structure on traditional membranes for high efficiency separations;
Integration of membranes into processes;
4) Applications in water, gas separation and organic solvent nanofiltration
In addition, through collaborations, we apply machine learning to guide the material design and membrane fabrication for fast transport.