Boya Xiong

Boya Xiong is an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo-Engineering. Her research bridges polymer science, environmental chemistry, and membrane material science to address global environmental challenges.

Research Interests:

• Elucidating polymer degradation mechanisms under environmental stressors
• Designing nature-inspired antimicrobial membranes
• Advancing plastic circularity and waste management
• Mitigating biofouling and pathogenic contamination
• Assessing environmental fate of industrial polymers
• Developing sustainable resource recovery systems

Recent Publications analyze polymer behavior in hydraulic fracturing, plastic degradation pathways, and biofouling solutions, with keywords spanning polymer chemistry, environmental toxicology, and membrane technology.

Scientific Awards:

• NSF CAREER award (2025)
• McKnight Land-Grant Professorship (2025)
• 40 Under 40 (2024)
• Young Engineer of the Year (2023)
• NSF ACADEME fellow (2018)

Mentorship includes advising current PhD students (Phoebe Keyes, Ehsanur Rahman), alumni (Tariq Bastawisy, Rebeca Loss), and interdisciplinary teams focused on environmental sustainability.