Dr. Lei Bao
Details
Department: School of Engineering
Campus: City Campus Australia
lei.bao@rmit.edu.au
ORCID: 0000-0002-8243-2872
Open to
- Masters Research or PhD student supervision
- Industry Projects
- Collaborative projects
- Membership of an advisory committee
- Mentoring (long-term)
- Mentoring (short-term)
- Join a web conference as a panellist or speaker
About
Dr Bao is an interdisciplinary researcher specialising in the controllable design of functional materials and interfacial engineering of nano–soft matter systems to address critical challenges in energy, environment, and health. Her research spans fundamental discovery through to translation, with applications including smart biomedical materials, environmental sensing, and sustainable technologies. She is particularly interested in how interfacial interactions can be harnessed to enable responsive and adaptive material behaviour.
She is a recipient of several competitive and prestigious awards, including the Australian Endeavour Fellowship (2012), RMIT Vice-Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship (2015), and the ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (2019). Her contributions have also been recognised through the Monash Engineering Women’s Leadership Award (2015), the Australian Colloid and Interface Society Female ECR Award (2017), and the RMIT Research Excellence Award for Early Career Researchers (2019).
At the School of Engineering, she leads a dynamic and collaborative research team, fostering an inclusive environment that supports early-career researchers and students. Her group is committed to translating fundamental insights into impactful technologies that contribute to a more sustainable and healthier future.
Supervisor projects
- Inhalation risk assessment of human respiratory systems in occupational and ambient environment
- 4 Feb 2026
- Multiphysics microfluidics for quantum sensing and biomedical applications
- 15 Dec 2025
- Development and Investigation of Carbon-Doped 2D SnO2 Heterogeneous Structures
- 30 May 2025
- The Application of Carbon Dot Hydrogel and 3D Printing Technology in Bone Tissue Engineering
- 4 Feb 2025
- Nano-catalysts synthesis using surface acoustic waves
- 6 Dec 2024
- Carbon Dot-based Hydrogel Multifunctional Platforms for Biosensors
- 25 Nov 2024
- Liquid metal catalysts for low emission niche energy applications
- 1 Dec 2023
- Surface Droplet Platform for Controllable Synthesis of Metal-Organic Frameworks
- 27 Mar 2023
- Develop advanced injectable bioactive hydrogels for improving tissue regeneration
- 9 Dec 2022
- Synthesis of Two-dimensional Indium Oxide Using Liquid Metal Chemistry
- 14 Feb 2022
- Advanced nanocarbon structures for wound healing
- 3 Dec 2021
- Surface Nanodroplets Formation & Applications
- 3 Nov 2017
- Development of Coumarins and their Composites as Optical Sensors for Cu2+ Contaminants in Water and Soil
- 1 Aug 2017
Teaching interests
Dr Bao is the Course Coordinator for PROC2077 Chemical Engineering Fundamentals, where she delivers foundational training in core chemical engineering principles and supports students in developing strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
She actively supervises students across all levels, including chemical engineering design-related projects and final-year Engineering Research Capstone Projects, fostering practical, industry-relevant learning experiences.
Dr Bao has supervised more than 20 Honours and Master’s students and has successfully guided five Higher Degree by Research (HDR) candidates to completion at RMIT. Her teaching and supervision approach emphasises student engagement, research-led learning, and the development of future-ready engineering graduates.
Research interests
Nanotechnology, Functional Materials, Colloidal interface, Material Engineering, biomedical Engineering, Nanomedicine and Catalysis
