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Simeng Li

Simeng Li

Associate Professor

Civil Engineering, College of Engineering

Email

sli@cpp.edu

Phone number

909.869.4787

Office location

09-312

Office hours

T TH | 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM

Education

Ph.D., Civil Engineering, Florida State University 

M.Eng., Civil Engineering, Florida State University 

B.Eng., Environmental Engineering, Ocean University of China

 

Professional Registration

  • Licensed Civil Engineer (P.E.) in California, License Number: 97822
  • Full Member of Sigma Xi (ΣΞ), The Scientific Research Honor Society

Biography

Dr. Simeng Li joined the faculty of Civil Engineering at Cal Poly Pomona in August 2019 after completing both his doctoral and master’s degrees at Florida State University. He is a licensed Civil Engineer in the State of California. Dr. Li’s academic and research interests lie in environmental and water resources engineering, driven by a strong commitment to sustainability and environmental enhancement. His work focuses on developing innovative strategies to enhance water system resilience, pioneering new approaches to convert waste into valuable resources, and addressing environmental challenges through the remediation of both legacy and emerging contaminants.

 

At Cal Poly Pomona, Dr. Li teaches a broad range of undergraduate and graduate courses and is deeply committed to student success. He actively promotes experiential learning by providing meaningful research and project-based opportunities for students. His scholarly work and mentorship have been recognized with several university-level honors, including the Provost’s Excellence Award in Scholarly & Creative Activities (2024–25), the Innovation Catalyst Award (2024–25), and the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award (2023–24).

 

Faculty Webpage

(Personal Webpage)

Teaching

Undergraduate Courses:
CE 2061 Fluid Mechanics                                         
CE 3201 Environmental Engineering
CE 3201L Environmental Engineering Laboratory     
CE 3211 Water Resources Engineering
CE 4201 Water and Wastewater Engineering
CE 4201L Water and Wastewater Engineering Laboratory             
CE 4211 Applied Hydrology
CE 4241 Environmental Remediation                       
CE 4830 Project Design Principles and Applications
Graduate Courses:
CE 5230 Bioresources and Bioenergy Recovery       
CE 5241 Environmental Remediation
CE 5260 Advanced Wastewater Treatment

Selected Publications

  • Li, S.*, Tasnady, D., Skelley, S., Calderon, B., Jiang, S. (2024) Enhancing organic contaminant removal from wool scouring wastewater using chemically modified biochars. Journal of Carbon Research, 10(1), 6. DOI: 10.3390/c10010006. 
  • Li, S.*, Galoustian, T., Trejo, H. (2023) Biochar pyrolyzed with concentrated solar radiation for enhanced nitrate adsorption. Journal of Analytical and Applied Pyrolysis, 174, 106131. DOI: 10.1016/j.jaap.2023.106131.
  • Li, S.*, Chan, C. (2022) Will biochar suppress or stimulate greenhouse gas emissions in agricultural fields? Unveiling the dice game through data syntheses. Soil Systems, 6(4), 73. DOI: 10.3390/soilsystems6040073.
  • Brickler, C., Wu, Y., Li, S.*, Anandhi, A., Chen, G. (2021) Comparing physicochemical properties and sorption behaviors of pyrolysis-derived and microwave-mediated biochar. Sustainability, 13(4), 2359. DOI: 10.3390/su13042359.
  • Wu, Y., Li, S.*, Chen, G. (2021) Impacts of mechanical and chemical factors on water-holding capacity of polyacrylamide in sandy soils: Models and mechanisms. Soil Research, DOI: 10.1071/SR20200.
  • Makhtoumi, Y.*, Li, S., Ibeanusi, V., Chen, G. (2020) Evaluating water balance variables under land use and climate projections in the Upper Choctawhatchee River Watershed in Southeast US. Water, 12(8), 2205. DOI: 10.3390/w12082205.
  • Li, S.*, Duran, K., Delagah, S., Mouawad, J., Jia, X., Sharbatmaleki, M. (2021) Energy efficiency of staged reverse osmosis (RO) and closed-circuit reverse osmosis (CCRO) desalination: A model-based comparison. Water Supply. DOI: 10.2166/ws.2020.208.
  • Wu, Y., Brickler, C., Li, S.*, Chen, G. (2020) Synthesis of microwave-mediated biochar-hydrogel composites for enhanced water absorbency and nitrogen release. Polymer Testing, 93, 106996. DOI: 10.1016/j.polymertesting.2020.106996.
  • Huang, J., Xu, Q.*, Wang, X., Ji, H., Sharbatmaleki, M., Li, S., Jia, X., Sun, B., Yang, X., Li, C. (2020) Effects of hydrological and climatic variables on Cyanobacteria blooms in four large shallow lakes fed by Yangtze River. Environmental Science and Ecotechnology, 5, 100069. DOI: 10.1016/j.ese.2020.100069.
  • Li, S., Wu, Z., Wu, Z., Liu, G.* (2020) Enhancing fiber recovery from wastewater may require toilet paper redesign. Journal of Cleaner Production, 261, 121138. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.121138.
  • Li, S.*, Li, R., Tang, Y., Chen, G. (2019) Microwave-induced heavy metal removal from dewatered biosolids for cost-effective composting. Journal of Cleaner Production, 241, 118342. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118342.
  • Li, S., Wu, Z., Liu, G.* (2019) Degradation kinetics of toilet paper fiber during wastewater treatment: Effects of retention time and microbial community. Chemosphere, 225, 915-926. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.03.097.