Research

Our goal of research is to develop knowledge and innovative products that are impactful and beneficial for the society and humanwellbeing. The energy crisis, water scarcity and environmental deterioration are among the biggest challenges to be faced by the world in the 21st century. It has become critical for us to seek for better ways to fruitfully exploit the resources yet with minimized negative impacts on the environment. Motivated by this and our passion for thermal-fluid sciences, our research has primarily concerned novel studies of thermal-fluid problems from multiphase flows to porous materials and biomedical flows with applications in thermal management, low-carbon energy, health and climate change. We combine experimental, numerical, and analytical tools, such as microfluidics, particle image velocimetry (PIV), thermometry, and lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) to characterize transport processes in these flows. We also have extensive experience in microfluidics for studies of capillarity, biofilm, and additive manufacturing. 

At M-LEFT, we strive to integrate a “small-to-large” approach to close the gap between basic research and real-world applications. Built upon thermal-fluid sciences and a unique tool set, we aspire to begin with fundamental physics at the nanoscale and work our way up to engineering systems. With that in mind, we have been growing our research efforts in three tiers: (i) fundamental research on micro/nano-scale energy and fluid transport; (ii) user-inspired research and technique development; (iii) engineering systems and technology transfer.