Tian Tang, University of Alberta

Research

adhesion soft material interface modeling simulation solid mechanics applied mathematics electrocatalytic layers

Latest papers

Cooling-induced aggregation in SARA-Modeled crude oils near oil-water interfaces: Molecular mechanisms of interplay among wax, asphaltene, and resin.
Journal of colloid and interface science · 2026 · senior author
Direct Synthesis of Exfoliated Carbon Nitride Mediated by Sodiated Cellulose Nanocrystals for Photocatalytic and Adsorbent Applications.
Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) · 2026
Molecular insights into pyrolytic lignin solubility and Bio-Oil phase stability in representative organic solvents for sustainable Bio-Energy Applications.
Bioresource technology · 2026 · senior author

All 70 publications

Latest funding

NanoSynergy: Pioneering In-Situ SEM Nanomechanical Testing for Breakthroughs in Energy, Electronics, and Health
NSERC · 2025 · Co-investigator
$150,000
Fundamental Investigation on the Transport and Reaction Phenomena in Nanoporous Materials for Sustainable Technologies
NSERC · 2022 · Principal investigator
$193,000
Multi-scale Modeling of Soft Materials and Interfaces
NSERC · 2021 · Principal investigator
$700,000

All 19 grants and awards

70 publications.

01

Cooling-induced aggregation in SARA-Modeled crude oils near oil-water interfaces: Molecular mechanisms of interplay among wax, asphaltene, and resin.

Wang J, Tang T

Journal of colloid and interface science2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2026.141493 PMID: 42702156

02

Direct Synthesis of Exfoliated Carbon Nitride Mediated by Sodiated Cellulose Nanocrystals for Photocatalytic and Adsorbent Applications.

Chaulagain N, Alam KM, Shahini E, Garcia JC, Rana MM, Hooper RW, Sarkar D, Vrushabendrakumar D, Rajashekhar H, Kumar N, Meldrum A, Michaelis VK, Tang T, Shankar K

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)2026

DOI: 10.1002/smll.202514549 PMID: 41983316

03

Molecular insights into pyrolytic lignin solubility and Bio-Oil phase stability in representative organic solvents for sustainable Bio-Energy Applications.

Dastjerdi AM, Liu J, Tang T

Bioresource technology2026Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2025.133810 PMID: 41412399

04

Enhancing separation of oil-in-water slop oil via chemical-assisted centrifugation: Toward scalable and energy-efficient treatment of oil sands waste.

Huang Y, Zheng G, Zhao Z, Qiao C, Sun Y, Yang D, Gao S, Tang T, Zeng H

Journal of hazardous materials2026

DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2025.140935 PMID: 41475103

05

An integrated molecular-thermodynamic framework for analyzing nanobubbles in supersaturated liquids.

Ghamartale A, Shahini E, Jain A, Manica R, Berg P, Tang T

RSC advances2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1039/d5ra07908j PMID: 41312502

06

A Simple Method to Produce a Piezoelectric Composite Membrane with Aligned and Crimped Nanofibers for Wearable Pressure Sensors.

Xiong C, Chen Y, Chen J, Wang R, Qin X, Ayranci C, Tang T

ACS applied materials & interfaces2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5c07341 PMID: 40621722

07

Hierarchy in Binary Liquid Phase Exfoliation of Graphitic Carbon Nitride: Dissecting the Dominance of One Solvent.

Shahini E, Chaulagain N, Shankar K, Tang T

Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.5c00612 PMID: 40523808

08

Martini compatible coarse-grained model of polyethylenimine for pulmonary gene delivery.

Lunt G, Hashemi N, Mahajan S, Tang T

Scientific reports2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-88848-x PMID: 39910324

09

Physicochemical Properties of Carbon Fiber Formulated from Melt-Spun Raw Asphaltene.

Khodaei Booran S, Chen J, Islam MM, Ekaette I, Ngo T, McDermott M, Tang T, Ayranci C

ACS omega2024

DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.4c06464 PMID: 39741853

10

Water-Assisted Programmable Assembly of Flexible and Self-Standing Janus Membranes.

Yi Q, Qiu M, Sun X, Wu H, Huang Y, Xu H, Wang T, Nimmo W, Tang T, Shi L, Zeng H

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)2023

DOI: 10.1002/advs.202305239 PMID: 37875393

NanoSynergy: Pioneering In-Situ SEM Nanomechanical Testing for Breakthroughs in Energy, Electronics, and Health

Co-investigatorNSERC2025Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Hamidinejad, Mahdi

Keywords: nanomechanics; nanomaterials; nanostructures; in situ microscopy; nanomechanical testing

$150,000

Fundamental Investigation on the Transport and Reaction Phenomena in Nanoporous Materials for Sustainable Technologies

Principal investigatorNSERC2022Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Tang, Tian T

Keywords: electrocatalytic layers; material design; multi-scale modeling; nanoporous materials; polymer electrolyte membranes; reaction; resistance to aging; selectivity; surface functionalization; transport

$193,000

Multi-scale Modeling of Soft Materials and Interfaces

Principal investigatorNSERC2021Canada Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Tang, Tian

Keywords: soft material; interface; adhesion; modeling; simulation; solid mechanics; applied mathematics

$700,000

WISEST Science Communication Training

Principal investigatorNSERC2021Science Communication Skills Grant

Principal investigators: Tang, Tian

$20,000

Removing water from diluted bitumen in naphthenic froth treatment of oil sands production and the underlying interfacial science

Co-investigatorNSERC2019Collaborative Research and Development Grants

Principal investigators: Zeng, Hongbo H

Keywords: asphaltenes; bitumen extraction; chemical engineering; environmental engineering; froth treatment; interface science; mineral processing; oil sands engineering; petroleum production; wastewater

$2,550,000

Fundamentals and Applications of Adhesion in Soft Matter

Principal investigatorNSERC2018Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Tang, Tian

Keywords: adhesion; biomedical engineering; coarse-grained simulation; continuum mechanics; in silico material design; interfacial science; molecular dynamics; nanoparticles; polymeric materials; soft matter

$532,000

Advanced universal mechanical tester for probing tribological interaction mechanisms at interfaces in complex fluids

Co-investigatorNSERC2018Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Zeng, Hongbo

$150,000

Fundamentals and Applications of Adhesion in Soft Matter

Principal investigatorNSERC2018Discovery Grants Program - Accelerator Supplements

Principal investigators: Tang, Tian

$120,000

Optical Tweezers for probing intermolecular and interparticle interactions in complex fluids with extreme sensitivity

Co-investigatorNSERC2016Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Zeng, Hongbo

$150,000

Probing intermolecular interactions and mapping topographic, nanomechanical, nanoelectrical properties of various materials and engineering systems by AFM

Co-investigatorNSERC2015Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

Principal investigators: Zeng, Hongbo

$150,000

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

Chemical and Materials Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical Engineering - University of Alberta
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Chemical & Materials Engineering
Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering - University of Alberta

Co-authors at University of Alberta, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Hongbo Zeng

Chemical and Materials Engineering

18 shared papers, latest 2026

Karthik Shankar

Electrical and Computer Engineering

4 shared papers, latest 2026

Qi Liu

Chemical and Materials Engineering

4 shared papers, latest 2023

Cagri Ayranci

Mechanical Engineering

3 shared papers, latest 2025

Peter Schiavone

Mechanical Engineering

2 shared papers, latest 2012

Hao Zhang

Chemical and Materials Engineering

2 shared papers, latest 2021

Qingxia Liu

Chemical and Materials Engineering

2 shared papers, latest 2022

Alidad Amirfazli

Mechanical Engineering

2 shared papers, latest 2017

Xiaolei Wang

Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering - University of Alberta

1 shared papers, latest 2022

Hasan Uludag

Chemical and Materials Engineering

1 shared papers, latest 2013

Cuiying Jian

Mechanical Engineering

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Jing Liu

Chemical & Materials Engineering

1 shared papers, latest 2026

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their NSERC grant from 2022

Subject: Prospective PhD student: adhesion Dear Professor Tang, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Cooling-induced aggregation in SARA-Modeled crude oils near oil-water interfaces: Molecular mechanisms of interplay among wax, asphaltene, and resin." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your NSERC-funded project "Fundamental Investigation on the Transport and Reaction Phenomena in Nanoporous Materials for Sustainable Technologies" (2022), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]