Ph.D. student

Ph.D. Student Recruitment – Spring/Fall 2026

Dr. Yuexiao Shen is seeking 2 highly motivated Ph.D. students to join his research group at Texas Tech University in Spring or Fall 2026. The group focuses on the design and synthesis of highly selective sorbents for energy and environmental applications. Research areas include:

• Trace contaminant removal (e.g., PFAS)
• Metal ion recovery

The overarching goal is to advance selective separation technologies in chemical and environmental engineering. These projects are fully funded by federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Incoming students will engage in multidisciplinary collaborations, present their work at national and international conferences, and publish in high-impact peer‑reviewed journals.

We seek applicants with a strong background in environmental engineering including membrane technology, polymer synthesis, water and wastewater treatment. Prospective students are encouraged to contact Dr. Shen directly and email their CV and academic transcript to yuexiao.shen.

Dr. Shen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering at Texas Tech University. He earned his B.S. and M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Tsinghua University, followed by a Ph.D. from Penn State in 2016. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship in Prof. Peidong Yang’s lab at UC Berkeley in 2019.

Dr. Shen has published over 50 papers in top‑tier journals including Science, Nature Materials, Nature Nanotechnology, Nature Catalysis, Science Advances, Nature Communications, PNAS, and JACS. Please see Dr. Shen’s group website (). His current research spans:

• PFAS treatment (physical and chemical)
• Groundwater remediation
• Mineral extraction

Beyond engineering, Dr. Shen has a strong interest in astronomy. He collaborates with the Department of Physics at Texas Tech, contributing to outreach and observatory teaching lab activities. He also operates a personal professional observatory, and his astrophotography was featured by NASA’s ‘Astronomy Picture of the Day’ on November 23, 2023.