Rate My Professor Hui Li

Hui Li is a Professor of Environmental Soil Chemistry in the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences at Michigan State University, holding a 75% research and 25% teaching appointment. He serves as Associate Director of the Center for PFAS Research and Director of the Center Analytical Chemistry Laboratory. Li earned a B.S. and M.S. in Environmental Chemistry from Nanjing University, China, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Soil Chemistry from Purdue University. His research specializes in the analysis, sorption, transformation, bioavailability, and plant uptake of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and legacy organic contaminants; molecular-scale sorption and transformation processes in clay-water systems; plant uptake of organic contaminants from soil and water; and development of remediation technologies and mitigation strategies for environmental contamination. Li's program is continuously funded by USDA, EPA, NIH, NSF, and DoD, with approximately $15 million secured as PI or co-PI on grants including EPA National Priorities and STAR Programs, USDA/NIFA AFRI, and others.

Li has authored over 180 peer-reviewed articles in leading environmental science, engineering, and soil science journals, achieving an H-index of 63. Key publications include 'Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in agriculture: environmental fate, bioaccumulation and management' (2025), 'Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in untreated and treated sludge/biosolids from 27 water resource recovery facilities across the United States and Canada' (2025), 'Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in agricultural systems: Human dietary exposure via beef raised on corn stover from a field with contaminated biosolids' (2025), and 'PFAS in agroecosystems: Sources, impacts, and opportunities for mitigating risks to human and ecosystem health' (2024). His impact is recognized through awards such as the MSU William J. Beal Outstanding Faculty Award (2024-2025), American Society of Agronomy Environmental Quality Research Award (2023), MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Research Fellow Career Award (2023), Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy (2021), Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America (2018), Soil Science Society of America Jackson Soil Chemistry and Mineralogy Award (2017), and Outstanding Associate Editor of Journal of Environmental Quality (2013). Li has served on EPA Science Advisory Board, USDA/NIFA and NSF review panels, National Academies committee on PFAS in agriculture, and chaired SSSA Division of Soils and Environmental Quality (2017).