Precourt Institute for Energy


Showing 1-10 of 10 Results

  • Brian Cantwell

    Brian Cantwell

    Edward C. Wells Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus

    BioProfessor Cantwell's research interests are in the area of turbulent flow. Recent work has centered in three areas: the direct numerical simulation of turbulent shear flows, theoretical studies of the fine-scale structure of turbulence, and experimental measurements of turbulent structure in flames. Experimental studies include the development of particle-tracking methods for measuring velocity fields in unsteady flames and variable density jets. Research in turbulence simulation includes the development of spectral methods for simulating vortex rings, the development of topological methods for interpreting complex fields of data, and simulations of high Reynolds number compressible and incompressible wakes. Theoretical studies include predictions of the asymptotic behavior of drifting vortex pairs and vortex rings and use of group theoretical methods to study the nonlinear dynamics of turbulent fine-scale motions. Current projects include studies of fast-burning fuels for hybrid propulsion and decomposition of nitrous oxide for space propulsion.

  • Jimmy Chen

    Jimmy Chen

    Adm Svcs Admstr 4, Precourt Institute for Energy

    BioJim Chen leads a number of energy programs at Stanford Energy,
    including Stanford’s new Hydrogen Initiative; Stanford’s energy storage initiative,
    StorageX; and Stanford’s integrated energy program, Stanford Energy Corporate
    Affiliates (SECA). Dr. Chen was also the founding Managing Director of Bits & Watts,
    Stanford’s initiative focusing on the grid of the 21st century, launched in 2016.

    Dr. Chen is enthusiastic about the global energy transformation and building a more
    sustainable society through innovation. At Stanford, Dr. Chen creates and expands
    impactful global communities of practice that enable industrial-academic-government
    collaboration in energy research and scale-up. Dr. Chen is also a leader in Stanford
    Energy’s global events including its regional roundtables and Global Energy
    Forum. Finally, Dr. Chen is deeply involved in Stanford’s innovation ecosystem,
    advising student groups, start-up companies, and accelerators. Dr. Chen’s research
    interests include hydrogen, energy storage, the circular economy, decarbonizing
    transportation, and integrated energy systems. Dr. Chen’s teaching roles include
    lecturing for Stanford’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and for
    Stanford Energy’s Hydrogen Economy Seminar.

    Dr. Chen is passionate about global energy entrepreneurship and innovation. He works
    with energy agencies around the world promoting global collaboration, accelerating
    innovation, and sparking entrepreneurship. He also serves on a number of advisory
    councils, including on EPRI and GTI’s Low Carbon Research Initiative’s (LCRI)
    technical advisory board.

    Dr. Chen came to Stanford University after 25 years in industry, bringing a broad
    background in energy and technology, with a specialization in technology and product
    development. He has held technical positions at Lawrence Berkeley Labs, GTE Labs,
    IBM, and AT&T Bell Labs, as well as technology executive positions at both starts-ups
    and Fortune 500 companies, including FormFactor and Eaton.

    Dr. Chen received a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and MS from
    the University of California, Berkeley — both in materials science and engineering —
    and holds a BS from the University of California, Berkeley in electrical engineering.

  • Christopher Chidsey

    Christopher Chidsey

    Associate Professor of Chemistry, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Chidsey group research interest is to build the chemical base for molecular electronics. To accomplish this, we synthesize the molecular and nanoscopic systems, build the analytical tools and develop the theoretical understanding with which to study electron transfer between electrodes and among redox species through insulating molecular bridges

  • William Chueh

    William Chueh

    Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, of Energy Science and Engineering, of Photon Science, and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy

    BioThe availability of low-cost but intermittent renewable electricity (e.g., derived from solar and wind) underscores the grand challenge to store and dispatch energy so that it is available when and where it is needed. Redox-active materials promise the efficient transformation between electrical, chemical, and thermal energy, and are at the heart of carbon-neutral energy cycles. Understanding design rules that govern materials chemistry and architecture holds the key towards rationally optimizing technologies such as batteries, fuel cells, electrolyzers, and novel thermodynamic cycles. Electrochemical and chemical reactions involved in these technologies span diverse length and time scales, ranging from Ångströms to meters and from picoseconds to years. As such, establishing a unified, predictive framework has been a major challenge. The central question unifying our research is: “can we understand and engineer redox reactions at the levels of electrons, ions, molecules, particles and devices using a bottom-up approach?” Our approach integrates novel synthesis, fabrication, characterization, modeling and analytics to understand molecular pathways and interfacial structure, and to bridge fundamentals to energy storage and conversion technologies by establishing new design rules.

  • Craig Criddle

    Craig Criddle

    Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsCriddle's interests include microbial biotechnology for the circular economy, including recovery of clean water from used water, renewable energy, valuable materials that can replace fossil-carbon derived materials. Current projects include energy-efficient anaerobic wastewater treatment technology, assessment of new treatment trains that yield high quality water; fossil carbon plastics biodegradation, and biotechnology for production of bioplastics that can replace fossil carbon plastics.

  • Yi Cui

    Yi Cui

    Fortinet Founders Professor, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, of Energy Science and Engineering, of Photon Science, Senior Fellow at Woods and Professor, by courtesy, of Chemistry

    BioCui studies fundamentals and applications of nanomaterials and develops tools for their understanding. Research Interests: nanotechnology, batteries, electrocatalysis, wearables, 2D materials, environmental technology (water, air, soil), cryogenic electron microscopy.