We are hiring postdocs!

Two immediate openings for postdoctoral positions in our lab: lithium battery recycling and membrane technology with an electrochemistry background!

Lithium extraction from brine published in the Science magazine!

Work on lithium extraction from brine through a decoupled and membrane-free electrochemical cell design is online in the Science Magazine! Many congrats to the whole team!

Prof. Lai co-chairs the newly launched Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy and Storage Technologies!

KAUST has launched four pioneering Centers of Excellence (CoEs), and Prof. Lai is co-chairing the Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy and Storage Technologies!

Lihytech and Aramco announce strategic collaboration to recover lithium from oilfield brines!

We're very excited to announce that our startup Saudi Lithium Infinity, i.e., Lihytech, has established a strategic collaboration with Aramco, a global leader in energy and chemicals, to recover lithium from oilfield brines.

CAI Award for Invention & Innovation in Geneva!

Prof. Zhiping Lai has been honored with the prestigious CAI Award for Invention & Innovation at the 49th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva!

Lihytech raises $6 million for lithium extraction from seawater

Our startup, Lithium Infinity (Lihytech), receives $6 million USD from KAUST and Ma'aden!

Vice Minister of Industry & Mineral Resources for industrial affairs visits Lihytech

We are delighted to welcome the Vice Minister of Industry & Mineral Resources for industrial affairs, and the delegation to our Lihytech workshop.

Associate Minister of Industry & Mineral Resources visits Lihytech

We are delighted to welcome the Associate Minister of Industry & Mineral Resources to our Lihytech workshop.

High-level Huawei delegation visits KAUST and IMR

A delegation from Huawei Corporation, including the President, Institute of Strategic Research, and VP, Global Technology Cooperation, visited KAUST and our lab this week.

IMR lab welcomes Ph.D. students from Tsinghua university

IMR lab hosted a visit from 15 Ph.D. students from Tsinghua University today.

Celebrating our team's success at AMPM Research Conference 2023!

Dr. Zhen Li and Dr. Ruicong Wei won the second prize in the poster session at AMPM Research Conference 2023!

UCDN delegation visits KAUST

Prof. Zhiping Lai, Prof. Kuo-Wei Huang and Dr. Sulaiman met with the delegation from Universidad Católica del Norte (UCDN)

IMR family gathering dinner

Enjoy delicious food and memorable moments! The IMR lab hosted a family gathering dinner at the Al Marsa restaurant near the Beacon.

Overview

Welcome to the Inorganic Membrane Research (IMR) Lab. The IMR Lab is led by Prof. Zhiping Lai of the Chemical Engineering Program in the Physical Science and Engineering (PSE) Division at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Our group's work primarily focuses on the development of high-performance membranes of ordered porous materials such as zeolite molecular sieves, metal-organic frameworks, mesoporous silicas, ceramics, etc., and their applications in gas and liquid separations, catalysis, chemical sensors, lithium extraction, and wastewater treatments.

Topics of research:
1. Synthesis of high-performance membranes out of ordered porous materials and their applications in separations, catalysis and chemical sensors;
2. Fabrication of ceramic hollow fibers and their applications in wastewater treatments;
3. Synthesis and characterization of novel porous materials and their applications in renewable energy production and photocatalysis;
4. Fabrication of metal alloy membranes and their applications in gas separations and membrane reactors;
5. Development of high-performance membranes for lithium extraction and recycling of lithium batteries.