Precourt Institute for Energy
Showing 101-120 of 165 Results
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Meagan Mauter
Associate Professor Civil & Environmental Engineering, of Photon Science, Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Chemical Engineering
BioProfessor Meagan Mauter is appointed as an Associate Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and as a Center Fellow, by courtesy, in the Woods Institute for the Environment. She directs the Water and Energy Efficiency for the Environment Lab (WE3Lab) with the mission of providing sustainable water supply in a carbon-constrained world through innovation in water treatment technology, optimization of water management practices, and redesign of water policies. Ongoing research efforts include: 1) developing automated, precise, robust, intensified, modular, and electrified (A-PRIME) water desalination technologies to support a circular water economy, 2) identifying synergies and addressing barriers to coordinated operation of decarbonized water and energy systems, and 3) supporting the design and enforcement of water-energy policies.
Professor Mauter also serves as the research director for the National Alliance for Water Innovation, a $110-million DOE Energy-Water Desalination Hub addressing water security issues in the United States. The Hub targets early-stage research and development of energy-efficient and cost-competitive technologies for desalinating non-traditional source waters.
Professor Mauter holds bachelors degrees in Civil & Environmental Engineering and History from Rice University, a Masters of Environmental Engineering from Rice University, and a PhD in Chemical and Environmental Engineering from Yale University. Prior to joining the faculty at Stanford, she served as an Energy Technology Innovation Policy Fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and the Mossavar Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and as an Associate Professor of Engineering & Public Policy, Civil & Environmental Engineering, and Chemical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. -
Paul McIntyre
Rick and Melinda Reed Professor, Professor of Photon Science and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
BioMcIntyre's group performs research on nanostructured inorganic materials for applications in electronics, energy technologies and sensors. He is best known for his work on metal oxide/semiconductor interfaces, ultrathin dielectrics, defects in complex metal oxide thin films, and nanostructured Si-Ge single crystals. His research team synthesizes materials, characterizes their structures and compositions with a variety of advanced microscopies and spectroscopies, studies the passivation of their interfaces, and measures functional properties of devices.
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Nicholas Melosh
Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
BioThe Melosh group explores how to apply new methods from the semiconductor and self-assembly fields to important problems in biology, materials, and energy. We think about how to rationally design engineered interfaces to enhance communication with biological cells and tissues, or to improve energy conversion and materials synthesis. In particular, we are interested in seamlessly integrating inorganic structures together with biology for improved cell transfection and therapies, and designing new materials, often using diamondoid molecules as building blocks.
My group is very interested in how to design new inorganic structures that will seamless integrate with biological systems to address problems that are not feasible by other means. This involves both fundamental work such as to deeply understand how lipid membranes interact with inorganic surfaces, electrokinetic phenomena in biologically relevant solutions, and applying this knowledge into new device designs. Examples of this include “nanostraw” drug delivery platforms for direct delivery or extraction of material through the cell wall using a biomimetic gap-junction made using nanoscale semiconductor processing techniques. We also engineer materials and structures for neural interfaces and electronics pertinent to highly parallel data acquisition and recording. For instance, we have created inorganic electrodes that mimic the hydrophobic banding of natural transmembrane proteins, allowing them to ‘fuse’ into the cell wall, providing a tight electrical junction for solid-state patch clamping. In addition to significant efforts at engineering surfaces at the molecular level, we also work on ‘bridge’ projects that span between engineering and biological/clinical needs. My long history with nano- and microfabrication techniques and their interactions with biological constructs provide the skills necessary to fabricate and analyze new bio-electronic systems.
Research Interests:
Bio-inorganic Interface
Molecular materials at interfaces
Self-Assembly and Nucleation and Growth -
Jennifer Milne
Director, Advanced Research Projects, Precourt Institute for Energy
BioJennifer is a scientist with more than a decade's experience in identifying research needs in energy and shaping the energy research landscape at Stanford. Jennifer leads the Advanced Research Projects at the Precourt Institute for Energy, working with the Director of Precourt and other stakeholders to foster energy research to reduce greenhouse gases and enable the energy transition. In 2023, she joined the technology team of the Sustainability Accelerator, as a key team member tasked with identifying solutions with potential for impact across broad sustainability challenges.
Jennifer is a technical resource for energy related and carbon removal projects across the University and an advisor in the bioenergy area - this foundational experience she gained during her time as an energy analyst with the Global Climate and Energy Project. There, from 2007 onwards, she learned about energy supply, conversion, and exergy destruction. Jennifer led the bioenergy area of the portfolio and contributed more broadly to the development of a fundamental energy research portfolio across all energy areas. Prior to joining Global Climate and Energy Project she was a post-doctoral scholar at the Carnegie Institution for Science, Department of Plant Biology, at Stanford University. Jennifer is a biochemist and plant biologist, with extensive expertise in carbohydrate chemistry. Her thesis work included the discovery of a new role for polysaccharides in guard cell wall function. Jennifer earned a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of York, U.K. and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry (First Class Honors) from the University of Stirling, U.K. -
Liang Min
Managing Director Bits & Watts Initiative, Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Role at StanfordManaging Director for the Bits and Watts Initiative, Precourt Institute for Energy
Managing Director for the Net-Zero Alliance, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability -
Reginald Mitchell
Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus
BioProfessor Mitchell's primary area of research is concerned with characterizing the physical and chemical processes that occur during the combustion and gasification of pulverized coal and biomass. Coals of interest range in rank from lignite to bituminous and biomass materials include yard waste, field and seed crop residues, lumber mill waste, fruit and nut crop residues, and municipal solid waste. Experimental and modeling studies are concerned with char reactivity to oxygen, carbon dioxide and steam, carbon deactivation during conversion, and char particle surface area evolution and mode of conversion during mass loss.
Mitchell’s most recent research has been focused on topics that will enable the development of coal and biomass conversion technologies that facilitate CO2 capture. Recent studies have involved characterizing coal and biomass conversion rates in supercritical water environments, acquiring the understanding needed to develop chemical looping combustion technology for applications to coals and biomass materials, and developing fuel cells that use coal or biomass as the fuel source. Studies concerned with characterizing coal/biomass blends during combustion and gasification processes are also underway.
Professor Mitchell retired from Stanford University in July 2020, after having served over 29 years as a professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department. -
Simona Onori
Associate Professor of Energy Science Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsModeling, control and optimization of dynamic systems;
Model-based control in advanced propulsion systems;
Energy management control and optimization in HEVs and PHEVs;
Energy storage systems- Li-ion and PbA batteries, Supercapacitors;
Battery aging modeling, state of health estimation and life prediction for control;
Damage degradation modeling in interconnected systems -
Colin Ophus
Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Center Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
BioColin Ophus is an Associate Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and a Center Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University. He previously worked as a Staff Scientist at the National Center for Electron Microscopy (NCEM), part of the Molecular Foundry, at Lawrence Berkeley Lab. He was awarded a US Department of Energy (DOE) Early Career award in 2018, and the Burton medal from the Microscopy Society of America (MSA) in 2018. His research focuses on experimental methods, reconstruction algorithms, and software codes for simulation, analysis, and instrument design of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning TEM (STEM).
Colin advocates for open science and his group has developed open-source scientific software including as the Prismatic STEM simulation code and py4DSTEM analysis toolkit. He has taught many workshops around the world on topics ranging from scientific visualization to large scale data analysis. He also is the founder and editor-in-chief for a new journal based on interactive science communication named Elemental Microscopy. -
Leonard Ortolano
UPS Foundation Professor of Civil Engineering in Urban and Regional Planning, Emeritus
BioOrtolano is concerned with environmental and water resources policy and planning. His research stresses environmental policy implementation in developing countries and the role of non-governmental organizations in environmental management. His recent interests center on corporate environmental management.
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Nilay Papila
Assistant Director, Technology Transfer for Defense, Precourt Institute for Energy
BioNilay Papila is an experienced senior program manager, currently working for the Technology Transfer for Defense program at Stanford University. With a strong background in research management, pre- and post-award services, university-industry cooperation, technology transfer, intellectual property, and technology commercialization, Nilay brings a wealth of expertise to her role.
Prior to joining Stanford, Nilay served as the Founding Director of the Technology Transfer Office at Ozyegin University in Istanbul, where she played a pivotal role in fostering innovation and collaboration. She also held positions as the Manager of the Project Development Office at Sabanci University and Associate Director of the Interdisciplinary Program Development Office at the University of Florida. Notably, she served as a national expert on the European Union 7th Framework Program (Marie Curie Actions) and as an expert/evaluator at the Technology Transfer Support Program Group at the Science and Technology Council of Turkey.
Nilay holds a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Florida, which she earned in 2001, following her completion of B.S. and M.S. degrees in the Aerospace Engineering Department of the METU in Ankara in 1994 and 1997, respectively.
Recognized for her accomplishments, Nilay is a Zonta International Amelia Earhart Fellow (2000), an NCURA (National Council of Research Administration) Global Fellow at Stanford University (2018), and a certified Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP) (2018). These accomplishments highlight her dedication to advancing research and innovation within academic and industry settings. -
Marco Pavone
Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering & of Computer Science
BioDr. Marco Pavone is an Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Stanford University, where he directs the Autonomous Systems Laboratory and the Center for Automotive Research at Stanford. He is also a Distinguished Research Scientist at NVIDIA where he leads autonomous vehicle research. Before joining Stanford, he was a Research Technologist within the Robotics Section at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He received a Ph.D. degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2010. His main research interests are in the development of methodologies for the analysis, design, and control of autonomous systems, with an emphasis on self-driving cars, autonomous aerospace vehicles, and future mobility systems. He is a recipient of a number of awards, including a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from President Barack Obama, an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award, a National Science Foundation Early Career (CAREER) Award, a NASA Early Career Faculty Award, and an Early-Career Spotlight Award from the Robotics Science and Systems Foundation. He was identified by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) as one of America's 20 most highly promising investigators under the age of 40. His work has been recognized with best paper nominations or awards at a number of venues, including the European Conference on Computer Vision, the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, the European Control Conference, the IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Transportation Systems, the Field and Service Robotics Conference, the Robotics: Science and Systems Conference, and the INFORMS Annual Meeting.
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Janis C Pepper
Affiliate, Precourt Institute Affiliates
Visiting Scholar, Precourt Institute for EnergyBioJan Pepper has more than 30 years of experience in the energy and utility industry, with a legacy of industry-leading innovations. Most recently, from 2016 to 2023, she was the founding Chief Executive Officer of Peninsula Clean Energy, the community choice energy program serving the unincorporated county and all 20 cities in San Mateo County, as well as the City of Los Banos. Under Jan’s leadership, Peninsula Clean Energy has one of the cleanest electricity portfolios in the industry, delivering 100% clean electricity, and at a lower cost than the incumbent utility. During Jan’s tenure, she advanced the forward-looking goal of delivering 100% renewable energy on a 24/7 basis at no additional cost.
Over the course of her career, Jan has founded four energy-related start-ups. She is a pioneer and innovator in industry. At APX, she developed and implemented the first use of renewable energy credits, which now serve as the standard currency for trading and tracking renewable power. At Clean Power Markets, her company designed and implemented the successful Solar Renewable Energy Credit (SREC) program for the State of New Jersey.
In 2017, the U.S. EPA and the Center for Resource Solutions honored her as the Green Power Leader of the Year. Jan served eight years on the Los Altos City Council and was Mayor in 2015 and 2020. She served on the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District from 2013 to February 2017. Jan is currently a Visiting Scholar at the Precourt Institute for Energy in the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability and co-teaches a course on energy during the fall quarter. She has a BS in civil engineering and an MBA, both from Stanford University. She is the recipient of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability Distinguished Alumni Award for 2025. -
Blas L. Pérez Henríquez
Senior Research Scholar
BioBlas L. Pérez Henríquez founded and serves as Director of the California-Global Energy, Water & Infrastructure Innovation Initiative at Stanford University, sponsored by the Bill Lane Center for the American West, where he is a Senior Research Scholar focusing on regional low-carbon development opportunities. His research and teaching centers on policy analysis to advance clean innovation through novel technological, business, policy, and social solutions for a new clean economy and a net zero, carbon neutral future. He directs the Local Governance Summer Institute @ Stanford (LGSI) and its international version the Smart City: Policy, Strategy and Innovation Institute @ Stanford. He also leads the Stanford | Mexico Clean Economy 2050 program.
He has served as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at the School of Engineering and Sciences of the Technological Institute of Superior Studies of Monterrey (ITESM) in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in London, United Kingdom, and as Guest Professor at the Centre of Economics Research and Teaching (CIDE) in Mexico City, Mexico.
He is the author of “Environmental Commodities and Emissions Trading: Towards a Low Carbon Future,” Resources for the Future – RFF Press/Routledge, Washington, DC (2013) and co-editor of “Carbon Governance, Climate Change and Business Transformation,” Routledge Advances in Climate Change Research, Taylor & Francis Group, Oxford, UK (2015). He also co-edited the book "High-Speed Rail and Sustainability, Decision-making and the political economy of investment," Routlege Explorations in Environmental Studies, Taylor & Francis Group, Oxford, UK (2017). He has written on public-private environmental and energy collaboration in Silicon Valley, water-energy nexus, sustainable transportation and on the use of information technology to support environmental markets and smart policymaking.His most recent publication is the chapter on Environmental Public Policy in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Environmental Science (2025) and has been a contributiing author to reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of the United Nations (UN).
Pérez Henríquez is a member of the Distinguished Advisory Group of the Integrity Council for Voluntary Carbon Markets (IC-VCM), derived from the work of the UN Carney Taskforce for Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets (TSVCM) where he served as Member of the Board of Advisors. He was a member of the Mexico – United States Entrepreneurship & Innovation Council (MUSEIC), created through the High-Level Economic Dialogue between the presidents of the United States and Mexico. He served as the U.S. Co-chair of the MUSEIC Energy & Sustainability Subcommittee. Pérez Henríquez is also on the International Advisory Board of Public Administration & Policy: An Asia-Pacific Journal. From 2002 to 2015, he directed UC Berkeley’s Center for Environmental Public Policy which he had founded, and was a faculty member of the Goldman School of Public Policy. He has served as an ex-officio member of the Goldman School advisory board (2002 -2012), and as a Quarterly Chair of the Commonwealth Club of California, the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum.
Pérez Henríquez holds a Masters and a Ph.D. in Public Policy from UC Berkeley, a law degree from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), a diploma in Public Policy from the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico (ITAM), and a certificate in Compared Environmental US – EU Law & Policy from Indiana University, Leiden & Rotterdam Universities. -
Jim Plummer
John M. Fluke Professor of Electrical Engineering, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsGenerally studies the governing physics and fabrication technology of silicon integrated circuits, including the scaling limits of silicon technology, and the application of silicon technology outside traditional integrated circuits, including power switching devices such as IGBTs. Process simulation tools like SUPREM for simulating fabrication. Recent work has focused on wide bandgap semiconductor materials, particularly SiC and GaN, for power control devices.
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Sharon Hakeman Poore
Understand Energy Project Manager, Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Role at StanfordProject Manager, Understand Energy
Precourt Institute for Energy -
Eric Pop
Pease-Ye Professor, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Professor, by courtesy, of Materials Science and Engineering and of Applied Physics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Pop Lab explores problems at the intersection of nanoelectronics and nanoscale energy conversion. These include fundamental limits of current and heat flow, energy-efficient transistors and memory, and energy harvesting via thermoelectrics. The Pop Lab also works with novel nanomaterials like carbon nanotubes, graphene, BN, MoS2, and their device applications, through an approach that is experimental, computational and highly collaborative.
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Balaji Prabhakar
VMware Founders Professor of Computer Science, Professor of Electrical Engineering and, by courtesy, of Operations, Information and Technology at the Graduate School of Business
BioPrabhakar's research focuses on the design, analysis, and implementation of data networks: both wireline and wireless. He has been interested in designing network algorithms, problems in ad hoc wireless networks, and designing incentive mechanisms. He has a long-standing interest in stochastic network theory, information theory, algorithms, and probability theory.
