(6li) Advanced Materials and Manufacturing for Electrochemical Methods in Water-Energy Nexus

The grand challenges in water – energy nexus have an opportunity to be solved by energy-efficient electrochemical methods. To realize those novel electrochemical methods, innovations with a multidisciplinary approach is needed. My research aims to leverage my background and expertise at the intersection of advanced materials and manufacturing. Using my background, I aim to use advanced manufacturing methods to manipulate materials at different scales to create more energy efficient solutions for water and energy. I will focus on surface and subsurfaces as the critical area for diverse applications in both the fields of water and energy. Some of my future research plans are advanced manufacturing of composite material systems for electrodes used in capacitive deionization for desalinating low-salinity waters, using hierarchical multi-material air-diffusion cathodes for in-situ hydrogen peroxide applied to water disinfection, and advanced iron-electrocoagulation to remove contaminants from wastewater and reduce fouling of membranes by removing dissolved silica. I also aim to find new material design principles for solid state energy storage to reduce defects (cracks) and self-healing properties, paving the way for reliable high-energy density next-generation batteries. Thus, I aim to build a comprehensive research program in the water-energy nexus using advanced materials, manufacturing and surface engineering.

Keywords: materials, manufacturing, surface, water, energy

• Research Interests : Chemo-mechanical coupling effect for strength of materials, sustainability, water-energy nexus, Advanced manufacturing (including additive and hybrid processes)
• Teaching Interests: Materials science for engineers, Strength of Materials, Mechanics of materials, Statics, Manufacturing processes