Dr. Yebo Li is an internationally recognized expert in bioenergy, waste valorization, and bio-based materials with over 30 years of experience leading applied research and commercial innovation in anaerobic digestion, sustainable polymers, and circular bioeconomy systems. He currently serves as Chief Innovation & Science Officer at Quasar Energy Group, where he directs technology strategy and commercialization of advanced bioenergy and biomaterials technologies.Prior to joining Quasar, Dr. Li was a Professor of Food, Agricultural, and Biological Engineering at The Ohio State University, where he established a nationally competitive bioenergy research program. He has led more than $60 million in federally and industry-sponsored research projects, including major awards from the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Defense, and numerous industrial partners. His innovations have resulted in multiple U.S. patents, licensed technologies, and widely adopted solutions in anaerobic digestion and bio-based polymer systems.Dr. Li has authored over 150 peer-reviewed publications with more than 22,000 citations and an h-index of 73 (Google Scholar). He has edited several influential books including Bioenergy: Principles and Applications and serves as editor of the Advances in Bioenergy book series published by Elsevier, establishing him as a leading voice in translating bioenergy research into practical applications for the circular economy. Dr. Samir Kumar Khanal is a Professor of Biological Engineering at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Previously, he was a post-doctoral research associate and Research Assistant Professor at Iowa State University for 6 years. Dr. Khanal obtained Ph.D. in Civil Engineering with a focus in Environmental Biotechnology from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong in 2002. He obtained in M.S. in environmental engineering from Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand in 1997. Dr. Khanal is a leading researcher, internationally in the field of anaerobic digestion, waste-to-resources and environmental biotechnology. Dr. Khanal, to date, has published over 90 refereed papers in high quality international journals. He also delivered over 90 keynote/invited presentation internationally. In addition, he also wrote and published a book entitled “Anaerobic Biotechnology for Bioenergy Production: Principles and Applications (Wiley-Blackwell, 2008). Dr. Khanal edited another book, as the Lead Editor, entitled “Bioenergy and Biofuel from Biowastes and Biomass (American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), 2010). Both books have become the best-sellers in the respective field. Recently he also published a bioenergy textbook entitled Bioenergy: Principles and Application (Wiley-Blackwell, 2016). He has supervised 11 Ph.D., 16 M.S., 17 undergraduate and 12 high school students, 13 post-docs and 14 visiting scholars. Dr. Khanal is also an editorial board member of the highly prestigious international journal, Bioresource Technology and Korean Journal of Environmental Engineering. He is also a recipient of CTAHR Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research (2016), University of Hawaii at Manoa. Dr. Khanal is a professional engineer (environmental engineering) in the state of Iowa.
