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Dr. Santosh Ravichandran

Assistant Professor (Sr. Gr.), Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amrita School of Engineering, Amrita VishwaVidyapeetham, Chennai

Qualification: Postdoc, Ph.D., M.Tech., B.E.
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Research Interest: Critical Mineral & Rare Earth Element Recovery from Wastewaters, Thermal/ Membrane Desalination-Oxidation (Low to Supercritical Temperatures), Waste to Energy, CFD Analysis of Heat Exchange/ Metallurgical Mechanisms, Solar Thermal Technologies.

Bio

Dr. Santosh Ravichandran currently serves as Assistant Professor (Sr. Gr.) in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amrita School of Engineering, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Chennai Campus, India. His academic journey includes postdoctoral research at Los Alamos National Laboratory (USA) and Hanyang University (South Korea), along with a Ph.D. from CEG, Anna University, India. His doctoral research earned the prestigious “Best Doctoral Research Thesis” award in India by KPIT-IISER Pune (Green Energy Generation category).

Dr. Santosh has researched and contributed to several high-impact international research projects funded by organizations such as the U.S. Department of Energy, South Korean Government/ Private Organizations,European Union’s Horizon2020, and Department of Science & Technology, Govt. of India. His work has been recognized globally with multiple awards including the “Hanyang Rising Researcher Award” and listed among the top 10 global researchers in waste-heat-driven desalination technology. With 30+ peer-reviewed journal publications and several abroad/ national conference presentations, his research work at Amritacentres around sustainable technologiesthat include thermal/ membrane desalination, waste-to-energy systems, CFD analysis and critical minerals/rare earth elements recovery from waste streams. He serves as an active reviewer and editor for multiple reputed international journals.

Publications

Journal Article

Year : 2025

Performance enhancement of flat plate cooking unit using novel hook turbulators for indirect solar cooking applications: Numerical and experimental assessment with enviroeconomic analyses

Cite this Research Publication : B.G. Venkateshwaran, G. Kumaresan, R. Santosh, R. Velraj, Performance enhancement of flat plate cooking unit using novel hook turbulators for indirect solar cooking applications: Numerical and experimental assessment with enviroeconomic analyses, Solar Energy, Elsevier BV, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2025.113247

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2025

Supercritical water desalination and oxidation (SCWDO): Effectiveness on complex solutions, technoeconomic, and CO2 impact for produced water treatment

Cite this Research Publication : Prashant Sharan, Michael Dugas, Santosh Ravichandran, Raymond Castro, Ayan Biswas, David M. Warsinger, Rajinder Singh, Robert P. Currier, Alp T. Findikoglu, Supercritical water desalination and oxidation (SCWDO): Effectiveness on complex solutions, technoeconomic, and CO2 impact for produced water treatment, Desalination, Elsevier BV, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2025.118963

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2023

Effect of thermal characteristics on the chemical quality of real-brine treatment through hydrophilic fiber-based low-grade heat-powered humidification-dehumidification process

Cite this Research Publication : Ravichandran Santosh, Ho-Saeng Lee, Ho Ji, Young-Deuk Kim, Effect of thermal characteristics on the chemical quality of real-brine treatment through hydrophilic fiber-based low-grade heat-powered humidification-dehumidification process, Water Research, Elsevier BV, 2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2023.119771

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2023

Effect of geometric variation and solar flux distribution on performance enhancement of absorber tube thermal characteristics for compound parabolic collectors

Cite this Research Publication : R. Santosh, G. Kumaresan, C.K. Pon Pavithiran, P. Mathu, R. Velraj, Effect of geometric variation and solar flux distribution on performance enhancement of absorber tube thermal characteristics for compound parabolic collectors, Renewable Energy, Elsevier BV, 2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2023.04.053

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2022

Comprehensive insights into performance of water gap and air gap membrane distillation modules using hollow fiber membranes

Cite this Research Publication : Baek-Gyu Im, Lijo Francis, Ravichandran Santosh, Woo-Seung Kim, Noreddine Ghaffour, Young-Deuk Kim, Comprehensive insights into performance of water gap and air gap membrane distillation modules using hollow fiber membranes, Desalination, Elsevier BV, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2021.115497

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2022

Performance evaluation and optimization of humidification–dehumidification desalination system for low-grade waste heat energy applications

Cite this Research Publication : Ravichandran Santosh, Chan Ho Yoo, Young-Deuk Kim, Performance evaluation and optimization of humidification–dehumidification desalination system for low-grade waste heat energy applications, Desalination, Elsevier BV, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2021.115516

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2022

A comprehensive review on humidifiers and dehumidifiers in solar and low-grade waste heat powered humidification-dehumidification desalination systems

Cite this Research Publication : Ravichandran Santosh, Ho-Saeng Lee, Young-Deuk Kim, A comprehensive review on humidifiers and dehumidifiers in solar and low-grade waste heat powered humidification-dehumidification desalination systems, Journal of Cleaner Production, Elsevier BV, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.131300

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2022

Effect of Teflon-Coated PVDF Membrane on the Performance of a Solar-Powered Direct Contact Membrane Distillation System

Cite this Research Publication : Pon Pavithiran C. K., Govindaraj Kumaresan, Raju Abraham, Ravichandran Santosh, Ramalingam Velraj, Effect of Teflon-Coated PVDF Membrane on the Performance of a Solar-Powered Direct Contact Membrane Distillation System, Sustainability, MDPI AG, 2022, https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116895

Publisher : MDPI AG

Year : 2022

Effect of humidifier characteristics on performance of a small-scale humidification-dehumidification desalination system

Cite this Research Publication : Saddam Hussain Soomro, Ravichandran Santosh, Chul-U Bak, Chan-Ho Yoo, Woo-Seung Kim, Young-Deuk Kim, Effect of humidifier characteristics on performance of a small-scale humidification-dehumidification desalination system, Applied Thermal Engineering, Elsevier BV, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2022.118400

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2021

Comparative investigation on heat transfer enhancement of surface‐roughened and nano‐dispersed phase change material for thermal energy storage

Cite this Research Publication : Ravichandran Santosh, Govindaraj Kumaresan, Venkatesan Paranthaman, Mangudi Rangaswamy Swaminathan, Ramalingam Velraj, Comparative investigation on heat transfer enhancement of
surface‐roughened
and
nano‐dispersed
phase change material for thermal energy storage, International Journal of Energy Research, Wiley, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1002/er.6828

Publisher : Wiley

Year : 2021

Performance augmentation of solar photovoltaic panel through PCM integrated natural water circulation cooling technique

Cite this Research Publication : P. Sudhakar, R. Santosh, B. Asthalakshmi, G. Kumaresan, R. Velraj, Performance augmentation of solar photovoltaic panel through PCM integrated natural water circulation cooling technique, Renewable Energy, Elsevier BV, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2020.11.138

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2021

Optimized modeling and experimental investigation on the thermal/electrical characteristics of MWCNT nanofluid for effective solar thermal applications

Cite this Research Publication : Ganesh Kumar Poongavanam, Vinothkumar Sivalingam, Santosh Ravichandran, Amrit Kumar Thakur, Sung Chul Kim, Optimized modeling and experimental investigation on the thermal/electrical characteristics of
MWCNT
nanofluid for effective solar thermal applications, International Journal of Energy Research, Wiley, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1002/er.7450

Publisher : Wiley

Year : 2021

Humidification-Dehumidification Desalination System Powered by Simultaneous Air-Water Solar Heater

Cite this Research Publication : Sadam Hussain Soomro, Ravichandran Santosh, Chul-U Bak, Woo-Seung Kim, Young-Deuk Kim, Humidification-Dehumidification Desalination System Powered by Simultaneous Air-Water Solar Heater, Sustainability, MDPI AG, 2021, https://doi.org/10.3390/su132313491

Publisher : MDPI AG

Year : 2021

Comparative Studies on Normal and Pulsed Cold Metal Transfer Welding of Aerospace Grade Aluminum Alloy 2024

Cite this Research Publication : Sadasivam P, Jerome, Sathishkumar M, Manikandan M. “Comparative Studies on Normal and Pulsed Cold Metal Transfer Welding of Aerospace Grade Aluminum Alloy 2024”, Materials Performance and Characterization, Volume 11, December 2021.

Publisher : Performance and Characterization

Year : 2020

Experimental Evaluation of PVA as Novel Humidifier Material for Humidification-Dehumidification Applications

Cite this Research Publication : R. Santosh, G. Kumaresan, S. Monisha, G. Krishna Kumar, R. Velraj, Experimental Evaluation of PVA as Novel Humidifier Material for Humidification-Dehumidification Applications, Journal of Testing and Evaluation, ASTM International, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1520/jte20190722

Publisher : ASTM International

Year : 2020

Experimental parametric investigation of waste heat powered humidification dehumidification system for production of freshwater from wastewater

Cite this Research Publication : R. Santosh, G. Kumaresan, G. Krishna Kumar, R. Velraj, Experimental parametric investigation of waste heat powered humidification dehumidification system for production of freshwater from wastewater, Desalination, Elsevier BV, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2020.114422

Publisher : Elsevier BV

Year : 2020

Optimization of a solar water heating system for vapor absorption refrigeration system

Cite this Research Publication : Sathiya Satchi Christopher, Ravichandran Santosh, Muthuraman Ponrajan Vikram, Rajendran Prabakaran, Amrit Kumar Thakur, Huijin Xu, Optimization of a solar water heating system for vapor absorption refrigeration system, Environmental Progress & Sustainable Energy, Wiley, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1002/ep.13489

Publisher : Wiley

Qualifications
2015 – 2021 Ph.D. (Thermal & Energy Sciences-Mechanical Engineering)
CEG, Anna University, Chennai, India.
Dissertation Title:Investigation of Waste Heat Powered Humidification-Dehumidification System for Production of Freshwater from Domestic Wastewater.
2013 – 2015 M. Tech. (Advanced Thermal Power & Energy Systems) –
ManipalInstitute of Technology, Manipal, Karnataka India.
2009 -2 013 B.E (Mechanical Engineering)
Anna University, Chennai, India.
Professional Appointments
May 2025 – May 2023 Postdoctoral Research Associate,
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), USA.
May2023 – March 2021 Postdoctoral Research Fellow,
Hanyang University, South Korea.
Awards & Recognitions
  • Recipient of the “Hanyang Rising Researcher Award” for Excellent Post-doctoral Research Work, with a cash award of 2,000,000 KRW (~1500 USD).(Presented to the best researcher among all the Postdocs and Research Professors in the entire Hanyang University campus.)
  • Awarded with “Industry-University Cooperation Foundation (ERICA) Post-doctoral Research Fellowship” by Hanyang University,South Korea, for executing Post-doctoral Research Work.
  • Recipient of “Water Advanced Research and Innovation (WARI) Internship” fully supported by the Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), USA, the Daugherty Water for Food Institute (DWFI), USA, and the Indo- US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) for pursuing research in water technology at Texas Tech University, USA.
  • Awarded with “Senior and Junior Research Fellowship” by the Water Technology Initiative (WTI) Division, Department of Science& Technology (DST), Government of India, for executing Doctoral Research Work.
  • Awarded “First Rank” for Best Poster in India under “Water Category” at India International Science Festival 2020 by the Ministry of Science & Technology, Govt. of India.
  • Doctoral thesis selected as the “The Best Research Thesis” (among the top other 10 finalists from various IIT’s, IISc, IISER’s, NIT’s, JNCASR, and other State/Central research centers) under the “Green Energy Generation” category by KPIT-IISER Shodh Awards 2022, India, along with a cash award of 1 lakh Indian Rupees (~1500 USD).
  • Recipient of “HD Govindaraj Memorial Research Award” awarded by the Indian Institute of Welding, India, for Innovative Master’s Thesis.
  • Post-doctoral research work was featured twice as “Excellent Research at Hanyang Campus” in Hanyang University Industry-University Cooperation Foundation’s 1st(March2022) and 3rd (October2022) Magazines, with a cash award of 6,00,000KRW(~425 USD).
  • Listed among the top 10 global researchers working on waste heat powered desalination
  • Recipient of “Best Paper Award” at the International Conference on Science and Innovative Engineering, 2015.
  • Recipient of “Best Project Award” in undergraduate for the Batch 2008-
  • Secured full 10 points in post-graduate research project (2013-2015) and S grade (equivalent to 100%) in undergraduate (2008-2012) mini and main project works with cash award of 10,000 INR(~120USD).
  • Recipient of the “Rising Luminen Star Award”.
  • Presented papers and won at several internal and external
Technical Skills
  • Served as Guest Editor (Invited Position) for a Special Issue on “Novel Materials, Techniques, and Process for Sustainable Treatment of Seawater/Waste water” in the Sustainability Journal.
  • Provided research and project guidance to Postgraduate (7nos.) and Undergraduate (8nos.) researchers in the fields of thermal energy, heat transfer, solar PV, and CFD at CEG, Anna University, India. Also assisted 1 doctoral scholar and 1 postgraduate student in the field of solar desalination and heat transfer at Hanyang University, South Korea. Mentored 1 doctoral scholar in the field of membrane distillation for produced water treatment from New Mexico State University, USA.
  • Actively involved in providing ideas and writing research proposals to various funding agencies in India, South Korea, and USA such as the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE), Science & Engineering Research Board (SERB), Government of India (GOI) funded research projects, National Research Foundation (NRF) of Korea, USA National Laboratories Directed Research & Development (LDRD), and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
  • Successfully completed Pro/EWildfire 4.0, ANSYS fluent, ANSYS Mech (CFD/FEM) courses and an Autodesk Penta CAD certified engineer.
  • Underwent in-plant training at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries India Precision Tools Limited, Ranipet, and Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation, India.
  • Attended various workshops on scientific writing and research conducted by Nature, Elsevier, Wiley, Springer Nature, Metawing, IIT- Madras, Anna University-India, and Bureau of Reclamation-USA.
Research Magazine Articles
  1. Santosh, R., & Young-Deuk Kim “Sustainable Potable Water Production at Home using Air-conditioner Waste Heat.” – Featured as “Excellent Research at Hanyang Campus” in Hanyang University’s Industry-University Cooperation R&D Magazine “AGORA” (1st Edition), South Korea, March 2022.
  2. Santosh, R., & Young-Deuk Kim “Trash-to-Treasure: Using Plastic Waste for Sustainable Potable/ Freshwater Production.” – Featured as “Excellent Research at Hanyang Campus” in Hanyang University’s Industry-University Cooperation R&D Magazine “AGORA” (3rd Edition), South Korea, October 2022.
Research Poster and Talk
  • Santosh, R., Kumaresan, G., &Velraj, R., “Investigation of waste heat powered humidification-dehumidification system for production of freshwater from domestic wastewater/ seawater”, India International Science Festival (IISF) 2020. (Awarded with “First Rank” and “Best Poster in India” under “Water Technology” category by the Ministry of Science and Technology; Ministry of Earth Sciences and Ministry of Health and family Welfare, Govt. of India in collaboration with VIBHA and CSIR).
Courses Taught
  1. Engineering Thermodynamics
  2. Instrumentation for Thermal Systems
  3. Energy Resources and Conversion Techniques
  4. Research Methodology
  5. Fluid Mechanics and Machinery Laboratory
  6. Material Testing and Metallurgy Laboratory
  7. Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) Laboratory
  8. Energy Laboratory
Activities

Professional Activities
International Research Collaboration

  1. Prashant Sharan, Scientist – Desalination & Separations Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, USA.
  2. David M. Warsinger, Professor – Warsinger Water Lab, Purdue University, West Lafayette, USA.
  3. Young-Deuk Kim, Professor & Director – Energy & Environmental Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Hanyang University, South Korea.

Additional Technical Activities

  1. Served as Guest Editor (Invited Position) for a Special Issue on “Novel Materials, Techniques, and Process for Sustainable Treatment of Seawater/ Wastewater” in the Sustainability Journal.
  2. Provided research and project guidance to Postgraduate (7 nos.) and Undergraduate (8 nos.) researchers in the fields of thermal energy, heat transfer, solar PV, and CFD at Anna University, India. Also assisted 1 doctoral scholar and 1 postgraduate student in the field of solar desalination, heat transfer, and HDH at Hanyang University, South Korea. Mentored 1 doctoral scholar in the field of membrane distillation for produced water treatment from New Mexico State University, USA.
  3. Actively Involved in providing ideas and writing research proposals to various funding agencies in India, South Korea, and USA such as the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE), Science & Engineering Research Board (SERB), Government of India (GOI) funded research projects, National Research Foundation (NRF) of Korea, USA National Laboratories Directed Research & Development (LDRD), and US Department of Energy (DOE).
  4. Successfully completed Pro/E Wildfire 4.0, ANSYS fluent, ANSYS Mech (CFD/FEM) courses and an Autodesk PentaCAD certified engineer.
  5. Underwent in-plant training at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries India Precision Tools Limited, Ranipet, and Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation, India.
  6. Attended various workshops on scientific writing and research conducted by Nature, Elsevier, Wiley, Springer Nature, Metawing, IIT- Madras, Anna University-India, and Bureau of Reclamation-USA.
Technical Society Membership

Life Member

  1. “European Desalination Society” (EDS), European Union.
  2. “National Alliance for Water Innovation” (NAWI), USA.

Active Reviewer

  1. Nature Publishing Group – Thermal Science & Engineering.
  2. Elsevier Publications – Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Desalination, Renewable Energy, Energy Conversion and Management, Process Safety and Environmental Protection, Energy, Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments, Thermal Science & Engineering Progress, Separation & Purification Technology, International Journal of Heat & Mass Transfer, Journal of Environmental Management.
  3. Springer Publications – Environmental Science and Pollution Research, Water Conservation Science and Engineering, Biomass Conversion & Biorefinery, Heat and Mass Transfer, Discover Energy.
  4. Taylor & Francis Publications – JournalofAmbientEnergy
  5. Water research commission of SouthAfrica – WaterSA
  6. Bentham Science Publications – Current Smart Materials, International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Applications.
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