Yoram Cohen, UCLA professor and the WaTeR Center's leader, is in the lab with his colleagues. Left to right: Cohen; Julius Glater, UCLA membrane pioneer professor; and graduate students Eric Lyster and Andi Rahardianto. Photo: UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science
Yoram Cohen, UCLA professor and the WaTeR Center's leader, is in the lab with his colleagues. Left to right: Cohen; Julius Glater, UCLA membrane pioneer professor; and graduate students Eric Lyster and Andi Rahardianto. Photo: UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science

University of California at Los Angeles's (UCLA) Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has formed a new Water Technology Research Center, led by Yoram Cohen and dubbed the WaTeR Center. It will develop technologies to turn brackish or seawater into fresh water. Researchers at the center also will study methods to minimize environmental impacts associated with desalination and will seek to lower the cost of desalination by integrating it with innovative energy generation.

The WaTeR Center will focus on specific water technology issues and enlist multidisciplinary project teams involving researchers from several academic institutions. For more information, visit www.desalination.ucla.edu.