Chunlei Guo

Stories

Laser-etched panels desalinate seawater without producing brine

As of September 2026: Leading the brine-free desalination project and pursuing scale-up and industrial partners

Existing desalination plants send more than half their intake back into the ocean as brine thick with chemicals. A University of Rochester team has demonstrated a solar-powered system that extracts nearly all the salt as a dry solid — no liquid waste at all.

Updated Sep 16

Superhydrophobic materials engineering

New Capabilities

As of May 2026: Leading superhydrophobic materials research

Ships sink when water floods their hulls, but researchers at the University of Rochester have developed aluminum tubes that trap air so effectively they float indefinitely—even riddled with holes. The breakthrough, published in Advanced Functional Materials, uses laser-etched surfaces that mimic how diving bell spiders and fire ants stay buoyant underwater.

Updated May 23

Notable Quotes

For this technology, the underlying materials and fabrication methods are scalable, and we are actively exploring that path while also welcoming industrial partnerships.

from Laser-etched panels desalinate seawater without producing brine · Updated Sep 16

We are working on scaling up the technology. At the same time, we are also expanding the platform by integrating the desalination technology with other mature systems, such as photovoltaic solar cells.

from Laser-etched panels desalinate seawater without producing brine · Updated Sep 16

"You can poke big holes in them, and we showed that even if you severely damage the tubes with as many holes as you can punch, they still float." — Professor Chunlei Guo, University of Rochester

from Superhydrophobic materials engineering · Updated May 23

"Importantly, we added a divider to the middle of the tube so that even if you push it vertically into the water, the bubble of air remains trapped inside and the tube retains its floating ability."

from Superhydrophobic materials engineering · Updated May 23