Time: July 10, 2020

Venue: Zoom ID 930 9000 2609 (Password: 386018)

Reporter: Jaehong Kim

Membranes are now considered an established technology for water treatment. However, membranes’ competitive advantage as a near-absolute rejection barrier holds only when their integrity is preserved throughout their lifetime. Even though the loss of membrane integrity is widely reported, neither existing integrity monitoring techniques nor costly maintenance and replacement practices effectively address this issue. This talk presents the first instance of a self-healing water treatment membrane that restores its water flux and particle rejection properties autonomously.

Getachew, B.A.; Kim, S.R.; Kim, J.H. “Self-Healing Hydrogel Pore-Filled Water Treatment Membranes.” Environmental Science & Technology, 2017, 51, 905-913

Kim, S.R.; Getachew, B.; Park, S.J.; Kwon, O.S.; Ryu, W.H.; Taylor, A.D.; Bae, J.W.; Kim, J.H. “Toward Microcapsule-Embedded Self-Healing Membranes.” Environmental Science & Technology Letters, 2016, 3, 216-221

Jaehong Kim is currently Henry P. Becton Sr. Professor of Engineering and Department Chair of Chemical and Environmental Engineering in School of Engineering and Applied Science at Yale University. His areas of interest include: 1) environmental application of nanomaterials and single atom catalysts; 2) development of photoluminescence / photocatalysis technology for environmental and energy application; and 3) on-site synthesis of water treatment chemicals and catalytic advanced oxidation processes. Kim received B.S. and M.S. degrees in chemical and biological engineering from Seoul National University in Korea in 1995 and 1997, respectively, and a Ph.D. degree in environmental engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2002. After graduation, he joined the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology where he later held the title of Georgia Power Distinguished Professor and Associate Chair for Undergraduate Programs until he moved to Yale University in 2013. He has taught undergraduate courses such as Water Quality Engineering, Environmental Technology in the Developing World, and Environmental Engineering Laboratory, and graduate courses such as Physicochemical Processes and Design of Drinking Water Treatment Facilities. He is a recipient of various awards including Ackerman Award for Teaching and Mentoring from Yale University (2017), Bill Shultz Junior Faculty Teaching Award from School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (2013), Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize from American Society of Civil Engineers (2013), Best Paper Award from American Chemical Society (2012, 2018, 2020), Paul L. Busch Award from Water Environment Research Foundation (2009), Excellence in Research Award from Georgia Institute of Technology (2009), and CETL/BP Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award from Georgia Institute of Technology (2007). He is currently serving as an associate editor of a newly launched journal, ACS ES&T Engineering.