Energy Experts

From biofuels to batteries, UW–Madison has a wealth of expertise in energy. The researchers working in energy at UW–Madison are generating the knowledge and clean technologies that will accelerate a transition to sustainable, resilient, and affordable energy systems. This resource connects you to UW–Madison faculty conducting research in all areas of energy. If you are a UW–Madison faculty member working in energy and would like to be added to this list, please email communications@energy.wisc.edu

For specific media requests, please contact Mary Blanchard.

Name/Email	Title/Department	Research Interests
Darcy Padilla darcy.padilla@wisc.edu Affiliate	Associate Professor of Art School of Education
Dominique Brossard dbrossard@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor & Chair of Life Sciences Communication College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Public opinion, new media, and the perception of risks and benefits surrounding controversial science and technology The role of values in shaping public attitudes Cross-cultural analysis
Dane Morgan ddmorgan@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Harvey D. Spangler Professor of Materials Science & Engineering College of Engineering	Computational materials science for materials design Ab initio electronic structure methods and multiscale techniques for large time/length scales and thermokinetics Ab initio based modeling of electrochemical systems and processes Nuclear materials Battery and fuel cell electrodes Earth mantle materials Electronic materials
Dave Foster defoster@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Phil and Jean Myers Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering College of Engineering	Thermodynamics Heat transfer Fluid mechanics Internal combustion engines Combustion kinetics Emission formation
Ankur Desai desai@aos.wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences College of Letters & Sciences, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies	The influence of spatiotemporal scale, ecology, and micrometeorology on ecosystem-atmosphere interactions Micrometeorological, ecological, and biogeochemical interactions at regional to global scales Carbon and water cycling Climate variability and carbon cycles Terrestrial-aquatic linkages of carbon, water, and energy
Dominic Gross dominic.gross@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering College of Engineering	Control of microgrids and power systems dominated by power electronics Grid-forming control of converter-interfaced renewable generation and energy storage devices Grid-forming control of power converters subject to constraints Distributed control and optimization of complex networked systems
Doug Reinemann doug.reinemann@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Biological Systems Engineering College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Renewable energy technology and policy Sustainable development of bioenergy systems Rural energy issues Effects of the electrical environment on farm animals
Douglas Reindl dreindl@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Mechanical Engineering College of Engineering	Industrial refrigeration systems and technology Refrigeration optimization and process improvement Building energy systems Thermal energy storage systems Renewable energy systems
Daniel J. Vimont dvimont@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences College of Letters & Sciences	Climate science Climate variations Climate change impacts in Wisconsin
Eric Booth egbooth@wisc.edu Investigator	Associate Scientist College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Water quality Impacts of climate and land-use change Urban stormwater management Wetland/stream restoration
Manos Mavrikakis emavrikakis@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Paul A. Elfers Professor, James A. Dumesic Professor, & Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of Chemical & Biological Engineering College of Engineering	Thermodynamics Kinetics and catalysis Surface science Computational chemistry Electronic materials Fuel cells applications Environmental chemical engineering
Elizabeth Wright erwright2@wisc.edu Affiliate	Henry Lardy Professor of Biochemistry and Morgridge Institute for Research College of Letters & Sciences	Cryo-EM Development of antimicrobials, therapeutics, and vaccines Advanced light and electron microscopy imaging
Fang Liu fang.liu3@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Assistant Professor in Materials Science and Engineering College of Engineering	• Energy storage technology • Batteries for transportation and power grid • High-throughput experimentation • Ion intercalation and separation • CO2 capture and conversion
Kurt Feigl feigl@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Geoscience College of Letters & Sciences	Tectonic applications of geodesy Measuring and modeling crustal deformation from earthquake faults, volcano activity, glacier loads, and fluid extraction. Geodetic measurement techniques Numerical modeling approaches
Michael Ferris ferris@cs.wisc.edu Energy Expert	Jacques-Louis Lions Chair and Stephen C. Kleene Professor of Computer Sciences College of Letters & Sciences	Development of modeling tools and software Problem analysis routines, data manipulations, and solution visualization procedures Theory and applications of optimization
Franklin Miller fkmiller@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering College of Engineering	Cryogenics Thermodynamics of Superfluid 3He-4He mixtures Sub-Kelvin cooling for space science Energy systems
Dante Fratta fratta@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Associate Professor of Geological Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering College of Engineering	Fundamental physical behavior of soils and rocks Assessment of the near-surface underground using non-invasive tomographic studies (geotomography) On-shore and off-shore near surface geophysics Evaluation of electrowetting phenomenon for surface tension changes in quaternary oil recovery Instrumenting and monitoring wind turbine foundation responses under cyclic loading Use of distributed fiber optic sensor arrays for imaging and characterizing low and high-temperature geothermal fields
Greg Nellis gfnellis@engr.wisc.edu Energy Expert	William A. and Irene Ouweneel-Bascom Professor of Mechanical Engineering College of Engineering	Thermodynamics Heat Transfer Heat Exchangers Refrigeration and Power Cycles
Giri Venkataramanan giri@engr.wisc.edu Investigator	Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering College of Engineering	Applications of power electronics in building lighting, climate conditioning, industrial motor control, electric generation, transmission and distribution and transportation systems Renewable power generation systems such as wind power, solar power and geothermal power Operation and control of microgrids and smart grids in distributed generation, energy storage, combined heat and power, electric, hybrid electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle
Gerald Kulcinski glkulcin@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Grainger Professor of Nuclear Engineering-Emeritus; Director Emeritus, Fusion Technology Institute College of Engineering	Magnetic/inertial fusion reactor systems studies Radiation damage and nuclear materials Near term applications of fusion energy Lunar mining of helium-3
Gregory Moses gregory.moses@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Spangler Professor Emeritus of Nuclear Engineering & Engineering Physics College of Engineering	Nuclear reactor physics Computational engr. Radiation hydrodynamics Technology enhanced learning Fusion reactor design
Gregg Sanford gsanford@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Associate Scientist, Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Sustainable intensification in agriculture Ecosystem services Perennial systems Organic and conventional cropping systems
Garret Suen gsuen@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Associate Professor of Bacteriology College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Herbivore-associated Microbial Ecology Rumen Microbiology Metagenomics Biofuels
George Huber gwhuber@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Chemical & Biological Engineering College of Engineering	Renewable energy Biofuels and biochemicals Heterogeneous catalysis Pyrolysis Zeolites Conceptual process design
Ive Hermans hermans@chem.wisc.edu Investigator	John and Dorothy Vozza Professor of Chemistry College of Engineering, College of Letters & Sciences	Synthesis of heterogeneous catalysts Immobilization of homogeneous catalysts Catalytic and kinetic studies Unravelling of reaction mechanisms (In situ) spectroscopy (Infrared, Raman, UV-Vis) Reactions in supercritical fluids and expanded liquid phases Use of renewable resources Quantum-chemical and theoretical kinetic calculations Reaction engineering High-pressure reaction technology
Heidi Kaeppler hfkaeppl@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Associate Professor of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences College of Agricultural & Life Sciences	Genetic engineering and gene-editing of crops for genomics/epigenomics research and genetic improvement Enhancement of bioenergy-related traits
Andrea Hicks hicks5@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Assistant Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering College of Engineering	Sustainability Environmental systems analysis and optimization Life cycle assessment Agent-based modeling Rebound effect Environmental implications of technology
Holly Gibbs hkgibbs@wisc.edu Affiliate	Associate Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies	Agricultural expansion in U.S., Brazil, and globally Tropical deforestation Conservation, agriculture, and energy policy Impact evaluation Environmental sustainability
Hongrui Jiang hongrui@engr.wisc.edu Energy Expert	Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering College of Engineering	MicroElectroMechanical System Microsensors and microactuators BioMEMS and micro-optics Microfluidics Lab on chips Biomimetics and bioinspiration
Hoon Kim hoonkim@wisc.edu Energy Expert	Research Chemist at USDA Forest Products Laboratory	Lignin/plant cell wall chemistry Lignin models/natural compounds synthesis Artificial lignin (dehydrogenation polymer or DHP) synthesis Plant cell wall structural analysis Solution-state 2D NMR Plant cell wall polymerization and lignification

Wisconsin Energy Institute

Energy Experts

Support

Contact

Follow Us

UW–Madison