Laboratory for Environmental Exchange (LEE)

Energy, water, and dissolved matter cross between engineered systems and the natural environment at interfaces, where a fluid meets a membrane, a mineral, or the air. The LEE Group studies interfacial transport in environmental systems: how mass and heat cross those boundaries, and how the species that cross them are transformed on the way. We pair bench-scale experiment with multiscale modeling and data-driven analysis to design separations that regenerate dielectric coolants for next-generation cooling and capture metal ions from water where reliable infrastructure cannot be assumed.

The group is based in the Department of Physics and Engineering at Wheaton College and begins operation in September 2026.