Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the “Membranes 2023 Best Paper Award” for research and review articles published in Membranes from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021. One review and Two research articles will each receive an award. The papers will be selected after thorough evaluation by the journal’s Award Committee led by the Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, and the winners will be announced in April 2023.

Eligibility for the Awards:
– Papers published in Membranes from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021;
– Open to all career levels;
– Both regular and Special Issue submissions will be considered.

Selection Criteria:
The papers will be selected by the journal’s Award Committee according to the following criteria (data source: Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics)):
– Scientific merit and broad impact;
– Originality of the research objectives and/or the ideas presented;
– Creativity of the study design or uniqueness of the approaches and concepts;
– Clarity of presentation;
– Citation and download rates in 2022.

Prizes:
– One review award: 500 CHF and a chance to publish a free paper in Membranes in 2023;
– Two research articles award: 500 CHF and a chance to publish a free paper in Membranes in 2023;
– Each winner will also receive a certificate.

The winners will be announced on the journal’s website in April 2023.

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that Membranes is now inviting nominations for the Membranes 2023 Young Investigator Award. This prize will be given to one young investigator in recognition of their excellence in the field of membrane technology and its applications. All nominations will be assessed by an Evaluation Committee led by the Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev.

The Prize:
− 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs);
− Option to publish one paper free of charge in Membranes after peer review before the end of 2024;
− An engraved plaque.

Eligibility and Requirements:
− Must have a PhD degree;
− Must be below 35 years of age by 31 December 2022;
− Must have produced ground-breaking research and made a significant contribution to the advancement of membrane technology and its applications;
− Candidates must be nominated by senior scientists.

List of Documents for Nomination:
– Detailed Curriculum Vitae, including an updated publication list and a list of the researcher’s own research grants;
− Birth certificate or other proof of age;
− Scanned copy of doctorate certificate;
− Signed nomination letters from two established senior scientists.

Schedule:
Open for nominations: 20 January 2022
Nomination deadline: 31 March 2023
Winner announcement: 31 May 2023

How to submit nominations?
Nominations must be submitted online at https://www.mdpi.com/journal/membranes/awards. Please do not hesitate to contact [email protected] com with any question. We look forward to receiving your nominations.

Contact
Kind regards,
Membranes Editorial Office

Dear Colleagues,

Authors are increasingly interested in having their papers published as a cover story in Membranes. There were 12 cover stories in total published in 2021. These cover stories report important research results or innovative methods and present impressive images. To reward the authors who have published important research results in Membranes, we are announcing the Membranes 2021 Best Cover Paper Award.

This award will be granted to one of the cover stories, and the winner will receive 500 CHF. The criteria are as follows:

– Importance or innovation of the research;
– Quality of the cover image.

The voting will be open to all of Membranes’ EBMs, followers, subscribers, and other scholars in the research field of membranes.

The vote will be open from 25 April 2022 to 31 May 2022. Please cast your vote here (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/R5FKMX6).

The winners will be announced on the journal website by the end of June 2022.

Kind regards,
Membranes Editorial Office

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the winners of the Membranes 2022 Best Paper Award. All papers published from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2020 were considered for the award. After a thorough evaluation of the originality and significance of the papers, citations, and downloads, the two winning papers, which were nominated by the Editor-in-Chief and Associate Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, have been selected.

One Review:

Membrane Technologies in Wastewater Treatment: A Review
By Mr. Elorm Obotey Ezugbe and Prof. Sudesh Rathilal
Membranes 2020, 10(5), 89; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes10050089

One Research Article:

Development of Hydrophilic PVDF Membrane Using Vapour Induced Phase Separation Method for Produced Water Treatment
By Dr. Muhammad Roil Bilad, Ms. Normi Izati Mat Nawi, Mr. Min Chean Ho, Dr. Norazanita Shamsuddin, Dr. Thanitporn Narkkun, Dr. Kajornsak Faungnawakij and Dr. Asim Laeeq Khan
Membranes 2020, 10(6), 121; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes10060121

Each winner (corresponding author) will receive CHF 500 and a chance to publish a paper in Membranes free of charge in 2022.

On behalf of the assessment committee, I would like to congratulate the winners on their accomplishments. We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the nominated research groups of the above exceptional papers for their contributions to Membranes and the Award Committee for voting and helping with this award.

Editor-in-Chief
Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, Membranes

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the winner of the Membranes 2021 Young Investigator Award is Dr. Xu Hou.

Dr. Xu Hou is a professor at the College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering and the College of Physical Science; he is also the Principal Investigator of the Bioinspired Smart Membranes Group at Xiamen University.

Dr. Xu Hou’s scientific interest is focused on membrane science and technology, especially liquid gating technology. In 2015, his group originally proposed the concept that liquid gating mechanisms intrinsically generate differential response profiles for a broad spectrum of gases and liquids over a wide range of environmental pressures with virtually no fouling for complex fluids. In recent years, his group made this original concept become a reality by developing various smart porous membranes by the selection and design of the two essential parts of composite membranes: the solid porous membrane and the functional gating liquid. These membranes expand the basic scientific issues of traditional membranes from the solid−liquid/gas interface to the solid−liquid−liquid/gas interface and create more possibilities for various applications of membranes. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Xu Hou for his contributions to the advancement of membrane science.

As the awardee, Dr. Xu Hou will receive an honorarium of 2000 CHF, an offer to publish a paper free of charge in Membranes after peer review before the end of 2022, and an engraved plaque.

We would like to thank all the applicants from various fields of study for their participation and all the Award Committee members for their evaluation of the numerous excellent applications we received.

Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev
Editor-in-Chief, Membranes

Dear colleagues,

As the Editor-in-Chief of Membranes, I am pleased to announce the winners of the Membranes 2021 Best Paper Awards.

The awards have been granted to:

One Review

Composite Membranes for High Temperature PEM Fuel Cells and Electrolysers: A Critical Review
By Xinwei Sun, Stian Christopher Simonsen, Truls Norby and Athanasios Chatzitakis
Membranes 2019, 9(7), 83; doi:10.3390/membranes9070083

One Research Article

Transport Characteristics of Fujifilm Ion-Exchange Membranes as Compared to Homogeneous Membranes AMX and CMX and to Heterogeneous Membranes MK-40 and MA-41
By Veronika Sarapulova, Inna Shkorkina, Semyon Mareev, Natalia Pismenskaya, Natalia Kononenko, Christian Larchet, Lasaad Dammak and Victor Nikonenko
Membranes 2019, 9(7), 84; doi:10.3390/membranes9070084 

Each winner (corresponding author) will receive 500 CHF and a chance to publish a paper in Membranes in 2021.
On behalf of the assessment committee, I congratulate the winners on their accomplishments. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the nominated research groups on their exceptional papers and contributions to Membranes. Lastly, we’d like to thank the Award Committee for voting and helping select these awards.

Editor-in-Chief
Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, Membranes

Dear colleagues,

As Editor-in-Chief of Membranes, I am pleased to announce the winner of the Membranes Travel Award for 2020.

The award has been granted to Mr. Ralph Rolly Gonzales, who is currently undertaking a PhD in Environmental Engineering at the University of Technology Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Ralph Rolly Gonzales’s research involves engineered osmosis, thin film composite membranes, water and wastewater treatment, and renewable energy. He will present his research “Control of the antagonistic chemical modification effects of chlorine and ionic liquids on thin film composite membranes for enhanced osmotic power generation” at the 12th International Conference on Membranes and Membrane Processes (ICOM 2020) to be held in London, United Kingdom, 7–11 December 2020.

Due to the ongoing uncertainly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number of physical academic conferences have been canceled or postponed, and the evaluation process and final decision were challenging. We would like to thank all the applicants for submitting their diverse and fascinating range of research topics. On behalf of the assessment committee, I congratulate the winner on his accomplishments.

Editor-in-Chief
Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, Membranes

We are pleased to announce the Membranes Best Paper Awards for 2020. The winners (one review paper and one research paper) were chosen from all of the research and review articles published between 1 January and 31 December 2018 on the basis of their originality and significance, as well as the number of citations and download rates in 2019.

Bhattarai, D.P.; Aguilar, L.E.; Park, C.H.; Kim, C.S. A Review on Properties of Natural and Synthetic Based Electrospun Fibrous Materials for Bone Tissue Engineering. Membranes 2018, 8, 62. doi: 10.3390/membranes8030062.
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/8/3/62

Dong, X.; Al-Jumaily, A. and Escobar, I.C. Investigation of the Use of a Bio-Derived Solvent for Non-Solvent-Induced Phase Separation (NIPS) Fabrication of Polysulfone Membranes. Membranes 2018, 8, 23. doi: 10.3390/ membranes8020023.
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/8/2/23

In recognition of their accomplishment, each Best Paper Award winner will receive a certificate, 500 CHF, and an offer to publish one paper in Membranes free of charge (following peer review and acceptance).

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the winner of the 2019 Membranes Young Investigator Award is Dr. Jason E. Bara.

Dr. Jason E. Bara is an Associate Professor of the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering at the University of Alabama. Jason’s research interests are in the rational design of polymer materials for gas separation membranes, with a focus on the use of ionic functional groups as a means of tailoring properties and enhancing performance. Dr. Bara is also active in shapememory/ self-healing polymers, 3-D printing, polymer depolymerization/ upcycling to value-added molecules, and “green” solvents and chemical separation processes. Jason has also received several awards for outstanding teaching and for developing educational tools. Dr. Bara received his PhD from the University of Colorado-Boulder in 2007, and has published nearly 100 peerreviewed journal articles and book chapters in addition to being an inventor on 9 US and international patents. As PI or co-PI, Dr. Bara has secured more than $6.6 M USD in funding from DOE, NSF, NASA and related industries during his independent research career. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Bara for his contributions to the advancement of membrane science.

As the awardee, Dr. Bara will receive an honorarium of 2000 CHF, an offer to publish a paper free of charge without a fixed deadline in Membranes, and an engraved plaque.

We would like to thank all the applicants from the various fields of study for their participation and all the Award Committee members for their evaluation of the numerous excellent applications we received.

Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev
Editor-in-Chief, Membranes

Dear Colleagues,

As the Editor-in-Chief of Membranes, I am pleased to announce the winners of the 2019 Membranes Travel Awards: Gaetan Blandin (Post-doctoral fellow at the University of Girona, Spain) and Anna Siekierka (Ph.D. student at the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland). Each Awardee will receive 800 Swiss Francs to attend an international conference in 2019.

Dr. Gaetan Blandin’s research focuses on the development of osmotic membrane bioreactors for water recycling. He will present his research “Forward osmosis for wastewater concentration: Lab and pilot case studies” at the 9th IWA Membrane Technology Conference & Exhibition for Water and Wastewater Treatment and Reuse, which will be held on 23–27 June 2019 in Toulouse, France.

Ms. Anna Siekierka’s research focuses on the use of the membraneassembly electrochemical technology for selective removal of lithium salts from aqueous solutions. She will present her research “The influence of anion-exchange membranes for the adsorption capacity of lithium ions and their energetic factors during hybrid capacitive deionization” at the VI PVVPGSMD 2019, which will be held on 14–17 May 2019 in Toruń, Poland.

It was a difficult decision, given the high-quality applications for the awards. On behalf of the award committee, I would like to thank all applicants and to congratulate Dr. Gaetan Blandin and Ms. Anna Siekierka for their accomplishments.

Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev
Editor-in-Chief
The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce the winner of the Membranes Travel Award for 2018:

The recipient of the Travel Award is Ms. Edyta Rynkowska, a PhD student at the Faculty of Chemistry of Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland.

Ms. Edyta Rynkowska’s main research interests focus on separation membrane materials containing polymerizable and reactive ionic liquids.

On behalf of the Membranes team, I would like to congratulate Ms. Edyta Rynkowska for her research achievements!

Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev
Editor-in-Chief
The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Membranes established a Best Paper Award in order to afford recognition to the authors of its best published articles this year. Nominations were selected by the Editorial Office of Membranes from papers published in 2015–2016, with a selection process based on the number of citations and downloads from the website. The selection committee was chaired by the Editor-in-Chief, Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev, and supported by Prof. Dr. Dionysios (Dion) Demetriou Dionysiou, Prof. Dr. Terry Hébert, Prof. Dr. Arwyn Tomos Jones, Prof. Dr. Annarosa Gugliuzza, Prof. Dr. Chu Yang Tang and Prof. Dr. Jega Veeriah Jegatheesan. Each examined a paper and expressed their preferences in the ranking of the “Membranes Best Paper Award” 2017.

We are pleased to announce the top three winners of the Best Paper Award of Membranes for 2017 are:

Original Research Article Award:

1st Prize

Asymmetric Lipid Membranes: Towards More Realistic Model Systems
Drew Marquardt, Barbara Geier and Georg Pabst
Membranes 2015, 5(2), 180–196; doi:10.3390/membranes5020180
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/5/2/180

2nd Prize

Selectivity of Direct Methanol Fuel Cell Membranes
Antonino S. Aricò, David Sebastian, Michael Schuster, Bernd Bauer, Claudia D’Urso, Francesco Lufrano and Vincenzo Baglio
Membranes 2015, 5(4), 793–809; doi:10.3390/membranes5040793
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/5/4/793

3rd Prize

Hollow Fiber Membrane Dehumidification Devices for Air Conditioning System
Baiwang Zhao, Na Peng, Canzeng Liang, Wai Fen Yong and Tai-Shung Chung
Membranes 2015, 5(4), 722–738; doi:10.3390/membranes5040722
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/5/4/722

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce the winner of the Membranes Travel Award for 2017:

The Travel Award has been granted to Dr. Ludovic Dumee, a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Frontier Materials, at Deakin Univeristy, Waurn Ponds, Victoria, Australia.

Dr. Ludovic Dumee’s main research interests focus on the coalescence of metal and metal oxide nano-particles to form nano-porous metal frameworks with enhanced plasmonic, catalytic and photo-catalytic properties for application in wastewater treatment and mixed solvent separation.

On behalf of the Membranes team, I would like to congratulate Dr. Ludovic Dumee for all his achievements!

Prof. Dr. Spas D. Kolev
Editor-in-Chief
The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia