Our Team
Describe your team here.
Ph.D., Environmental Engineering, Rice University, 2024
B.S., Environmental Engineering, Tsinghua University, 2019
Yuren joined Professor Yip's research group in Winter 2024. He completed his BS in Environmental Engineering at Tsinghua University, China. Then he joined Dr. Qilin Li lab as a Ph.D. student in Rice University. His Ph.D. thesis title is: Ion selective electrochemical process for pollutant removal and resource recovery. Besides research, he has also lead a student entrepreneurship team "Separion" aiming for Li extraction from brine by advanced electrodialysis.
Outside of the lab, Yuren enjoys road trips, hiking, and tasting local draft beers.
Awards:
NSF NEWT Center Fellowship, 2023-2024
Rice Univ Hershel M. Rice Invention Award, 2023
Rice Univ Innovation Fellowship, 2022-2023
Lowenstern Fellowship, 2019Doctoral Student, Earth & Environmental Engineering, Columbia University
M.S. Environmental Engineering, University of California, Berkeley (2022)
B.S. Civil Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India (2021)Vaishnavi joined the Yip research group in Fall 2023, where she is engaged in the development and study of Ion Exchange Membranes. Before Columbia, Vaishnavi was working with the process optimization group at East Bay Municipal Utility District on achieving full-scale nitrogen removal in a high-purity oxygen activated sludge process, and during her time at UC Berkeley, she was involved in researching heavy metal removal by novel membrane materials.
Vaishnavi enjoys traveling, dancing, musical theater, and a good cup of tea in her spare time.
Sophia joined the Yip Lab in Fall 2026. She earned her B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, where she also minored in Geology and received a certificate in Public Communication of Science and Technology. Sophia is interested in recovery of critical minerals from unconventional waste streams. Outside the lab, she enjoys volunteering at the American Museum of Natural History, being an avid user of the New York Public Library, and trying new baking recipes.
Sonali is an undergraduate student who joined the Yip Lab in Spring of 2026. She is interested in water remediation and sustainable wastewater treatment. Before joining the lab, she developed methods to filter microplastics from freshwater at Stony Brook University. She is pursuing a double major in Chemistry and Environmental Science.
Ph.D., Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, 2023
MASc, Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Waterloo, 2018
BASc, Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Waterloo, 2016
Sara joined Professor Yip’s research group in December 2024. Before this, she was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Advanced Membranes Lab at the University of Toronto under the guidance of Professor Jay Werber (May 2023–October 2024). Her work there focused on designing ion-exchange membranes for bipolar membrane electrodialysis, a process aimed at enhancing ocean alkalinity to facilitate carbon capture.
Sara earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Toronto, where she developed advanced adsorptive membranes for nutrient recovery from wastewater. She also holds MASc and BASc degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Waterloo, where her research centered on municipal wastewater treatment and membrane fouling characterization.
In Professor Yip’s lab, Sara’s research focuses on developing physico-chemical processes for recovering critical metals from municipal solid waste landfill leachates. Outside the lab, she enjoys cooking, baking, hiking, and reading.
Nora is an undergraduate student who joined the Yip Lab in Fall 2025. She is majoring in Civil Engineering at Columbia University, where she is interested in sustainability-focused research on green water recovery systems and infrastructure.
Dr. Ngai Yin Yip is the La Von Duddleson Krumb Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Engineering at Columbia University. He received his Ph.D., M.S., and M.Ph. in Chemical and Environmental Engineering from Yale University, and B.Eng. in Civil and Environmental Engineering (Minor in Business Administration) from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He joined Columbia University in 2015 as an Assistant Professor and was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2024.
Dr. Yip’s research focuses on advancing physicochemical technologies and innovations for critical separation challenges in water, energy, and the environment, including high-salinity desalination, zero-liquid discharge, resource recovery from wastewaters, next-generation selective membranes, switchable solvents for water treatment, and low-grade heat utilization. See descriptions of active projects.
Dr. Yip’s research contributions have earned him numerous honors and recognitions, including the Impact Award from the Global Prize Innovation in Desalination and the James J. Morgan Early Career Award (Honorable Mention) from Environmental Science & Technology. He has also been featured as an Emerging Investigator in Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology, as a Young Talent in Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering, and as a Pioneering Investigator for Chemical Communications. Since 2018, Dr. Yip has been listed among the world’s top 2% most-cited researchers by Stanford-Elsevier. He currently serves as an associate editor of RSC journal Environmental Science: Advances. Additionally, he serves as editorial advisory board member for ACS ES&T Engineering and editorial board member for Desalination and Chemical Engineering Journal Advances.
In the Fall semesters, Dr. Yip teaches Applied Transport and Chemical Rate Phenomena (EAEE E3200), and in the Spring semesters he is the instructor for elective EAEE E4140 Environmental Physicochemical Processes. Other classes taught include CIEE E4252 Foundations of Environmental Engineering, Aquatic Chemistry (EAEE E4003), EAEE E2100 A Better Planet by Design.
Resources
Mohammed joined the Yip Research Group in Fall 2026. He received his BEng degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Manchester in 2021. After graduation, he joined Aramco’s R&D Center where he worked on produced water treatment technologies, from de-oiling to desalination and resource recovery. His current research focuses on leveraging produced water as a waste stream to extract valuable minerals.
Outside the lab, Mohammed enjoys travelling to new destinations, hitting the gym, and sometimes having a lazy quiet night.
Lucas is an undergraduate student who joined the Yip Lab in the fall of 2025. His interests lie in critical mineral extraction and sustainable wastewater treatment.
In his spare time, Lucas enjoys playing the piano, writing poetry, and spending a nice day at the beach.
Beile Zhang (Beile) is a first-year graduate student in the Earth and Environmental Sciences program at Columbia University. She earned her B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Miami in 2025. Her research interests focus on materials and wastewater treatment. Outside of academics, Beile enjoys hiking, visiting theme parks, and cooking.
Asha joined the Yip Lab in Spring 2026, and is an undergraduate student studying Chemical Engineering. Her research interests include renewable energy and materials, water quality conservation and sustainable technology. In her free time, she enjoys listening to musical soundtracks and watching crime shows.
Anna Seeley McGillis (Seeley) is a first-year graduate student in the Earth and Environmental Sciences program at Columbia University. She earned her B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Northwestern University in 2025, with minors in Data Science and Engineering and Art Theory and Practice. Her research interests focus on addressing critical challenges in water resources through chemical and computational approaches. Outside of her studies, Seeley enjoys running, baking, and exploring new coffee shops.