Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability
Showing 1-100 of 177 Results
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Supphanat Anantachaisophon
Undergraduate, Energy Science & Engineering
BioAn undergraduate from Thailand. I am interested in Energy Science.
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Ines M. L. Azevedo
Professor of Energy Science Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy, at the Woods Institute for the Environment and Professor, by courtesy, of Earth System Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProfessor Azevedo is passionate about solving problems that include environmental, technical, economic, and policy issues, where traditional engineering approaches play an important role but cannot provide a complete answer. In particular, she is interested in assessing how energy systems are likely to evolve, which requires comprehensive knowledge of the technologies that can address future energy needs and the decision-making process followed by various agents in the economy.
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Khalid Aziz
Otto N. Miller Professor in the School of Earth Sciences, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOptimization and reservoir Simulation.
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Ilenia Battiato
Associate Professor of Energy Science Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsEnergy and environment (battery systems; superhydrophobicity and drag reduction; carbon sequestration); multiscale, mesoscale and hybrid simulations (multiphase and reactive transport processes); effective medium theories; perturbation methods, homogenization and upscaling.
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Isabela Beine
Ph.D. Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Spring 2026
Masters Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Autumn 2024BioResearching hydrogen storage in porous media. Interest in energy storage solutions for renewable energy sources.
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Sally Benson
Precourt Family Professor, Professor of Energy Science Engineering and Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and the Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research is focused on reducing the risks of climate change by developing energy supplies with low carbon emissions. Students and post-doctoral fellows in my research group work on carbon dioxide storage, energy systems analysis, and pathways for transitioning to a low-carbon energy system.
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Stacey Bent
Jagdeep & Roshni Singh Professor in the School of Eng, Professor of Energy Science and Eng, Senior Fellow at Precourt & Prof, by courtesy, of Electrical Eng, Materials Sci Eng & Chemistry
BioThe research in the Bent laboratory is focused on understanding and controlling surface and interfacial chemistry and applying this knowledge to a range of problems in semiconductor processing, micro- and nano-electronics, nanotechnology, and sustainable and renewable energy. Much of the research aims to develop a molecular-level understanding in these systems, and hence the group uses of a variety of molecular probes. Systems currently under study in the group include functionalization of semiconductor surfaces, mechanisms and control of atomic layer deposition, molecular layer deposition, nanoscale materials for light absorption, interface engineering in photovoltaics, catalyst and electrocatalyst deposition.
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Adam Brandt
Professor of Energy Science Engineering and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsGreenhouse gas emissions, energy systems optimization, mathematical modeling of resource depletion, life cycle analysis
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Zhenlin Chen
Research Asst - Graduate, Brandt Program
BioZhenlin (Richard) Chen is a Ph.D. candidate at Stanford's Adam Brandt lab, focuses on greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas. His work primarily revolves around evaluating ground sensor technologies for methane detection and quantification ability. His methodological approach blends engineering principles, field data collection, and applied statistics. Chen is exploring AI-driven frameworks, particularly large language models, to refine energy data extraction and enhance the OPGEE model through private data fine-tuning and reinforcement learning. His emphasis remains on domain-specific tasks, aiming for efficiency in terms of latency and cost. He pursued his undergraduate studies in environmental science at Cornell University and holds a master's in Atmosphere and Energy Engineering from Stanford.
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Steven Chu
William R. Kenan Jr. Professor, Professor of Molecular and Cellular Physiology and of Energy Science and Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSynthesis, functionalization and applications of nanoparticle bioprobes for molecular cellular in vivo imaging in biology and biomedicine. Linear and nonlinear difference frequency mixing ultrasound imaging. Lithium metal-sulfur batteries, new approaches to electrochemical splitting of water. CO2 reduction, lithium extraction from salt water
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William Chueh
Director, Precourt Institute for Energy, Kimmelman Professor, 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.
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Dylan Marshall Crain
Ph.D. Student in Energy Resources Engineering, admitted Autumn 2022
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy current research revolves around optimizing the monitoring design of Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) projects in such a way that the posterior (after data assimilation) predictions are as close to reality as can be hoped for.
In CCS projects within the U.S., it is important to have monitoring plan, which can consist of wells with pressure, saturation, salinity, et cetera sensors, seismic lines, or gravimetric above-ground measurements, before any injection has begun into the subsurface. This is due to the permitting requirements that must be satisfied before operations are begun.
Due to this constraint, any monitoring optimization (at least initially) needs to be determined using only a prior (highly uncertain) understanding of the subsurface. This makes the optimization much more challenging. We utilize a prior optimization scheme from a previous student which allows us to optimize a monitoring plan using only prior information to get the minimized, expected uncertainty reduction in the posterior models for a given quantity of interest. This scheme is limited by some Gaussian assumptions. We optimize it using a genetic algorithm.
From this point, with the monitoring plan established, the information gathered from the optimized monitoring scheme (using only monitoring wells at the moment) is used to history match (data assimilate) our understanding of the subsurface. The results can be used to predict the CO2 plume flow and behavior into the future.
This work was initially developed to assist a project in Illinois that is currently seeking Class VI injection well permits in the self-same state in order to begin injecting CO2 produced from two companies paying for the work from the Illinois Geological Survey. -
Yi Cui
Fortinet Founders Professor, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, of Energy Science and Engineering, of Photon Science, Senior Fellow at Woods, at Precourt 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.
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David Danielson
Affiliate, Energy Science & Engineering
BioDavid T. Danielson became a Precourt energy scholar at Stanford in 2016. With Stuart Macmillan and Joel Moxley, Dave co-teaches the yearlong course "Energy Transformation Collaborative." This project-based course provides a launchpad for the creation and development of transformational energy ventures. Interdisciplinary student teams research, analyze and refine detailed plans for high-impact opportunities in the context of the new energy venture development framework offered in this course.
Since January 2017, Dave has been managing director of Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a $1 billion fund focused on fighting climate change by investing in clean energy innovation.
From 2012 to 2016, Dave was assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy. There, he directed the U.S. government’s innovation strategy in the areas of sustainable transportation, renewable power, energy efficiency and clean-energy manufacturing, investing about $2 billion annually into American clean-energy innovation. He is considered a global expert in the development of next generation clean-energy technologies and the creation of new R&D and organizational models for high-impact clean energy innovation.
Prior to being appointed by President Obama as assistant secretary, Dave was the first hire at DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency– Energy (ARPA-E), a funding agency that focuses on the development of high-risk, high-reward clean-energy technologies. Prior to his government service, he was a clean-energy venture capitalist and, as a PhD student at MIT, was the founder and president of the MIT Energy Club. -
Steven J. Davis
Professor of Earth System Science, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Professor, by courtesy, of Energy Science and Engineering
BioSteve Davis is a highly-cited researcher and expert in earth system science, emissions and energy scenarios, climate impacts and solutions, and corporate climate strategy. He is a Professor of Earth System Science in the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability and leads the Sustainable Solutions Lab, a research group dedicated to quantifying how different human activities are affecting climate and air quality, how those environmental changes in turn jeopardize human wellbeing, and the relative priority of solutions.
Steve was a Contributing Author of two Working Group III chapters in the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), serves on the Scientific Steering Committee of the Global Carbon Project, was the Lead Author of the Mitigation chapter in the U.S. Fifth National Climate Assessment, and is a member of the Technical Council of the Science Based Targets Initiative.
Prior to his science career, Steve worked as a lawyer to venture-backed companies in Silicon Valley, and holds degrees from Stanford University, the University of Virginia School of Law and the University of Florida, where he double-majored in Political Science and Philosophy. -
Carlos Diaz Marin
Assistant Professor of Energy Science and Engineering, and Center Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
BioCarlos Diaz-Marin is an Assistant Professor in the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. He leads the Diaz Energy Lab on Theory and Advanced materials (DELTA) Group, which studies and leverages soft matter for applications in energy, water, and sustainability. The group integrates fundamental studies of material-molecule/ion interactions, synthesis, characterization, modeling, and device demonstration, while guided by technoeconomic analyses, for applications such as water production from air, carbon capture, building energy efficiency, biomass utilization, critical mineral recovery, and electrochemistry.
Before coming to Stanford, Carlos was an ARPA-E ORISE Fellow at the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) within the US Department of Energy, helping develop research funding programs in high-risk, high-reward energy and sustainability technologies. Carlos obtained his MS and PhD in Mechanical Engineering at MIT and double undergraduate degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Physics from the University of Costa Rica. -
Victoria Dinov
Masters Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Autumn 2025
BioHi, my name is Vicky and I am a graduate student at Stanford studying energy science and engineering. At Stanford, I worked in the INES research group, focused primarily on creating a capacity expansion model with improved spatial, temporal, and geographical resolution.
I am passionate about capacity expansion and transmission planning, power markets, utility rate structure, load forecasting, microgrids and more. I am also curious to explore the ways in which we will harness DERs and technological tools at our fingertips to create more resilient communities and energy systems. This can have broad implications for developing regions and more generally energy scarce areas.
Outside of school, you will find me running, climbing, backpacking, skiing, etc. I like everything outdoors, have an affinity for art/music, and love to salsa too. Please message me with questions or just to connect! -
Omar Duran
Physical Science Research Scientist, Energy Science & Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsResearch at the intersection of computational math and subsurface poromechanics develops robust, structure-preserving, scalable methods for multiphysics in porous/fractured media. Focus: advanced discretizations (HHO, multiscale mixed FE), THM modeling with Cosserat effects, and compositional multiphase flow with phase changes. Work includes solver/preconditioner design, mixed-dimensional fracture modeling, and HPC software (GEOS) for near-exascale performance.
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Louis Durlofsky
Otto N. Miller Professor in the School of Earth Sciences
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsGeneral reservoir simulation, optimization, reduced-order modeling, upscaling, flow in fractured systems, history matching, CO2 sequestration, energy systems optimization
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Lama El Halabi
Ph.D. Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Spring 2022
BioI am a PhD candidate in the Department of Energy Sciences and Engineering and a Data Science Scholar, advised by Adam Brandt. My research is driven by the crucial role renewable energy must play in sustainably meeting our energy demands. The major challenge in transitioning to renewable energy lies in the intermittent and inherently uncertain nature of these energy sources. My current research focuses on predicting energy outputs from these stochastically behaving sources, with an emphasis on uncertainty quantification and volatility. Specifically, I employ computer vision models and statistical techniques to develop short-term probabilistic photovoltaic (PV) power forecasts from sky images and time-series PV data. I hold an MS in Energy Resources Engineering from Stanford and a BE in Mechanical Engineering and a BS in Physics from the American University of Beirut. Previously, my research involved using machine learning to model water resources.
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Julia Frohmann
Ph.D. Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Autumn 2023
BioJulia Frohmann is a PhD candidate in Energy Science and Engineering, and leads the demand side technology utilization modeling at STEER. Her research focuses on the feasibility of large-scale grid storage deployment in the US by evaluating battery energy storage revenue generation potential. Julia's key areas of interest are electricity market operations, and macro-scale energy systems modeling. Previous work focused on renewable grid penetration effect on electricity exchange variability and modeling optimal integration of power-to-heat-to-power storage. Julia obtained her bachelors in Mechanical Engineering and masters in Energy Engineering from RWTH Aachen, Germany.
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Laura Frouté
Postdoctoral Scholar, Energy Science and Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsLaura is a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford University, working on subsurface engineering solutions for the energy transition. Part of her research focuses on replicating geological hydrogen production in the laboratory and identifying and mitigating reactivity constraints at the microscale. Her research also focuses on investigating carbon storage into various basalt formations by measuring their carbon mineralization potential. Her expertise includes designing laboratory-scale pilots and conducting research on rock formations in the context of hydrocarbon production, carbon storage, and hydrogen production to understand the interplay of geochemistry, reaction mechanisms and complex storage and transport processes across length scales. To study the evolution of porous media properties following reaction or transport experiments, she uses a wide spectrum of multiscale, multimodal material characterization techniques (sorption, XRD, XRF, μCT, FIB-SEM, TEM). She holds a MS in Chemical Engineering from ENSIC (France) and a PhD in Energy Science and Engineering from Stanford University. Her interests range from subsurface engineering, fluid flow in porous media, to environmental and regulatory issues in the oil & gas industry, CCUS, climate solutions and energy policy.
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Margot Gerritsen
Professor of Energy Resources Engineering, Emerita
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsResearch
My work is about understanding and simulating complicated fluid flow problems. My research focuses on the design of highly accurate and efficient parallel computational methods to predict the performance of enhanced oil recovery methods. I'm particularly interested in gas injection and in-situ combustion processes. These recovery methods are extremely challenging to simulate because of the very strong nonlinearities in the governing equations. Outside petroleum engineering, I'm active in coastal ocean simulation with colleagues from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, yacht research and pterosaur flight mechanics with colleagues from the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering, and the design of search algorithms in collaboration with the Library of Congress and colleagues from the Institute of Computational and Mathematical Engineering.
Teaching
I teach courses in both energy related topics (reservoir simulation, energy, and the environment) in my department, and mathematics for engineers through the Institute of Computational and Mathematical Engineering (ICME). I also initiated two courses in professional development in our department (presentation skills and teaching assistant training), and a consulting course for graduate students in ICME, which offers expertise in computational methods to the Stanford community and selected industries.
Professional Activities
Senior Associate Dean, School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Sciences, Stanford (from 2015); Director, Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering, Stanford (from 2010); Stanford Fellow (2010-2012); Magne Espedal Professor II, Bergen University (2011-2014); Aldo Leopold Fellow (2009); Chair, SIAM Activity group in Geosciences (2007, present, reelected in 2009); Faculty Research Fellow, Clayman Institute (2008); Elected to Council of Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) (2007); organizing committee, 2008 Gordon Conference on Flow in Porous Media; producer, Smart Energy podcast channel; Director, Stanford Yacht Research; Co-director and founder, Stanford Center of Excellence for Computational Algorithms in Digital Stewardship; Editor, Journal of Small Craft Technology; Associate editor, Transport in Porous Media; Reviewer for various journals and organizations including SPE, DoE, NSF, Journal of Computational Physics, Journal of Scientific Computing, Transport in Porous Media, Computational Geosciences; member, SIAM, SPE, KIVI, AGU, and APS -
David Gögl
Graduate Visiting Researcher Student, Energy Science and Engineering
BioDavid Gögl is a Visiting Student Researcher in the STEER group at Stanford University, where he works under the supervision of Julia Frohmann and Sally Benson.
His background is in energy system optimization, open-source energy system modeling, and the dynamics of European power markets.
David obtained his bachelor's and master's degree in Mechanical Engineering at ETH Zürich, Switzerland. -
Stephan Graham
Welton Joseph and Maud L'Anphere Crook Professor of Applied Earth Sciences & by courtesy, of Geophysics & of Energy Science Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSedimentary basin analysis; petroleum geology
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Halldora Gudmundsdottir
Ph.D. Student in Energy Resources Engineering, admitted Autumn 2014
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy PhD research focuses on developing predictive models for geothermal systems. I am interested in direct predictions of the future performance of geothermal reservoirs as well as characterization of the subsurface flow behavior that can aid in operational decision making. Currently, I am incorporating principles from statistics and artificial intelligence into workflows that can be used for production and injection optimization.
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Emily Gwynn
Program Coordinator, Energy Science & Engineering
Current Role at StanfordProgram Coordinator, Energy Science & Engineering, Doerr School of Sustainability
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Mathis Heyer
Ph.D. Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Autumn 2024
BioMathis Heyer, from Kiel, Germany, is pursuing a Ph.D. in Energy Science & Engineering at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a master’s degree in Process Systems Engineering from RWTH Aachen University, Germany, as well as a master’s degree in Management Science and Engineering from Tsinghua University in Beijing.
His research in the Environmental Assessment and Optimization Group at Stanford (https://eao.stanford.edu/) focuses on advancing the understanding of complex energy and process systems through mathematical modeling and optimization. Mathis' work builds on his previous research experiences at the Climate Policy Lab at ETH Zurich and the Sustainable Reaction Engineering Group at Cambridge University. Outside of his academic pursuits, Mathis enjoys volunteering with organizations such as "Engineers Without Borders" and "Europe Meets School" both involved in promoting intercultural exchange.
Mathis has been recognized as a Klaus-Murmann Fellow by the Foundation of German Business (sdw) while at RWTH Aachen and is currently an ERP Fellow with the German Academic Scholarship Foundation and a recipient of the SGF Fellowship. -
Roland Horne
Thomas Davies Barrow Professor and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWell Testing, Optimisation and Geothermal Reservoir Engineering
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Qi Hu
Postdoctoral Scholar, Energy Science and Engineering
BioI am a postdoctoral scholar collaborating with Tapan Mukerji on developing innovative workflows for monitoring subsurface CO2 sequestration. My research primarily involves integrating advanced seismic inversion techniques, such as full-waveform inversion, with rock physics and fluid dynamics to glean insights into subsurface structures and behaviors. Additionally, I am intrigued by the potential of distributed acoustic sensing and machine learning algorithms in various topics related to energy transition.
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Thomas Jaramillo
Professor of Chemical Engineering, of Energy Science Engineering, of Photon Science and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
BioRecent years have seen unprecedented motivation for the emergence of new energy technologies. Global dependence on fossil fuels, however, will persist until alternate technologies can compete economically. We must develop means to produce energy (or energy carriers) from renewable sources and then convert them to work as efficiently and cleanly as possible. Catalysis is energy conversion, and the Jaramillo laboratory focuses on fundamental catalytic processes occurring on solid-state surfaces in both the production and consumption of energy. Chemical-to-electrical and electrical-to-chemical energy conversion are at the core of the research. Nanoparticles, metals, alloys, sulfides, nitrides, carbides, phosphides, oxides, and biomimetic organo-metallic complexes comprise the toolkit of materials that can help change the energy landscape. Tailoring catalyst surfaces to fit the chemistry is our primary challenge.
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Shaunak Joshi
Ph.D. Student in Energy Science and Engineering, admitted Autumn 2022
BioI am Shaunak, from India. I am starting my PhD in Energy Science and Engineering with Prof. Daniel Tartakovsky and Prof. Hamdi Tchelepi. My research will primarily focus on pore-scale modeling of lithium-based batteries.
Prior to this, I graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay with a Bachelor's and a Master's in Energy Science and Engineering. I love to play all sorts of sports, especially football, badminton, and cricket. You would usually see me running around the campus on odd days. Hit me up if you want to have a chat! -
Andre Journel
The Donald and Donald M. Steel Professor of Earth Sciences, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNon-parametric, non-Gaussian Geostatistics, Stochastic Simulation, Training image-based simulation
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Tae Wook (Elliot) Kim
Senior Research Scientist-Physical, Energy Science & Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsEnhanced oil recovery (EOR) methods for unconventional reservoirs; Characterization of reservoirs core including unconventional core (permeability/porosity/wettability), crude oil, and production fluid; Oil Shale (Source rock) maturation under triaxial conditions; Breakdown pressure for hydraulic fracturing on shale formation; Geotechnical properties of shale (Young’s modulus and Poisson ratio); Geological CO2 sequestration; Geospatial data analysis with GIS S/W; CO2 capture & separation process
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Filippos Kostakis
Ph.D. Student in Energy Resources Engineering, admitted Winter 2020
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMutlifidelity strategies for uncertainty quantification, data assimilation and optimization in oil and gas reservoirs.
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Anthony Kovscek
Keleen and Carlton Beal Professor of Petroleum Engineering and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsResearch
Together with my research group, I develop and apply advanced imaging techniques, experimentation, and models to understand complex multiphase flows of gas, water, and organic phases in natural and manufactured porous media with applications in carbon storage, increased utilization of carbon dioxide for subsurface applications, hydrogen storage, and water reuse. In all of our work, physical observations, obtained mainly from laboratory and field measurements, are interwoven with theory.
Teaching
My teaching interests center broadly around education of students to meet the energy challenges that we will face this century. I teach undergraduate courses that examine the interplay of energy use and environmental issues including renewable energy resources and sustainability. At the graduate level, I offer classes on renewable energy processes based on heat and the thermodynamics of hydrocarbon mixtures.
Professional Activities
Member, American Geophysical Union, Society of Petroleum Engineers, and the American Chemical Society. -
Collett Litchard
RA, Research, Grants & Finance Manager, Energy Science & Engineering
BioCollett is a Reseach Administrator III, Research, Grants & Finance Manager, for the Department of Energy Science and Engineering at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. Her role focuses on financial management of sponsored grants and gifts.
Previously, she worked with government grants in the public utilities and criminal justice fields. She is a nationally recognized grant professional with membership in the National Grants Management Association and the National Council of University Research Administrators. The motto "Improve the Process” drives the ongoing success in her career.
Collett's educational background lies in effective writing. She obtained a Bachelor’s of Writing and Rhetoric Studies from the University of Utah and a Master of Strategic Communication from Westminster College. In her free time, she enjoys making quilts, studying physics for fun, and writing children's books while rocking out to her favorite bands. -
Dr. Arun Majumdar
Chester Naramore Dean, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, Jay Precourt Professor, Prof of Mechanical Eng, of Energy Science & Eng, of Photon Science, Sr Fellow at Woods and, by courtesy, at Hoover & Prof, by court, of MS&E
BioDr. Arun Majumdar is the inaugural Dean of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. He is the Jay Precourt Provostial Chair Professor at Stanford University, a faculty member of the Departments of Mechanical Engineering and Energy Science and Engineering, a Senior Fellow and former Director of the Precourt Institute for Energy and Senior Fellow of the Woods Institute for the Environment and Senior Fellow by (courtesy) of the Hoover Institution. He is also a faculty in Department of Photon Science at SLAC.
In October 2009, Dr. Majumdar was nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the Senate to become the Founding Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), where he served until June 2012 and helped ARPA-E become a model of excellence and innovation for the government with bipartisan support from Congress and other stakeholders. Between March 2011 and June 2012, he also served as the Acting Under Secretary of Energy, enabling the portfolio of Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of Electricity Delivery and Reliability, Office of Nuclear Energy and the Office of Fossil Energy, as well as multiple cross-cutting efforts such as Sunshot, Grid Modernization Team and others that he had initiated. Furthermore, he was a Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Energy, Dr. Steven Chu, on a variety of matters related to management, personnel, budget, and policy. In 2010, he served on Secretary Chu's Science Team to help stop the leak of the Deep Water Horizon (BP) oil spill.
Dr. Majumdar served as the Chair of the Advisory Board of the US Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm. He led the Agency Review Team for the Department of Energy, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission during the Biden-Harris Presidential transition. He served as the Vice Chairman of the Advisory Board of US Secretary of Energy, Dr. Ernest Moniz, and was also a Science Envoy for the US Department of State with focus on energy and technology innovation in the Baltics and Poland. He also serves on numerous advisory boards and boards of businesses, investment groups. government agencies and non-profit organizations.
After leaving Washington, DC and before joining Stanford, Dr. Majumdar was the Vice President for Energy at Google, where he assembled a team to create technologies and businesses at the intersection of data, computing and electricity grid.
Dr. Majumdar is a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, US National Academy of Engineering and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His research in the past has involved the science and engineering of nanoscale materials and devices, especially in the areas of energy conversion, transport and storage as well as biomolecular analysis. His current research focuses on redox reactions and systems that are fundamental to a sustainable energy future, multidimensional nanoscale imaging and microscopy, and an effort to leverage modern AI techniques to develop and deliver energy and climate solutions.
Prior to joining the Department of Energy, Dr. Majumdar was the Almy & Agnes Maynard Chair Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering at University of California–Berkeley and the Associate Laboratory Director for energy and environment at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He also spent the early part of his academic career at Arizona State University and University of California, Santa Barbara.
Dr. Majumdar received his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay in 1985 and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1989 under the supervision of Professor Chang-Lin Tien.
