Prof. Yong Wai Fen and Team Awarded Highly Cited Paper for Membrane Research

Published on December 23, 2025

The Research and Postgraduate Centre congratulates Chemical Engineering postgraduate students, Peng Hao Yi and Lau Siew Kei, and Prof. Ir. Dr. Yong Wai Fen from the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering for receiving the Highly Cited Paper Award for their article published in Advanced Membranes.

The review article, titled “Recent Advances of Thin Film Composite Nanofiltration Membranes for Mg²⁺/Li⁺ Separation”, has been recognized as a top-cited paper of the year (https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/advanced-membranes). Advanced Membranes is an ESCI Q1 journal with the latest impact factor of 9.5.

This review provides a critical analysis of recent advancements in nanofiltration (NF) membranes for lithium separation, a key technology for the clean energy transition.

PhD candidate Peng Hao Yi is the first author of this review, conducted under the supervision of Prof. Ir. Dr. Yong Wai Fen, the corresponding author.

This award is a testament to the quality, relevance, and global impact of the research conducted by our postgraduate students and faculty, highlighting their significant contribution to the field of membrane science and sustainable resource recovery.

This research was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: 22108118), Xiamen University Malaysia Research Fund (grant number: XMUMRF/2021-C8/IENG/0042), and Hengyuan International Sdn. Bhd. (grant number: EENG/0003).

The article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advmem.2024.100093

Prof. Dr. Yong Wai Fen is the Head of Postgraduate Programmes (Chemical Engineering) at the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, XMUM, and Director of the Centre of Excellence for Green and Advanced Technologies in Efficient Separations (GATES). Her research focuses on sustainable green materials and advanced membrane technologies for CO₂ capture, biogas separation, industrial air purification, and water purification.

For more information, please refer to https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/gm5QCCen_NCS6b9vjSQRQw?scene=1