About

Aaron Moment is an Associate Professor-in-Residence in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at UCLA Samueli School of Engineering. His research focuses on extracting hydrogen and critical metals from nuisance seaweed, contributing to sustainable resource recovery and environmental remediation. He is affiliated with the UCLA Moment Lab, where his work advances understanding in materials science related to chemical extraction processes. Further details about his background and specific research contributions are not provided on the page.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Materials science
• Chemistry
• Environmental science
• Mineralogy
• Combinatorial chemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Chemical engineering
• Biology
• Nanotechnology
• Computational biology

Selected publications

• Emerging Inorganic Solid-State Electrolytes Membrane Technologies for Innovative Lithium Separation

  ACS ES&T Engineering · 2026-04-15

  articleOpen access

  Increasing global demand for lithium has driven the development of innovative extraction technologies for a wide range of resources that are sustainable and selective. Inorganic solid-state electrolytes (ISSEs), originally designed for lithium–ion batteries, have recently emerged as promising materials for membrane-based lithium separation due to their high lithium–ion conductivity, structural stability, and inherent ion selectivity. This review highlights recent advances in ISSE membranes for lithium recovery from complex aqueous sources, such as seawater and brine. The crystallographic frameworks of representative ISSEs, such as garnet-, NASICON-, and perovskite-type structures and their lithium–ion transport mechanisms, are discussed in detail. Particular attention is given to electrochemically mediated systems that leverage applied electric fields to drive the selective transport of lithium through ISSE membranes. Furthermore, we discuss structural modifications and interfacial engineering strategies to enhance selectivity and conductivity as well as the development of flexible ISSE–polymer composite membranes that improve mechanical stability and scalability. Despite notable progress, challenges in interface optimization, long-term durability, and large-scale manufacturing remain. This review provides future research directions for advancing ISSE-based lithium separation technologies as energy-efficient, selective, and scalable solutions for sustainable lithium production.

  PublisherDOI

• Integrated green mechano-chemical assisted recovery of nickel with carbon mineralization of olivine: Mechanisms and life cycle assessment

  Minerals Engineering · 2026-03-20

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Tailoring Zr-Based MOFs for Tetracycline, Atrazine, and Sulfathiazole from the Aqueous Phase through a Comparative Study of Defect Engineering and Chemical Modifications

  ACS ES&T Engineering · 2025-10-03

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Emerging contaminants, including pharmaceutical personal care products and herbicides, pose a threat to water quality and ecosystem health, including human society, as they are not effectively removed by traditional wastewater treatment plants. The complex interactions between the adsorbents and emerging contaminants (ECs) in various aqueous phases are still not yet fully understood, hindering the rational development of the materials for their enhanced and selective removal. This study addresses this challenge by systematically investigating the adsorption mechanisms and kinetics of representative ECs under varying aqueous conditions. We synthesized a water-stable MOF, UiO-66, and modified it by either defect engineering or chemical functionalization to evaluate their performance. Results show that defect-controlled UiO-66 exhibited superior removal efficiency across all tested compounds compared to chemically modified variants, even in the presence of coexisting cations (K+, Na+, Mg2+, and Ca2+) and anions (nitrate and sulfate). Furthermore, the defect-controlled MOF demonstrated stability over three reuse cycles and greater selectivity for hydrophilic ECs relative to activated carbon, a widely used benchmark adsorbent. These findings provide valuable insights into designing sorbents with tunable properties for selective water remediation, thereby advancing solutions to challenges at the water-energy-environment nexus.

  PublisherDOI

• Ultrasound Field Enhances Battery Ion Transport: Deep-Penetration Acoustic Effect on Lithium-Ion Batteries and Zinc-Air Batteries

  ECS Meeting Abstracts · 2025-11-24

  articleSenior author

  Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) remain the dominant technology for portable electronics, electric vehicles, and grid-level energy storage due to their high energy density, long cycle life, and favorable gravimetric and volumetric performance. Nonetheless, diffusion-limited transport phenomena—particularly lithium-ion mobility within the electrolyte and across electrode interfaces—constrain power delivery and fast-charging capability. These limitations are exacerbated under elevated current densities and temperature excursions, where undesired side reactions such as electrolyte decomposition, cathode–electrolyte interphase (CEI) instability, and solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) degradation accelerate. Traditional mitigation strategies, including advanced electrode chemistries, nanostructured materials, and novel electrolyte formulations, often face scalability barriers and introduce additional cost and synthetic complexity. In this work, we propose and experimentally validate a non-invasive, mechanically driven method to improve electrochemical transport processes in LIBs using ultrasonic wave excitation. The approach leverages acoustic streaming and localized perturbation effects to modulate mass transport phenomena, thereby reducing impedance and enhancing performance under high-rate operation. Importantly, we employ a fully integrated system architecture capable of transmitting ultrasonic energy into sealed commercial-format polymer pouch cells, while maintaining isothermal conditions. This enables clear differentiation between thermally induced and acoustically induced effects—a critical distinction often confounded in prior studies due to uncontrolled temperature rise associated with ultrasonic transducer heating. Our platform utilizes piezoelectric transducers operating in the 20 kHz frequency, coupled to lithium-ion cells through an acoustically matched solid waveguide to eliminate immersion in liquids, thus preserving packaging integrity and facilitating translation to real-world systems. Temperature control is achieved through embedded thermistors and an active thermal feedback loop, maintaining constant temperature during ultrasound application. Electrochemical performance was characterized through galvanostatic cycling, rate capability tests, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), supported by equivalent circuit modeling (ECM) and differential capacity analysis Upon ultrasonic activation, a reproducible and reversible reduction in both bulk and interfacial impedance components was observed. Charge-transfer resistance (R ct ) decreased by up to 20.4% under optimized acoustic power conditions, correlating with improved rate performance and reduced overpotential during high-rate charging. The impedance reduction was found to scale with both vibration amplitude and exposure duration, but remained within safe mechanical thresholds to avoid structural damage to the cell. Removal of the ultrasound source restored baseline impedance values, confirming the non-destructive and tunable nature of the intervention. To assess the broader applicability of ultrasonic enhancement across chemistries, we extended this methodology to zinc–air batteries, which are similarly diffusion-limited due to slow oxygen reduction kinetics and viscous alkaline electrolytes. A piezoelectric ring actuator was affixed to the cathode shell of a button-type zinc–air battery to induce controlled ultrasonic fields. At an operating power of 150 W, a 36.5% increase in peak output power was achieved. Rating capacity increased by ~20%, and impedance spectra confirmed a reduction in electrolyte resistance and charge-transfer impedance. Optical microscopy images revealed the formation of a planer zinc metal surface with suppressed zinc dendrite, promoting electrode renewal and electrolyte diffusion. This work provides a systematic, multi-scale investigation into the interplay between acoustic energy and electrochemical transport in energy storage devices. By integrating precise thermal management, real-time impedance monitoring, and structure–function analysis, we demonstrate that ultrasonic excitation constitutes a scalable and energy-efficient approach to enhance battery performance. Unlike conventional strategies that require material re-engineering or formulation changes, this method preserves device architecture and chemistry, making it compatible with existing manufacturing platforms. Our findings offer a foundational understanding of acoustically induced transport enhancement and open new directions in battery performance modulation via mechanical energy. Future studies will investigate in situ acoustic field mapping, integration with battery management systems (BMS), and dynamic control of ultrasonic stimulation during fast charging protocols. Additionally, exploration of synergistic effects between ultrasound and advanced solid-state electrolytes or three-dimensional electrode architectures may yield further performance gains.

  PublisherDOI

• Waste <i>Sargassum</i> Seaweed as a Sustainable Resource for Rare Earth Element Recovery

  ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering · 2025-11-17

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Rare earth elements (REEs) are vital for advanced technologies, yet their supply is limited and geographically concentrated, highlighting the need for alternative sources. Since 2011, massive pelagic Sargassum blooms have produced millions of tons of biomass along coastlines, posing environmental challenges but offering untapped resource potential. Here, we demonstrate an ecofriendly “algal mining” approach, repurposing as a renewable biosorbent for REE recovery, offering a waste-to-resource pathway aligned with circular economy principles. We present the first direct comparison of REE uptake in fresh and dried Sargassum filipendula across concentrations from 0.1 to 600 μM. Fresh biomass showed superior accumulation at low, environmentally relevant concentrations (0.1–11 μM) than dried biomass, while uptake was comparable at higher levels (100–600 μM). S. filipendula sequestered up to 77,299 μM ytterbium, with Langmuir isotherm modeling indicating high adsorption capacities and binding affinities, particularly for heavy REEs. Compared with activated carbon, S. filipendula maintained superior performance under high salinity and variable pH conditions that reduce the conventional adsorbent efficiency. These findings support the S. filipendula as a marine-adapted, scalable biosorbent that can simultaneously mitigate the impacts of coastal Sargassum blooms and contribute to the sustainable supply of critical materials for renewable energy and advanced technologies.

  PublisherDOI

• In Situ Observation of Calcium Carbonates Nucleation and Polymorphs Transformation in Liquid Phase by Coupling Raman Spectra and Optical Microscopy Imaging

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01

  preprintOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• In situ Raman characterization of polymorph evolution during CaCO3 precipitation in a stirred batch reactor

  Journal of Crystal Growth · 2025-10-23 · 2 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Surface modification of membrane substrates for nanofiltration-based removal of essential and energy-critical metals from industrial wastewater

  Surfaces and Interfaces · 2025-08-21 · 4 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Investigation of in-situ mechanical and chemical etching: A milder hydrometallurgical approach for Au, Ni, and Cu recovery from printed circuit boards

  Resources Conservation and Recycling · 2024-11-13 · 11 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Integrated Recovery of Iron and Nickel from Olivine Ores Using Solvent Extraction: Synergistic Production of Amorphous Silica and Carbonates through pH Adjustment and Carbon Mineralization

  ACS ES&T Engineering · 2024-09-20 · 20 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  This study proposed a sustainable method for the concurrent recovery of metals from olivine minerals and carbon sequestration through carbon mineralization to address the challenges of climate change and critical mineral recovery for the renewable energy transition. It developed a comprehensive development in leaching processes, recovery of metals, and reagent recycling while assessing its economic benefits and environmental impact. Employing hydrometallurgical leaching, our approach facilitates the selective recovery of Ni2+ while converting Mg2+ into their carbonates. This approach is further refined through a stepwise technique that controls operating conditions to generate high-purity valuable products, enabling nearly 90% of Mg2+ and Ni2+ to be dissolved and converted to carbonates. This study evaluated various organic and inorganic acids for the leaching process, followed by Fe extraction and pH swing, to yield pure Fe salts and amorphous silica. Separately extracting iron from the solution significantly reduces the loss of valuable metals in subsequent stages by minimizing the coprecipitation of iron with silicon. A techno-economic assessment (TEA) was performed to evaluate the economic impact of removing iron before the solvent extraction of nickel. This analysis, based on mass balance flow comparisons, determined that the independent removal of iron is more profitable, resulting in the production of more and higher-value products. Ni2+ was selectively extracted from the leachate using Versatic 10, which forms a complex with nickel in the organic phase. The solution containing either a strong acid or a greener agent (i.e., gaseous CO2) was effectively used to strip Ni2+ from the organic phase. Different polymorphs of Mg carbonates were produced under ambient conditions. The proposed process flow results in high-purity products suitable for use in various industries, which enhances the economy, facilitating the rapid adoption of this technology.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Ning Zhang

  Columbia University

  13 shared

• Jonah M. Williams

  Columbia University

  8 shared

• Ah‐Hyung Alissa Park

  Columbia University

  6 shared

• Diandian Zhao

  Columbia University

  6 shared

• Shiho Kawashima

  City University of New York

  6 shared

• Paula T. Hammond

  5 shared

• Susan L. Zultanski

  Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA (United States)

  5 shared

• Rebecca T. Ruck

  5 shared

Labs

• Moment LabPI

Education

• PhD, Chemical Engineering

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  2000