Yiming Feng

Yiming Feng is an assistant professor in food process engineering at the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center with an appointment in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering. At VSAREC, Feng works to improve the sustainability, safety, and resilience of the seafood supply chain through technological innovation, extension, and the dissemination of technical information to farmers and seafood stakeholders. His research focuses on innovative food processing, process design for food waste valorization, and developing smart sensing and imaging techniques for precision processing and validation.

Before joining the VSAREC team in 2023, Feng worked as an assistant professor specializing in food processing engineering at Cal Poly, where he worked with the dairy and olive industry to perform research on healthy food innovation, food byproduct utilization, and smart sensing. He also worked on food waste utilization at Virginia Tech as a postdoctoral research associate and at Abbott Nutrition as a product development scientist. His past research involved processing foods for health and sustainability with the goal of improving people's health and well-being, reducing the environmental impact of food production and consumption, and helping to address global food security challenges.

In his spare time, he loves fishing, soccer, and traveling. Feng says that for him, fishing is a peaceful and meditative experience, and it is a great way to connect with nature and enjoy the outdoors.

My research aims to apply advanced processing techniques to improve the sustainability and resilience of the seafood supply chain and will include the following topics:

Design process to valorize seafood processing to improve economic feasibility
Develop advanced sensing and imaging techniques to monitor seafood quality and safety
Thermal validation of seafood processing

Ph.D., Food Science, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 2018

B.S., Food Science, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 2013

Peer-reviewed articles

Su, X., Xu, Y., Xu, Z., Hurley, K., Feng, Y*., & Yin, Y*. (2023). Encapsulation of hop (Humulus lupulus L.) essential oil for controlled release in the non-alcoholic beverage application. Food Hydrocolloids, 134, 108039.
Guo, H., Feng, Y., Deng, Y., Yan, T., Liang, Z., Zhou, Y., Zhang, W., Xu, E., Liu, D. and Wang, W., (2022). Continuous flow modulates zein nanoprecipitation solvent environment to obtain colloidal particles with high curcumin loading. Food Hydrocolloids, 108089.
Feng, J., Zhang, J., Ma, Y., Feng, Y., Wang, S., Guo, N., Wang, H., Wang, P., Jiménez-Bonilla, P., Gu, Y., Zhou, J., Zhang, Z., Cao, M., Jiang, D., Wang, S., Liu, X., Shao, Z., Borovok, I., Huang, H., Wang, Y. (2021) Renewable Fatty Acid Ester Production in Clostridium. Nature Communications 12(1), 1-13.
Zhang, D., Feng, Y., Huang, H., Khunjar, W., & Wang, Z. W. (2020). Recalcitrant dissolved organic nitrogen formation in thermal hydrolysis pretreatment of municipal sludge. Environment International, 138, 105629.
Tao, L., Hu, A., Mu, L., Kautz, D., Xu, Z., Feng, Y., Huang, H., Lin, F. (2021) A Self-sodiophilic Carbon Host Promotes the Cyclability of Sodium Anode. Advanced Functional Materials, 31 (9), 2007556
Wang, W.*, Feng, Y.*, Chen, W., Adie, K., Liu, D., & Yin, Y. (2021). Citrus pectin modified by microfluidization and ultrasonication: Improved emulsifying and encapsulation properties. Ultrasonics Sonochemistry, 70, 105322
Feng, Y.*, Tao, L.*, He, Y., Jin, Q., Zheng, Y., Hou, Q., Zheng, Z., Lin, F., Huang, H. (2019). Chemical-enzymatic fractionation to unlock the potential of biomass-derived carbon materials for sodium ion batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 7(47), 26954-26965.
Jin, Q., Wang, Z., Feng, Y., Kim, Y. T., Stewart, A. C., O'Keefe, S. F., ... & Huang, H. (2020). Grape pomace and its secondary waste management: Biochar production for a broad range of lead (Pb) removal from water. Environmental Research, 109442.
Zhang, D., Feng, Y., Huang, H., Khunjar, W., & Wang, Z. W. (2020). Recalcitrant dissolved organic nitrogen formation in thermal hydrolysis pretreatment of municipal sludge. Environment International, 138, 105629.
Feng, Y.*, Tao, L.*, He, Y., Jin, Q., Zheng, Y., Hou, Q., Zheng, Z., Lin, F., Huang, H. (2019). Chemical-enzymatic fractionation to unlock the potential of biomass-derived carbon materials for sodium ion batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 7(47), 26954-26965.
Wang, W*., Feng, Y.*, Chen, W., Wilder, G., Liu, D., Yin, Y. (2019) Ultrasonic modification of pectin for enhanced 2-furfurylthiol encapsulation: process optimization and mechanisms. Journal of the science of food and agriculture
Feng, Y., Ibarra-Sánchez, L. A., Luu, L., Miller, M. J., & Lee, Y. (2019). Co-assembly of nisin and zein in microfluidics for enhanced antilisterial activity in Queso Fresco. LWT - Food Science & Technology, 111, 355-362.., Jin, Q., Wu, J., Chen, C., & Huang, H. Complexing hemp seed protein with pectin for improved emulsion stability. Journal of Food Science. 2021,1–11. (Featured by IFT)
Li, X., Feng, Y., Ting, S., Jiang, J., & Liu, Y. (2019). Correlating emulsion properties to microencapsulation efficacy and nutrients retention in mixed proteins system. Food Research International, 115, 44-53
Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2019). Microfluidic assembly of food-grade delivery systems: toward functional delivery structure design. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 86, 465-478.
Li, X., Feng, Y., Ting, S., Jiang, J., & Liu, Y. (2019). Effect of processing conditions on the physiochemical properties and nutrients retention of spray-dried microcapsules using mixed protein system. CyTA-Journal of Food, 17(1), 25-35
Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2019). Microfluidic fabrication of wrinkled protein microcapsules and their nanomechanical properties affected by protein secondary structure. Journal of Food Engineering, 246, 102-110.
Li, X., Chen, W., Jiang, J., Feng, Y., Yin, Y., & Liu, Y. (2019). Functionality of dairy proteins and vegetable proteins in nutritional supplement powders: a review. International Food Research Journal, 26(6).
Feng, Y., Albiol Tapia, M., Okada, K., Castaneda Lazo, N. B., Chapman‐Novakofski, K., Phillips, C., & Lee, S. Y. (2018). Consumer Acceptance Comparison Between Seasoned and Unseasoned Vegetables. Journal of Food Science, 83(2), 446-453. (Listed as Top 10 articles in “Journal of Food Science”, 2018)
Wang, W., Wang, L., Feng, Y., Pu, Y., Ding, T., Ye, X., & Liu, D. (2018). Ultrasound-assisted lye peeling of peach and comparison with conventional methods. Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies, 47, 204-213.
Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2017). Microfluidic fabrication of hollow protein microcapsules for rate-controlled release. RSC Advances, 7(78), 49455-49462.
Olenskyj, A. G., Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2017). Continuous microfluidic production of zein nanoparticles and correlation of particle size with physical parameters determined using CFD simulation. Journal of Food Engineering, 211, 50-59
Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2016). Surface modification of zein colloidal particles with sodium caseinate to stabilize oil-in-water Pickering emulsion. Food Hydrocolloids, 56, 292-302.
Feng, Y., & Lee, Y. (2014). Effect of specific mechanical energy on in-vitro digestion and physical properties of extruded rice-based snacks. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 5(19), 1818-1827

Book Chapters

Wai, K., Hua, N., Feng, Y.*, Xu, Y.*, (2023) Chapter 11. Salt reduction: product challenges, approaches, and application of flavors. Flavor-Associated Applications in Health and Wellness Food Products, Springer Nature (under review)
Feng, Y. Liu, X., Lee, Y. (2021) Chapter 3: Designing food structure using microfluidics. Food Structure and Functionality, Elsevier
Feng, Y. Killer, S., Lee, Y. (2020) Chapter 7: ζ-potential: origin, principals, measurements, and applications. Nanoencapsulation in the Food Industry, Elsevier