Energy and Sustainability
We’re working toward a more sustainable world—from cleaner energy to safer water supplies to carbon-footprint-reducing manufacturing and everything in between.
No single discovery will solve the world’s energy problems—it’s going to take big-picture thinking that is simultaneously focused on advancing the individual components of a more sustainable energy system and exploring how those pieces best fit together for a more optimized whole.
We’re making advances all over the energy map—from building offshore wind farms to improving the reliability and affordability of photovoltaic technology to developing sun-powered cars to pioneering new materials for more cost-effective flow batteries. And we’re taking these discoveries a step further by integrating these critical components together in the bigger energy picture, even using our own campus as a living test-bed for smart grid integration.
And our sustainability efforts stretch beyond energy—we’re developing advanced mathematical models to help cities keep their water supplies safe, pioneering radical new sustainable materials and finding ways to manufacture more efficiently and at lower costs.
Centers and institutes that conduct research in Energy and Sustainability
Faculty who conduct research in Energy and Sustainability
Rohan Akolkar
Milton and Tamar Maltz Professor of Energy Innovation
Chief Scientist (Joint Appointmet), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Professor, Chemical Engineering
Director, Electronic Design Center (EDC)
Develops new electrochemical processes for applications including nano-material fabrication, energy storage, electrometallurgy and sensors
Eric Baer
Professor, Macromolecular Science and Engineering
Director, NSF Center for Layered Polymeric Systems
Develops processing-structure-property relationships in polymeric systems; creates micro- and nano-layered films; and produces biomimetic hierarchical structures of soft materials
R Balasubramaniam
Research Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Enables the development and understanding of thermal and fluid systems to advance space exploration
Laura Bruckman
Associate Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Develops predictive lifetime models for materials degradation related to stress conditions and induced degradation mechanisms evaluated by quantitative spectroscopic characterization of materials
Changyong (Chase) Cao
,
Assistant Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Study the mechanics, designs, and manufacturing of smart multifunctional materials, soft robotics, soft electronics, and self-powered sensing systems.
Jennifer Carter
Associate Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
deformation mechanisms of metals and metal-matrix composites; fatigue, fracture, and creep; failure analysis; electron microscopy; 3D microscopy; novel methodologies for multi-scale material characterization; data science and analytics; open science
Mark De Guire
Associate Professor Emeritus, Materials Science and Engineering
Analyzes performance of ceramics in energy applications, including fuel cells and oxygen transport membranes
Frank Ernst
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Studies and engineers microstructures, interfaces and surfaces of metallic materials by novel methods of processing and microcharacterization
Roger French
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Director, SDLE Research Center
Applies data science and analytics to energy and materials science research problems
Mario Garcia-Sanz
Professor, Department of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering
Bridges the gap between advanced control theory and energy, industrial and space applications
Burcu Gurkan
Professor, Chemical Engineering
Designs and studies ionic liquid and eutectic solvents for applications in separations, carbon dioxide capture and electrochemical conversion, and energy storage
Uday Hegde
Research Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Develops supercritical water oxidation technologies for waste management and water reclamation for extended duration space missions
Yasuhiro Kamotani
Professor Emeritus, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Designs and conducts two-phase flow experiments for space stations
Olga Kartuzova
Research Assistant Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Studies and develops computational models for cryogenic storage tanks, and investigates zero boil-off tanks
Mohammad Kassemi
Research Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Researches microgravity fluid physics and combustion research, including ZBOT, cryogenic fluid management, propellant tank models and gravity’s impact on systems
Chirag Kharangate
Assistant Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Explores energy, thermal management of electronics and computational fluid dynamics
Uzi Landau
Professor Emeritus, Chemical Engineering
Designs advanced electrochemical systems and processes
Yue Li
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Designs and improves resilient buildings and infrastructure
Ya-Ting Liao
Associate Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Creates computational models of combustion, fire and fire behavior and develops fire-resistant structures
Vincenzo Liberatore
Associate Chair for Graduate Affaris,
Associate Professor, Computer and Data Sciences Department
Algorithms and cloud robotics.
Wei Lin
Professor, Department of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering
Researches nonlinear control, time-delay systems, adaptive control, stochastic stability/control with applications to renewable energy, power systems and smart grid.
Kenneth Loparo
Professor Emeritus, Department of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering
Co-Director, Internet of Things Collaborative (IOTC)
Develop real-time data analytics and control algorithms for industrial, energy and physiological systems
Ica Manas-Zloczower
Professor, Macromolecular Science and Engineering
Engineering new materials and technologies for industrial applications
David Matthiesen
Associate Professor Emeritus, Materials Science and Engineering
Director, Wind Energy Research and Commercialization (WERC) Center
Develops process engineering solutions for the manufacturing of new magnetic materials
Jim McGuffin-Cawley
Director,
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Develops new methodologies for material processing, characterizes processing-property relationships, studies high-temperature diffusion and solid-state reactions, fosters industry-university relationships
Michael Pollino
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Faculty Director, Vanderhoof Infrastructure Research and Education Facility
Examines performance of structural systems and components subjected to loading and develops design approaches for resilience and sustainability
Julie Renner
Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering
Develops biomolecular platforms to control solid-liquid interfaces and enable a new generation of advanced technologies
Kurt Rhoads
Faculty Director, Roger E. Susi First-Year Engineering Experience
Roger E. Susi Associate Professor, Division of Engineering Leadership & Professional Practice
Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Engineers environmental water, wastewater and energy processes using biotechnology
Robert Savinell
Department Chair, Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Professor, Chemical Engineering
Develops high-performance electrochemical energy conversion and storage technologies through fundamental and applied studies of interfacial and transport processes
Alp Sehirlioglu
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Develops new materials through exploitation of interfaces to control functionality and exploration of multi-functionality for energy-related applications
Hyoung Suk Suh
Assistant Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Solving energy and environmental geotechnics problems through the lens of theoretical and computational poromechanics.
Fumi Takahashi
Professor Emeritus, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Develops fire safety technologies and investigates combustion phenomena for practical applications
Jim Tien
Professor Emeritus, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Researches the effect of gravity on combustion and flammability of solid materials with applications in space exploration
Jesse Wainright
Professor, Chemical Engineering
Develops novel electrochemical systems for grid-level energy conversion and storage
Robert Warburton
Assistant Professor, Chemical Engineering
Develops computational models of interfacial chemical reactions relevant to applications in catalysis and energy storage
Matthew Willard
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Investigates phase transformations and materials processing, especially their impact on structure and properties of materials
Yinghui Wu
Associate Professor, Computer and Data Sciences Department
Devise, design, and develop novel data management and analysis techniques and tools to support data and knowledge management and exploration.
Bill Yu
Department Chair, Civil Engineering
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Multiscale multiphysics processes in geosystems and infrastructure, interdisciplinary innovations in intelligent infrastructure technologies towards resilience and sustainability.
Chris Yingchun Yuan
Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Researches design, manufacturing and sustainability science of lithium ion batteries, solar cells and nanotechnologies.
Xiangwu Zeng
Department Chair, Civil Engineering
Develops geotechnical solutions for earthquake design, space exploration, wind turbines and vibration attenuation
Huichun (Judy) Zhang
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Examines fate and transformation of environmental contaminants in natural and engineered environments and develops advanced water/wastewater treatment technologies
Lei Zhu
Professor, Macromolecular Science and Engineering
Develops high-energy and high-performance polymers based on close relationships among structure, property and processing