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2013-2014 Cluster Fellows

Paul Hartzog

Paul Hartzog

Department/Program: Plant Biology and Conservation

Faculty Advisors: Daniel Larkin

Status of Studies: Sixth Year

What is your area of focus at Northwestern?

I am researching the effects of invasive species and restoration on wetland denitrification. Understanding how these ecosystem-level factors impact denitrification could advance sustainability by leading to improved approaches for offsetting nitrate pollution through restoration. Mitigating non-point source pollution with ecological restoration that also returns lost wetland habitat would be a win-win for environmental sustainability.

Brief personal history:

I grew up in Ohio and moved to Chicago to obtain my Ph.D. in Plant Biology and Conservation. I graduated with a B.S. in Zoology with minors in Studio Art and Spanish from The Ohio State University. During my Ph.D. work I have become increasingly interested in sustainability issues and using natural systems to promote sustainability as much as possible.

Why were you interested in becoming a Cluster Fellow?

I think that the Cluster Fellowship will provide a valuable opportunity for me to network with those involved in the program. Being able to work with students and faculty outside of my discipline and professionals outside of the university has the potential to open several new doors for my career. I think that the diverse backgrounds of those involved in the program will help me learn a great deal about energy and sustainability.

Updates:

I am now a Senior Consultant at Beghou Consulting.

Olga Karagiaridi

Olga Karagiaridi

Department/Program: Chemistry

Faculty Advisor: Joseph Hupp, Charles E. and Emma H. Morrison Professor of Chemistry

Status of Studies: Fourth Year

What is your area of focus at Northwestern?

My research lies in the fascinating realm of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). MOFs are hybrid porous materials that can be utilized for multiple sustainability applications, such as gas storage, catalysis, sensing, chemical separations, removal of hazardous materials and light harvesting. I am particularly interested in synthesizing MOF structures that are extremely challenging to be obtained de novo and that could be potentially employed for any of the abovementioned applications. I have dedicated a substantial amount of effort in investigating a relatively new strategy towards novel MOF structures coined solvent-assisted linker exchange (SALE) and am currently involved in exploring the various aspects of this method.

Brief personal history:

I was born in Almaty, Kazakhstan and raised in Thessaloniki, Greece. My multicultural background gave me the blessing of being trilingual in Russian, Greek and English. I attended Dartmouth College and graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Biophysical Chemistry. During my studies at Dartmouth I spent a term in Madrid, Spain, immersing myself in Spanish culture and language (and becoming quadrilingual in the process). After graduation, I joined the inaugural Teach For America International Students Pilot Program and spent two years teaching Chemistry in an inner city high school in Houston, TX. Northwestern University attracted me for its vibrant campus location and ample opportunities to do spectacular research in inorganic chemistry. In my time free from doing research, I enjoy reading, traveling and learning foreign languages.

Why were you interested in becoming a Cluster Fellow?

Since MOFs are often viewed as a promising class of materials for alternative energy applications, I decided to get involved with the Fellowship in order to learn more about sustainability. I also hope to interact with students from other departments and find out how to collaborate with professionals from other academic backgrounds towards a sustainable future.

Daniel Kilduff

Daniel Kilduff

Department/Program: JD/MBA

Faculty Advisor: David Dana, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs: Faculty and Research; Professor of Law, Northwestern School of Law; Professor of Strategy (Courtesy)

Status of Studies: Completed JD/MBA Program

What is your area of focus at Northwestern?

My academic and professional interest is the nexus of energy finance, law/policy, and innovation. In essence I am curious how to deploy new energy technologies at scale, and the role of government, if any, to ensure that the energy markets can develop and that externalized costs and benefits are internalized in the process. I have been working in finance for the last year at Morgan Stanley, and just moved to Houston where I am working in finance with energy clients.

Brief personal history:

I have always interested in the production and consumption patterns of energy, and understanding how we can meet the global growing energy demand and the need to decrease our carbon production. As an undergraduate and master’s student I studied economics and American and International policy with a focus on the geopolitics of energy. Professionally, I worked as consultant looking at the cost impacts of renewable portfolio standards as well general organizational and strategy consulting. In 2009 I joined the Obama Administration at the White House Council on Environmental Quality’s Energy and Climate Change team that worked to put a price on carbon emissions as well as working on grid modernization, natural resource development, and transportation markets. Since coming back to school I have done work with an energy vc, energy startups, and finance.

Why were you interested in becoming a Cluster Fellow?

The Cluster Fellowship brings together a diverse mix of graduate students with different backgrounds and interests, but who are all working to better understand how to find energy solutions.

Justin Railsback

Justin Railsback

Department/Program: Materials Science and Engineering

Faculty Advisor:  Scott Barnett, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering 

Status of Studies: PhD Student

What is your area of focus at Northwestern?

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers

Brief personal history:

I was raised in the mountains of North Carolina where I learned firsthand of the function and fragility of our environment. I attended North Carolina State University in Raleigh where I was educated in materials science and engineering. I continued there for two more years to earn a Master’s in the subject and focused on nanoscale phenomena and authored four papers under the direction of professors J.B. Tracy and A.V. ‘Tolik’ Melechko. I continued to Northwestern University to further understand how manipulating the structure and chemistry of matter could be applied to meet our civilization’s most pressing needs.

Why were you interested in becoming a Cluster Fellow?

The motivation for my scientific inquiry on solid oxide fuel cells and electrolyzers is centered on addressing the worldwide energy crisis in a sustainable fashion; particularly, developing an energy conversion (and perhaps storage) device that meshes well with renewable energy systems. Becoming a Cluster Fellow will help me to understand on a more broad level, the implications and niche role of my research. I’m also interested in the multidisciplinary connections this program can bring so that I might be inspired to explore related problems or evaluate my actions from a different perspective.

Yuan Yao

Yuan Yao

Department/Program: Chemical & Biological Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Eric Masanet, Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Chemical and Biological Engineering

Status of Studies:  Second Year

What is your area of focus at Northwestern?

I am working on developing hybrid techno-economic modeling tool for green supply chain management. The goal of the model is to identify and incentivize cost effective supply chain improvements to maximize energy efficiencies and minimize environmental burdens. My another research focus is the process modeling for energy saving and emission reduction due to next-generation manufacturing technologies.

Brief personal history:

I was born in Changsha, Hunan, China. I received my B.S. in Metallurgical Engineering from Northeastern University in China and graduated with honors. I wanted to be an engineer but I didn’t find a specific engineering area that I liked most, thus I entered Chemical Engineering in NU as a master student. I explored different research areas here and found my interest in energy and sustainability, leading me to transfer to Ph.D program and work in Prof. Masanet’s lab. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and cooking.

Why were you interested in becoming a Cluster Fellow?

Becoming a Cluster Fellow provides me an opportunity to meet many people with various backgrounds and broaden my understanding of current energy problems and sustainable solutions. Also, my research is highly related to energy and sustainability, listening to others’ opinions and ideas on sustainability always gives me a lot of inspirations on my own research. The Institute provides me a wonderful place for me to be inspired.

Updates:

I am currently the Assistant Professor of Sustainability Science and Engineering at North Carolina State University and run the Sustainability Systems Analysis Lab. The Lab conducts interdisciplinary research on industrial ecology, sustainable engineering, and operations research. I also won the CAREER award from U.S National Science Foundation, the most prestigious award from NSF for junior faculty in the U.S.

Lead PI on the following: 

Publications: 
Nabinger, A., Tomberlin, K., Venditti, R., and Y. Yao* (2019). Using a Data-Driven Approach to Unveil Greenhouse Gas Emission Intensities of Different Pulp and Paper Products, Procedia CIRP, 80, Pages 689-692.

Yao, Y*. and Huang, R (2019). A Parametric Life Cycle Modeling Framework for Identifying Research Development Priorities of Emerging Technologies: A Case Study of Additive Manufacturing, Procedia CIRP, 80, 370-375.

Liao, M., Kelley, SS, and Y. Yao* (2019). “Artificial neural network based modeling for the prediction of yield and surface area of activated carbon from biomass“. Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining.

Yao, Y.*, Marano, J., Morrow III, W. R., and E. Masanet (2018). “Quantifying carbon capture potential and cost of carbon capture technology application in the U.S. refining industry”. International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, Volume 74, 87-98.

Yao, Y.*, Chang, Y., Huang, R., Zhang, L., and E. Masanet (2018). “Environmental implications of the methanol economy in China: well-to-wheel comparison of energy and environmental emissions for different methanol fuel production pathways”. In Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 172, Pages 1381-1390.

Yao, Y.* and E. Masanet, Life-cycle modeling framework for generating energy and greenhouse gas emissions inventory of emerging technologies in the chemical industry, In Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 172, 2018, Pages 768-777.

Yao, Y.*, Graziano, D., Riddle, M., Cresko, J., and E. Masanet (2016). “Prospective Life Cycle Assessment of Emerging Technology Options for U.S. Ethylene Industry.” Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research. 55 (12), pp 3493–3505

Yao, Y., Graziano, D., Riddle, M., Cresko, J., and E. Masanet (2015). “Understanding Variability to Reduce the Energy and GHG Footprints of U.S. Ethylene Production.” Environmental Science and Technology, 49, 14704.

Chang, Y., Li, G., Yao, Y, Zhang, L., and C. Yu (2016). “Quantifying the Water-Energy-Food Nexus: Current Status and Trends.” Energies, 2016, 9(2), 65

Yao, Y., Graziano, D., Riddle, M., Cresko, J., and E. Masanet (2014). “Greener Pathways to Energy-Intensive Commodity Chemicals: Opportunities and Challenges.” Current Opinion in Chemical Engineering, 6:90-98

Yao, Y*, Chang, Y., and E. Masanet (2014). “A Hybrid Life-Cycle Inventory for Multi-crystalline Silicon PV Module Manufacturing in China.” Environmental Research Letters. 9:114001

Masanet, E., Chang, Y., Yao, Y., Briam, R., and R. Huang (2014). “Reflections on a Massive Open Online LCA Course.” International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. 19(12): 1901-1907

Gebreslassie, B.H., Yao, Y., and F. You (2012). “Design Under Uncertainty of Hydrocarbon Biorefinery Supply Chains: Multiobjective Stochastic Programming Models, Decomposition Algorithm, and a Comparison Between CVaR and Downside Risk.” AIChE Journal, 58: 2155-2179, 2012

Teaching:

  • SMT 483: Capstone in Sustainable Materials and Technology
  • PSE 476: Environmental Life Cycle Analysis
  • NR 595 Special Topics in Natural Resources: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Sustainability Science
  • FB 595 Special Topics in Standards for Sustainable Materials and Green Buildings