MP
About Research Experience Contact
Maharshi Patel
PhD Candidate · Water & Membrane Technology

Maharshi Patel

University of Duisburg-Essen · Essen, Germany · DFG Project FREESPACE (with TU Munich)

Profile

About

Mechanical engineer and PhD candidate in Water and Membrane Technology at the University of Duisburg-Essen (degree expected Q1 2027), with over three years of hands-on research experience in membrane fouling, scaling, and hydrodynamics for spiral-wound RO/NF/UF elements.

Lead researcher on FREESPACE, a DFG-funded project in collaboration with the Technical University of Munich, developing novel patterned membranes (via thermal embossing) combined with feed spacers — a configuration not previously tested for spiral-wound implementation. Work evaluated through CaSO4 scaling trials, NaCl concentration-polarization measurements, and real-time hydrodynamic characterization via Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV-Shake-The-Box).

Co-first author (equal contribution) of an Editor's Choice review in ACS ES&T Water, and presenter at five international conferences, including a Best Poster Pitch Award. Alongside the research: five semesters of university teaching, fully in German, and supervision of two Master's thesis students and one Erasmus exchange student.

0
Years in membrane research
0
International conferences
0
Semesters teaching
0
Editor's Choice review
Publications & Talks

Research & Publications

Surface-Patterned Water Separation Membranes: A Critical Analysis of Current Knowledge and Future Research Needs
ACS ES&T Water — peer-reviewed review article
Editor's Choice Co-first author

First-author review surveying how surface patterning of thin-film composite membranes affects fouling, scaling and concentration polarization in reverse osmosis and nanofiltration, and mapping out open research directions for the field.

Read the paper (DOI) ↗
Experimental Evaluation of Scaling and Concentration Polarization Resistance of Micro-Patterned TFC RO Membranes
Oral talk — Kassel Membrane Days 2026

Presented experimental results on how micro-patterned RO membrane surfaces resist CaSO₄ scaling and concentration polarization, part of the DFG-funded FREESPACE project run jointly with the Technical University of Munich.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Meeting the Challenge: Understanding the Effects of Surface-Patterning on Hydrodynamics
Poster — 7th International Conference on Desalination Science and Technology (DESAL 2025)
Best Poster Pitch Award

Poster examining how surface patterning changes near-wall hydrodynamics in spacer-filled membrane channels; the accompanying poster pitch won the conference's Best Poster Pitch Award.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Development of Surface-Patterned RO Membranes with Pronounced Regular Microstructures and Their Anti-Scaling Performance in Feed Spacer-Filled Channels
Oral talk — Aachen Membrane Colloquium (Membranes session)

Talk on fabricating RO membranes with pronounced, regular surface microstructures and evaluating how the patterning improves anti-scaling performance in feed spacer-filled channels.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Real-Time Fluid Dynamics Analysis for Surface-Patterned Thin-Film Composite Membranes in Spacer-Filled Channel Using Particle Image Velocimetry
Poster — Aachen Membrane Colloquium (Water Treatment session)

Poster using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) to visualize and quantify flow fields around surface-patterned membranes inside spacer-filled channels in real time.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Real-Time Fluid Dynamics Analysis for Surface-Patterned Thin-Film Composite Membranes in Spacer-Filled Channel Using Particle Image Velocimetry
Oral talk — Euromembrane Conference 2024, Prague

Oral talk presenting a Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) study that visualizes and quantifies real-time flow fields around surface-patterned membranes inside spacer-filled channels.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Development of Surface-Patterned RO Membranes with Pronounced Regular Microstructures and Their Anti-Scaling Performance in Feed Spacer-Filled Channels
Poster — Euromembrane Conference 2024, Prague

Poster on fabricating RO membranes with pronounced, regular surface microstructures and their anti-scaling performance in feed spacer-filled channels.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Does combination of surface-patterned thin-film composite membrane and feed spacer improve anti-scaling propensity?
Oral talk — 19th IWA Leading Edge Conference on Water and Wastewater Technologies, Essen
First conference talk

First scientific conference presentation, examining whether combining surface-patterned membranes with feed spacers further improves resistance to scaling.

View post on LinkedIn ↗
Career

Experience

Feb 2023 — Present
Research Associate (Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter)
University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
Project FREESPACE — DFG-funded project on hydrodynamic optimization of spiral-wound membrane systems (with TU Munich). Fabricates and characterizes patterned membranes, runs CaSO4 scaling and concentration-polarization trials, and performs real-time hydrodynamic characterization via PTV-Shake-The-Box.
Jun 2021 — Feb 2023
Research Assistant (Wissenschaftliche Hilfskraft)
University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
Master's thesis research on UF membrane treatment of produced water (emulsified oil), combined with PAC adsorption and coagulation pretreatment. Developed a colorimetric method to quantify surfactant (SDS) passage into permeate.
5 semesters, ongoing
Teaching — Mechanical Process Engineering in Water Treatment
University of Duisburg-Essen
Responsible for the Übungen (exercise/tutorial sessions) across 2 Bachelor's and 3 Master's cohorts, fully in German; served as second examiner for course exams.
Sep 2017 — Dec 2017
Production Engineer
Multi Fasteners Pvt. Ltd., Vadodara, India
Quality control and material/process selection for fastener manufacturing.

Membrane Technology

Spiral-wound RO/NF/UF Feed spacer design Patterned membranes Thermal embossing

Fouling & Scaling

CaSO4 Scaling Concentration polarization Fouling mitigation

Flow Visualization

PTV / Shake-The-Box PIV DaVis 10.2 PIVlab

Experimental & Lab-Scale Work

Lab rig design Design of Experiments (DOE) Process optimization

Design & Analysis

AutoCAD SolidWorks Statistical / DOE analysis Python (expanding)

Languages

English — Fluent German — B2 (professional working) Hindi / Gujarati — Native

Let's connect

Open to industry R&D, process engineering, and applied research roles starting 2027. Reach out via the form, email, or LinkedIn, or download the CV below.

Location
Essen, Germany
Please enter your name.
Please enter a valid email address.
Please enter a message.

Opens your email app with the message pre-filled, addressed to maharshi2106@protonmail.com — you'll just need to hit send there.

Your email app should now be opening with the message ready — thanks for reaching out!