Dr. Li has a mix of educational background in chemical engineering and wood chemistry. He has been dedicated to the conversion of lignocellulosic materials into bioenergy, biofuels, and byproducts for more than 10 years. He is running a Circular Biorefining Lab at the Center for Renewable Carbon to tap renewable forestry and agricultural resources for value-added bioproducts. The “circularity” means close-looped end-life in two levels: (i) Materials Level (the nature-made biomass is used as macroscopic feed stock for functional materials that can degrade back to the biosphere) and (ii) Molecular Level (the biogenic compounds are used as microscopic precursors for high-performance polymers that can be chemically depolymerized back to their original molecules). His research highlights convergent programs using interdisciplinary pieces of knowledge in wood chemistry, chemical synthesis, chemical engineering, polymer science, and nanotechnology for green chemistry, circular carbon economy, and a clean environment.
Current research directions:
(1) Design and synthesize biodegradable and closed-loop (co)polymers;
(2) Engineer and develop functional and smart materials; and
(3) Novel and green biomass fractionation.
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