This fall, the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) named 20 new members to the Society of Energy Scholars at MIT. The 2025-2026 cohort will conduct research supporting a clean energy transition, including advancing green hydrogen production, biomining of critical materials, and improving battery technologies.
These Scholars have been selected in recognition of their keen interest in energy and their excellence in research and receive support from MITEI; its Founding, Sustaining, and Associate members; or friends of MITEI. They are joining a global network of over 500 MIT students and alumni dedicated to expediting a global transition to low-carbon energy solutions.
The 2025-2026 Scholars are:
Albert Chen
Institute for Data, Systems, and Society
Sponsor: Shell
Project: Integrating temporal, spatial, and sectoral dynamics to optimize energy transitions and air quality outcomes
Eric Kyle Cheung
Architecture
Sponsor: Norwegian University of Science and Technology/Equinor
Project: Climate-actionable information for buildings in Trondheim, Norway
India Cox
Chemistry
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: Green hydrogen via intermediate temperature steam electrolysis
Yifu Ding
MIT Energy Initiative
Sponsor: Shell
Project: RACER: Robust and Adaptive Computing Energy and Resource coordination based on CPU utilization
Quinn Early
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Sponsor: Eni S.p.A.
Project: Multi-scale coupled wind farm modeling in stratified atmospheric boundary layers
Gabriele Ferrero
Plasma Science and Fusion Center
Sponsor: Eni S.p.A.
Project: Liquid Sandwich Vacuum Vessel (LSVV) for ARC-class fusion devices
Braden Gilleland
Mechanical Engineering
Sponsor: Shell
Project: Hydrocarbon pyrolysis: Reactor design and modeling to decarbonize hydrogen production
Katelyn Groenhout
Chemical Engineering
Sponsor: Shell
Project: Exploiting electric fields in thermocatalysis to develop low-energy chemical manufacturing processes
Darya Guettler
Architecture
Sponsor: Norwegian University of Science and Technology/Equinor
Project: Climate-actionable information for buildings in Trondheim, Norway
Jimin Kim
Chemical Engineering
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: Carbon-fixing materials converting CO₂, CH4, and nitrates into growing polymeric materials
Adriana Ladera
Computational Science and Engineering
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: Rapid prototyping of metal organic chalcogenolate candidates for catalysis
Paola Muscente
Plasma Science and Fusion Center
Sponsor: Eni S.p.A.
Project: Further developing the SPARC and ARC divertor scenarios simulation database
Alex Quinn
Chemical Engineering
Sponsor: Petronas
Project: Exploring the durational performance and scaling of an alkaline polysulfide ferri-/ferro-cyanide flow battery
Santosh Singh
Chemistry
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: An approach to develop hexagonal Boron Nitride (h-BN) based hydrogen (H₂) separation and storage membranes: Rapid diffusion of H₂ through h-BN monolayer
Wyatt Sluga
Architecture
Sponsor: Norwegian University of Science and Technology/Equinor
Project: Climate-actionable information for buildings in Trondheim, Norway
Hui Sun
Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Sponsor: Chevron
Project: Biomining of critical minerals for a clean energy future
Julia Tao
Aeronautics and Astronautics
Sponsor: MIT Energy Initiative
Project: Safety analysis of hydrogen-fueled transportation systems
Amber Velez
Mechanical Engineering
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: Pulsed electrolysis for efficient grid-scale green hydrogen production
Xiao Wang
Chemical Engineering
Sponsor: ExxonMobil
Project: Towards full upcycling of post-consumer polyvinyl chloride (PVC) waste
Trent Weiss
Chemical Engineering
Sponsor: Shell
Project: Advancing convection-enhanced lithium-ion batteries through electrode development