Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering sophomore Yeonwoo Kim has received support from the 2026 Provost’s Undergraduate Research Award (PURA) program.
Kim’s project, “Selective electrochemical separation of nickel and cobalt using Se/CMK-3 composite electrode” focuses on developing an electrochemical method to selectively separate nickel and cobalt from lithium-ion battery waste using a Se/CMK-3 composite electrode. By improving both selectivity and efficiency, Kim’s project aims to address key challenges in resource recovery and highlight how advances in electrochemistry can contribute to sustainable technology solutions.
“Receiving this award recognizes the importance of developing selective metal recovery technologies and the potential of my work, and I am excited to continue pursuing innovations that support more sustainable recycling systems,” says Kim.
Kim is mentored by Russell Croft Faculty Scholar and Assistant Professor in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Yayuan Liu.
“Yeonwoo is a talented and driven undergraduate researcher working on the critically important challenge of recovering valuable resources from waste. Her PURA recognition will give her greater flexibility and independence in pursuing her ideas, and I am confident that this award will help propel her research career to the next stage,” says Liu.
The PURA program was established in 1993 by Joseph Cooper, while he served as university provost from 1991 to 1995, through a generous endowment from the Hodson Trust. The program was created to encourage Johns Hopkins undergraduate students to engage in independent research, and scholarly and creative projects. Each recipient receives a $3,000 award.