2024 Cohort
Hannah Arnow
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Research focus: Improving building-integrated photovoltaics through luminescent solar concentrators integrated with asymmetric light transmitting interfaces
Erin Blackley
Colorado School of Mines
Research focus: Design, optimization, and testing of additively manufacture heat exchangers containing phase change materials for use in small-volume units
Ethan Hartley
University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Research focus: Co-optimization of national power system planning and building management systems using a linear programming–based capacity expansion model to evaluate pricing mechanisms, policies, and building management strategies that incentivize flexibility
Julia Lien Ho
Pennsylvania State University
Research focus: Developing a modeling toolkit that evaluates and optimizes thermal energy systems for rural areas
Kathryn Jones
University of California-Irvine
Research focus: Developing sustainable, high-performance, cementitious materials suitable for concrete additive manufacturing using recycled materials
Bernadette Magalindan
University of Texas at Dallas
Research focus: Improving thermoregulation of buildings using radiative cooling and thermal energy storage
Madeline Morrell
Georgia Institute of Technology
Research focus: Thermochemical energy storage for offsetting or shifting thermal loads in buildings by characterizing different materials with thermomechanical stability and developing system designs for HVAC integration
Sameeraa Soltanian-Zadeh
Syracuse University
Research focus: Effects of occupant behaviors on indoor air quality and building energy efficiency
2023 Cohort
Dylan Boylan
University of Texas at Dallas
Research focus: Improving the efficiency of dehumidification using scalable and durable slippery coatings
Lorenzo Castelli
Rice University
Research focus: Passive thermal switches, transistors, and diodes to regulate the temperature of buildings
Ramon Padin Monroig
University of Florida
Research focus: Establish a thermodynamic database for steel alloys processed using thermomagnetic treatments using highly efficient superconducting magnets
Obi Nnorom, Jr.
Stanford University
Research focus: Applying virtualization to distributed energy resources
Jeremy Spitzenberger
University of Missouri-Columbia
Research focus: Integration of an ejector into the vapor compression heat pump cycle for domestic hot water production using advanced refrigerants
Linda Waters
University of Maryland
Research focus: Using spatially-resolved and risk-informed simulation modeling to quantify the energy impacts of implementing energy efficiency and resilience requirements during post disaster residential building reconstruction
Helen Wexler
California Institute of Technology
Research focus: Developing a new class of sustainable biomaterials made from algae and agricultural waste such as almond shells
2022 Cohort
Katherine Bassett
Northeastern University
Research focus: Occupant comfort information to inform the magnitude and timing of thermostat-enabled demand response events
Sebastian Fernandez
Stanford University
Research focus: Improve thermal management within Perovskite LED device architectures by including electrically insulating thermal conductors
Andrew Fix
Purdue University
Research focus: Improving building air conditioning energy consumption using water vapor-selective membranes for high-efficiency air dehumidification
Gabriel Flechas
Colorado School of Mines
Research focus: Thermal load shifting ability of cross-laminated timber buildings
Madison Likins-White
Texas A&M University
Research focus: Incorporating window durability and thermal performance into energy simulation software for the improvement of whole building life cycle estimation
Claire McKenna
University of Michigan
Research focus: Developing physics-based models from data on household behavior and physical housing characteristics to estimate energy use and heating bills
Isabel Melendez
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Research focus: Developing capabilities to additively manufacture latent heat thermal energy storage systems using a composite filament that contains a polymer and a phase-change material (PCM)
Matthew Williams
University of Utah
Research focus: Optimizing cost-effectiveness and performance in electrified multifamily building systems
2021 Cohort
Jaime Ayala
Texas A&M University
Research focus: Nanostructured vanadium oxides to “retrofit” thermochromic switching capability allowing windows to selectively control solar heat gains
Katherine Bradford
Georgia Institute of Technology
Research focus: 3D- printing techniques for turning cellulose fibers into construction-ready wood products
Kathryn Hinkelman
University of Colorado–Boulder
Research focus: Integrated community-scale energy systems with control algorithms inspired by natural ecosystems
Jordan Kocher
Georgia Institute of Technology
Research focus: Novel nonvapor compression air-conditioning technology using thermoresponsive polymers for dehumidification
Rawand Rasheed
Rice University.
Research focus: Dehumidification strategies using hygroscopic aerosol mists that can be regenerated using inertial filtering
Kate Rivera
University of California–Davis
Research focus: Thermochemical energy storage for multifamily residential HVAC applications
James Zhang
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Research focus: Developing super moisture-adsorbent gels using hygroscopic and thermally active polymers