SyracuseCoE recently hosted its September Research & Technology Forum, featuring a presentation by Dr. Yeqing Wang, Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in the College of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS). Professor Wang was one of the recipients of SyracuseCoE’s 2024 Faculty Fellow awards.
Wang presented the results of his Faculty Fellow research project, which explored the use of delignified wood as a scaffold to hos metal-organic framework (MOF) particles. MOFs have emerged as highly tunable and efficient materials for gas separation, but their practical deployment is limited by scalability and structural fragility.
Wang’s research team used plasma etching to introduce reactive –COOH groups onto a delignified wood surface, enabling effective MOF attachment through dip-coating and electrostatic interactions. Surface characterization confirmed uniform coating of UiO-66-NH₂ MOF particles, achieving loadings up to 330 wt%. While inner-channel infiltration remains challenging, the wood scaffolds demonstrated enhanced stability compared to conventional thin-film or paper-based supports.
Mechanical and airflow tests indicated that MOF loading stabilizes under operating conditions, with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) binders further improving adhesion at the cost of reduced formaldehyde absorption efficiency.
The presentation highlighted MOF-coated delignified wood as a promising sustainable platform combining mechanical robustness, high porosity, and selective adsorption capability, offering new opportunities in scalable and renewable gas separation technologies.
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Dr. Yeqing Wang is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Syracuse University.
Before joining SU in August 2020, he was an Assistant Professor at the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Mississippi State University between 2018 and 2020. From 2016–2018, Dr. Wang worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Air Force Research Lab (Eglin Air Force Base) and University of Florida.
His research interests include mechanics of composite materials and structures, multifunctional composites, and advanced manufacturing of composite materials.
Dr. Wang’s research projects have been funded by NSF, NASA, Boeing, and Oak Ridge Associated Universities. He is a recipient of the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award and the Best Paper Award at the 2012 American Society for Composites Technical Conference, a voted member of the ASME Structures & Materials Technical Committee, and a senior member of the AIAA. He holds a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Iowa.