Xi Chen
Xi is a tenure-track assistant professor at School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong. He is the early career editor of Desalination journal.
Xi obtained his Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Columbia University (2020), focusing on advancing membrane technologies for water-energy-environment applications. He holds a M.S. (2015) and B.S. (2013) from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Nankai University, respectively. Before joining CityU, Xi conducted his postdoctoral studies at Stanford University, Chemical Engineering.
Beyond science, Xi loves cinema, hip hop rap, analyitic philosophy, and Chinese history. Check his books on Chinese philosopher (章太炎：鐵血著華章) and education history (別有中華).
Xi teaches Chemical Separations for Energy and Enviornmental Applications (SEE4122) and Sustainable Energy and Envrionmental Engineering (GE1355). He also co-instructed Global Sustainable Technologies and Finance (SEE1005).
Email: xche26@cityu.edu.hk
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Office: Yeung-B5437 | Tel: +(852)-3442-9971
Principal Investigator
Changlin Li
Ph.D. Student
Ph.D. Student, Energy & Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Current
M.S., Environmental Engineering, Delft University of Technology, 2023
B.S., Environmental Engineering, Nankai University, 2021
At CityU, Changlin’s research is focused on developing high-precision separation technologies for recycling lithium-ion batteries.
Before joining Dr. Chen’s research group, Changlin conducted his master’s research at Delft University of Technology. As a research associate of Water Mining project, Changlin applied multi-criteria decision-making modeling for integrated desalination and brine mining systems to evaluate their sustainability performances.
In his spare time, Changlin enjoys jogging, basketball, and table tennis.
Email: changlili5-c@my.cityu.edu.hk
Xingchen Liu
Ph.D. Student
Ph.D. Student, Energy & Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Current
M.S., Radiochemistry, Lanzhou University, 2025
B.S., Nuclear Engineering, Lanzhou University, 2022
At CityU, Xingchen’s research focuses on developing ligand-functionalized membrane technologies for lithium-ion recycling.
Prior to joining the doctoral program at CityU, Xingchen completed his master’s research at Lanzhou University, where he specialized in the separation and analysis of radionuclides (primarily strontium, yttrium, uranium, neptunium, plutonium, and americium) in various water samples. By integrating column separation techniques with mass spectrometry measurements and instrumental automation, Xingchen established a series of rapid analytical methods for radionuclide detection.
In his spare time, Xingchen enjoys traveling, bodybuiding, basketball, and movies.
Email: xliu2424-c@my.cityu.edu.hk
Aidan Cheung
Ph.D. Student
Ph.D. Student, Energy & Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Current
Work Experience: Graduate Scheme, Warwick Manufacturing Group, 2023-2025
MRes Nanomaterials, Imperial College London, 2023
B.Sc. Chemistry (Hons.), University of Warwick, 2022
At CityU, Aidan’s research focuses on developing membrane technologies for lithium-ion battery recovery of valuable metal ions.
Prior to joining the doctoral program at CityU, Aidan completed his master’s research at Imperial College London, working on eco-friendly solvents for organic photovoltaics. He also worked for two and a half years as a graduate engineer at Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG), University of Warwick, where he characterised production scrap LFP to compare morphology and purity to pristine LFP before and after PVDF binder removal, relithiating production scrap LFP as a direct recycling process, and testing the electrochemical performance of the powders in 2032 half coin cells.
In his spare time, Aidan enjoys hiking, going to the gym and watching movies.
Email: amccheung2-c@my.cityu.edu.hk
Jiashuo Zhang
MSc Student
M.S., Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Current
B.S., Polymer Materials and Engineering, Shenzhen University, 2025
At CityU, Jiashuo’s research investigates the permeability-selectivity trade-off in solute-solute separation, specifically within the context of lithium-ion battery recycling.
Past Research Experience:
Sodium-Ion Battery Electrolyte Optimization: Enhanced cycling stability and capacity retention of Prussian blue cathode materials via tailored electrolyte additives, focusing on interface engineering; Road Defect Detection: Developed a data-driven computer vision system for automated identification and classification of pavement cracks and potholes, enabling efficient urban infrastructure maintenance.
In my free time, I am passionate about photography, with a focus on documentary and natural landscape scenes. I also enjoy road cycling, exploring routes through both urban and rural areas.
Email: jzhang4437-c@my.cityu.edu.hk
