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Kookmin University professor stresses need for next-gen tech at desalination forum
A diagram shows two development directions for next-generation desalination technology in this file photo. Courtesy of Kookmin University
By Park Ung
Professor Lee Sang-ho of Kookmin University cemented his standing as a global leader in water technology last month, delivering a plenary address at a prominent international conference on desalination. His invitation indicates growing recognition of Korea’s contributions to advancing the sector.
Addressing researchers from around the world at the 7th International Conference on Desalination Science and Technology in Florida, Lee stressed the urgency of developing next-generation technologies to overcome efficiency and sustainability limits in existing desalination systems. He placed particular emphasis on the crucial need for expanding pilot-scale studies — a key bottleneck in the sector — to accelerate the path toward commercial viability and widespread adoption.
Hosted by Elsevier, a global academic publisher, the conference is a leading international forum on desalination, bringing together researchers, industry leaders and public institutions to discuss advances in seawater desalination, water reuse and brine resource recovery.
Kookmin University said Lee was invited as a plenary speaker due to his contributions to international cooperation and technology dissemination in digital desalination, as well as his leading role in research on brine resource recovery.
Lee’s work spans next-generation processes such as membrane distillation and industrial water solutions, ranging from basic research to large-scale engineering applications.
He also focuses on practical research to reduce energy use in seawater desalination and water reuse plants, and to optimize operations through digital-twin systems.
During the conference, Lee presented multiple pilot research cases, outlined challenges in scaling up new technologies and proposed strategies to address them, drawing strong interest from both academia and industry.
Lee earned his Ph.D. in engineering from Seoul National University, worked as a researcher at Northwestern University in Illinois, and later served as a senior researcher at the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology.
He now teaches in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Kookmin University.