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Micro/Nano Thermofluids Engineering Lab (Kinefuchi Lab)
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The lab uncovers how gases and liquids flow through microscopic spaces from a molecular perspective.
AboutAbout the lab
Reading flows in microscopic spaces from a molecular perspective
The Kinefuchi Lab studies the behavior of gases and liquids flowing through extremely small spaces.
In microscopic spaces, a fluid cannot be treated as a continuous medium, and its behavior must be understood from the motion of molecules.
Aiming at the utilization of hydrogen and the capture of carbon dioxide, the lab works to elucidate phenomena that occur near interfaces.
It investigates how water and gases are transported within the catalyst layers of fuel cells and within membranes that separate carbon dioxide.
Key terms
- Polymer electrolyte fuel cell
- A type of fuel cell, which generates electricity from hydrogen and oxygen, that uses a polymer membrane as its electrolyte
- Molecular simulation
- A method that uses computers to calculate the motion of individual molecules in order to study the properties of materials and various phenomena
- Dewetting
- A phenomenon in which a thin liquid film spread over a surface ruptures and shrinks, breaking up into droplets or streaks
NewsLab news
A master's student received the Student Competition Award
A master's student received the Young Presenter Award at the Thermal Engineering Conference 2025
A master's student received the SICE Outstanding Student Award from the Society of Instrument and Control Engineers
A doctoral student received the Young Excellent Presentation Award of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers at the Japan-Korea Fluids Engineering Conference
A doctoral student received the Young Excellent Presentation Award at the Computational Fluid Dynamics Symposium
ResearchResearch themes
Aiming at technologies for hydrogen utilization and carbon dioxide capture, the lab seeks to understand flows in microscopic spaces such as porous media and polymer materials, and to apply that understanding to device design. It elucidates phenomena near interfaces, where a molecular perspective is necessary, and develops multiscale analysis methods.
*Illustrative imageWater and Oxygen Transport Inside Fuel Cells
Through experiments and numerical simulation, the lab clarifies how oxygen and water are transported in the catalyst layer of polymer electrolyte fuel cells, aiming to point the way toward designing higher-performance materials.
*Illustrative imageMeasuring Evaporation from a Microscopic Perspective
The lab clarifies the mechanism of water evaporation at gas-liquid interfaces from a microscopic perspective, and investigates the behavior of strongly non-equilibrium gas flows generated by evaporation from the surfaces of porous media.
*Illustrative imageHow CO2 Separation Membranes Work
For CO2 separation membranes, which are key to capturing carbon dioxide at low cost, the lab uses molecular simulation to clarify the mechanism by which gases are separated, aiming to provide guidelines for material design.
*Illustrative imageFlow in the Printing Processes That Make Circuits
In printed electronics, where circuits are made by printing materials formulated as inks, the lab studies in detail the dewetting that occurs during the ink-coating process. Its goal is to contribute to the development of technologies that enable fine-scale printing.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Kinefuchi Lab consist of faculty members, postdoctoral researchers, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, and a secretary.As of 2026
- ProfessorIkuya KinefuchiPublications ↗
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Macro view of water droplets on transparent surface” Dreamora96x / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Water and Oxygen Transport Inside Fuel Cells: “PBI Membrane HT-PEM” FuelCellEngineerFranz / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Measuring Evaporation from a Microscopic Perspective: “One frosty morning. ( )” Bernard Spragg. NZ from Christchurch, New Zealand / Public domain (cropped)
- How CO2 Separation Membranes Work: “Polysulfone Hollow Fiber Membrane Cross-Section” RobertsBiology / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Flow in the Printing Processes That Make Circuits: “Printed flexible electronics ( )” Oak Ridge National Laboratory / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Umeno Lab): “SEM-image-showing-crack-propagation-of-TaCCNTsSiC” Qiaoyun Xie, Sylvanus N. Wosu / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Chiashi Lab): “Carbon nanotube (8,8) 3D ball” Jynto / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Izumi-Hatano Lab): “Steel wire rope on a drum” W.carter / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Hasegawa Lab): “A340 wake turbulence simulation” Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt / CC BY 3.0 de (cropped)
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