Dr. Mengran (Aaron) Li

I am a senior lecturer at the Department of Chemical Engineering. I obtained my PhD degree from the University of Queensland (UQ), Brisbane in 2016.

After graduation, I worked as a postdoc at the HBIS-UQ Innovation Centre for Sustainable Steel at UQ for three years helping the steel industry reduce carbon emissions by developing carbon dioxide electrolysis. In May 2021, I started another postdoc at Delft University of Technology, Netherlands continuing my research on carbon dioxide electrolysis for the EU Horizon Project SELECTCO2 until the end of 2022. In January 2023, I joined the Chemical Engineering Department as a Lecturer. In 2023, I was awarded the ARC DECRA to work on integrating carbon capture and electrolysis to reduce the cost associated with carbon neutralisation. In September 2025, I was confirmed and promoted to Senior Lecturer.

My research interest is mainly focused on addressing pressing challenges that impede the use of electrochemical systems at scale for low-carbon energy generation and industrial processing. My contributions to the field are recognised by multiple awards, including 2021 Journal of Materials Chemistry A Emerging Investigator in Energy and Sustainability, 2023 FEIT Excellence Award in Mid-Career Research, 2023 Membrane Society Australasia – International Congress on Separation and Purification Technology on Mid-Career Researcher Awards, 2025 Bonn-Melbourne Research Excellence Award, and 2025 Nanoscale Emerging Investigator.

I lead the Li Energy Lab comprising 6 PhDs and 4 research fellows, supported by various research grants. I have supervised 7 PhDs to completion as a co-supervisor, as well as 4 BE theses, 20 ME theses, and 1 industry engineer to completion as a principle supervisor. All these graduates have secured jobs in academia or industry. Three of my PhD graduates are working as research fellows in Australian universities, while 4 are working in industry. One (Dr Sahil Garg) was named as a rising star in Chemical Engineering and Materials by "The Australian" newspaper.

Meet the PhD candidates

  • Xiaohe Tian

    Xiaohe completed his Bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering from China University of Petroleum, China (2017) and his Master of Chemical Engineering from the University of Queensland, Australia (2019). His master thesis was conducted under the supervision of Prof. Thomas E. Rufford and Dr. Mengran Li. Here, he studied the metal catalyst synthesis using electrochemical method for the reduction of CO2. His finding of high-performance Cu-Sn catalyst has been published at Applied Materials & Interfaces as a co-first author. He then moved back to Shanghai (China) to work on food manufacturing activities at Mars Wrigley, one of the largest global FMCG corporates, where he worked as a graduate management trainee to lead an effective production team for driving operation excellence. In August 2023, he joined University of Melbourne as a PhD candidate. His research focus is on developing a highly efficient, selective, and stable CO2 electrolysis through an engineering approach.

  • Qi Gao

    Qi completed her BEng in Applied Chemistry from Dalian University of Technology and her MEng in Chemical Engineering from University of Melbourne. Her current research focuses on developing an integrated CO2 capture and electrolysis system.

  • Haowei Zhang

    Haowei completed his Bachelor Honour degree and Master of Philosophy in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from The University of Sydney. In January 2024, he joined University of Melbourne as a PhD candidate. His current research is on developing the efficient and stable bipolar membranes for CO2 electrolysis.

Meet our Postdoctoral Research Fellows

Alumni

  • Dr Andre Chamber

    Dr Andre Chamber

    Dr Andre Chambers was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in 2024 - 2025 working on electrolyser design and optimisation.