Postdoc Spotlight: Diving Into Marine Adventure

Yanjun Li, Ph.D., spent his childhood with his nose buried in science fiction books about under water adventures, particularly building marine-related contraptions, which led to his desire to study mechanical engineering.

“I loved to read those fictions, in one they built a submarine to travel across the sea and observe these fantastic creatures,” he said. “I am the kind of guy to build things, so that’s why I chose my major as mechanical engineering.”

While studying in China, a professor introduced him to FAU, where he earned his doctoral degree in mechanical engineering before joining FAU’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (HBOI) as a postdoctoral fellow.

Li’s research, which stems from the design and deployment of a compact, self-inflating underwater structure, is used across multiple platforms, including with underwater sonar to record and observe underwater acoustic environments. After deployment, the structure self inflates, morphing into multiple times larger than the original volume, which extends the detection range and provides long-term observation capabilities used for logging data such as animal classification, and assisting in marine renewable energy projects, he said. “I develop sensors, structures and underwater platforms/vehicles for ocean-related applications,” said Li, adding his goal was to utilize technology in a space it had never been before to make impactful changes to the research community.

Li’s future endeavors include building a structure with partnering technology that will recognize and identify sea life and organisms, and robotics which can collect plastics from the ocean effectively and efficiently before they degrade into microplastics.

“I’m thinking of more challenges to develop our inflatable structure into robotics or robotic arms, so you can like grab things,” he said. “Maybe we can build something to detect the issue and help us clean up the micro plastic explosion. … I’m still working on that.”