Our Team

Some members of the CECL team at a 2019 Negative Emission Technology workshop in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Research topics:
Hydrogen Production & Storage
Carbon Capture, Utilization, & Storage
Mineral Carbonization
Ammonia Production
Trace Metal Capture
Life Cycle Analysis
Techno-economic Assessment
The Fisher Fine Arts Library at Penn, home of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy.

Our Team

Research topics:
Hydrogen Production & Storage
Carbon Capture, Utilization, & Storage
Mineral Carbonization
Ammonia Production
Trace Metal Capture
Life Cycle Analysis
Techno-economic Assessment

A New Home

In the fall of 2020, the Clean Energy Conversions Laboratory moved to its new home at the University of Pennsylvania. This lab is the culmination of years of investment from Professor Jennifer Wilcox and the countless group members that have contributed across the years to drive this research to the bleeding edge. Below, we honor those members who carry on the torch and recognize many of those who have helped build this group into what it is today.

Jennifer Wilcox, Presidential Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Engineering and Energy Policy

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Wilcox’s research takes aim at the nexus of energy and the environment, developing both mitigation and adaptation strategies to minimize negative climate impacts associated with society’s dependence on fossil fuels. This work carefully examines the role of carbon management and opportunities therein that could assist in preventing 2°C warming by 2100. Carbon management includes a mix of technologies spanning from the direct removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to its capture from industrial, utility-scale and micro-emitter (motor vehicle) exhaust streams, followed by utilization or reliable storage of carbon dioxide on a timescale and magnitude that will have a positive impact on our current climate change crisis. Funding for her research is primarily sourced through the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy and the private sector. She has served on a number of committees including the National Academy of Sciences and the American Physical Society to assess carbon capture methods and impacts on climate. She is the author of the first textbook on carbon capture, published in March 2012.

Learn more about Jen

Abby Lunstrum, Ph.D., Research Associate

Research Focus Areas

Carbon sequestration, renewable energy, carbon mineralization, geochemistry, and biogeochemistry.

Learn more about Abby

Hélène Pilorgé, Ph.D., Research Associate

Research Focus Areas

Carbon capture and storage, point source capture, direct air capture, carbon mineralization, carbon accounting, geographic information systems mapping for responsible deployment of carbon management, low-carbon energy, alternative fuels

Learn more about Hélène

Max Pisciotta, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow

Research Focus Areas

Direct air capture, carbon mineralization, carbon capture and storage, life cycle analysis

Learn more about Max

Katherine Vaz Gomes, PhD Candidate

Research Focus Areas

Carbon mineralization, carbon capture & storage, techno-economic assessment

See More About Katherine

Shelvey Swett, PhD Candidate

Research Focus Areas

Carbon mineralization, separations, carbon capture & storage, techno-economic assessment

See More About Shelvey

Aline Uwase, PhD Student

Research Focus Areas

Carbon mineralization, carbon capture & storage, materials characterization, CO2 adsorption

See More About Aline

Shrey Patel, PhD Candidate

Research Focus Areas

Direct air capture, carbon mineralization, carbon capture & storage, process modelling, techno-economic assessment, low-carbon energy

See More About Shrey

Affiliated Members

Rithika Ramkumar, Undergraduate CBE Student/Data Science minor

Ananya Srivastav, Undergraduate VIPER Student

Former Members

Noah McQueen, Ph.D.

Noah is currently co-founder and Head of Research at Heirloom Carbon. Learn more about this exciting technology here.

Noah's LinkedIn page.

Caleb Woodall, Ph.D.

Caleb is currently a Program Manager of the University Training and Research Program at the US DOE, office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management.

Caleb's LinkedIn page.

Kourosh (Cyrus) Kian, Ph.D.

Cyrus is currently a Senior Program Manager at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). He is leading the Methane Emissions Reduction Program (MERP) at the DOE's Office of Resource Sustainability, Division of Methane Mitigation Technologies.

Cyrus's LinkedIn page.

Peter Psarras, Ph.D.

Peter was a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and acted temporary PI of the CEC lab while Jen was on DOE appointment.

Peter's LinkedIn page. Peter's Google Scholar page.