Andi Rahardianto holds Assistant Researcher appointments both the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability and the Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Department.  He received his B.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and UCLA, respectively. He is a member of the UCLA Water Technology Research Center and the UCLA Water Resources Group. Andi’s research spans multiple disciplines of Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, and Water Resources, focusing on the multidisciplinary area of membrane-based water purification and desalination. Motivated by dwindling traditional water supplies across the United States and in many parts of the world, Andi’s work addresses the development of critical technological tools for cost-effective production of “new” water from non-traditional water resources (seawater and brackish water), as well as for treatment of wastewater for water reuse and environmental protection (e.g., recycling and reuse of municipal wastewater and agricultural drainage water, as well as treatment of nitrate contaminated water). Through both fundamental and applied research, the goal is to arrive at advanced water purification and desalination technologies that are both cost-effective and accessible for widespread use, including in remote and disadvantaged communities. Andi’s research interests include: membrane science and technology, fundamentals of membrane-based separations, crystallization and precipitation, surface fouling and mineral crystallization (i.e., scaling), real-time monitoring of nucleation and growth processes on membrane surfaces, real-time monitoring of mass transfer in membrane systems, process development, design, and control of membrane-based systems, and process integration/intensification.

Current major research topics:

• Mitigation of membrane mineral scaling in water purification and desalination,
• High recovery processes for cost-effective inland brackish water desalination,
• Water treatment platforms and advanced process control for Smart Water Systems,
• Virtual water district for remote and disadvantaged small communities
• Advanced and low cost technologies for water recycling and reuse.
• Development of surface-nanostructured water treatment membranes

TEACHING

CH ENGRC121 / CH ENGRC221 – Membrane Science and Technology