Rivera delved deeper into the problem of energy efficiency in co-ops at Via Separations, a start-up based in Watertown, Mass. He helped develop and improve graphene oxide membranes, which are filters used for industrial separation processes, such as removing impurities from the pulp used to make paper. Currently, these types of filtering procedures are incredibly energy-intensive, relying on thermal separation, Rivera says.
“Imagine you were boiling a pot of pasta, and when the pasta was ready, instead of using a strainer, you boiled all the remaining water off to get to the pasta,” Rivera says. “It’s super inefficient, but it’s what we do in a lot of processes now because the conditions for that process are so intense.”
Rivera worked to scale up existing membranes, and to create new versions that can serve as a strainer for harsh industrial chemicals to make the process more sustainable.
In addition to the research and development experiences Rivera received through his co-ops, he says an equally important part of his growth at Northeastern came from participation in the Alternative Spring Break program. He went on four of the programs, and served as a leader for two of them. The experiences he had during these trips varied tremendously.
For example, Rivera worked with an LGBTQ+ community center in Philadelphia, painted murals at a school in Costa Rica, and assisted an organization in San Francisco addressing family homelessness. But a common theme among both his research and outreach experiences was sustainability.
“You don’t want people relying on spurts of labor coming in, but actually having the tools to do work long-term,” Rivera says. “The ASBs I did emphasized helping the communities in a way that was sustainable, outside this one week in a year.”