I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Colorado State University (CSU). Our research group at CSU focuses on challenges associated with renewable energy utilization, storage, and transport. We aim to contribute to the future electrification, decarbonization, and sustainability of various modern industries, including transportation, chemical, and wastewater treatment, with positive social and economic outcomes. If you are looking for undergraduate, graduate, or postdoctoral positions in our group, please feel free to reach out to me at (reza.nazemi at colostate.edu).
I was a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at Yale University under the direction of Prof. Jaehong Kim (2021-2022). My research at Yale focused on electrochemical wastewater treatment in complex water matrices. Prior to this, I was a postdoctoral fellow in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the Georgia Institute of Technology (2020-2021). I worked on developing electrochemical technologies for ammonia synthesis with the overarching goal of achieving competitive performance with the state-of-the-art thermochemical process (Haber-Bosch). My studies also involved a mechanistic understanding of photoelectrochemical (De) hydrogenation reactions for sustainable fuel and fertilizer production using hybrid plasmonic nanostructures. I was awarded the Georgia Research Alliance phase I grant ($50,000) to explore the commercialization potential of ammonia electrosynthesis, a technology I developed and patented during my Ph.D. studies. I earned my Ph.D. from the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech under the supervision of Prof. Mostafa El-Sayed in May 2020. My Ph.D. dissertation research was recognized by receiving the American Chemical Society Physical Chemistry (PHYS) Division Young Investigator Award in 2021. I was honored to receive numerous awards including grants, fellowships, prize money, and travel awards totaling $53,500 during my graduate studies at Georgia Tech. Most notably, I was awarded the Amazon Catalyst grant ($25,000), for which I was the sole PI as a graduate student and published the outcomes of this project in the Journal of Electrochemical Society as the corresponding author. With my Ph.D. advisor, Prof. El-Sayed, I have co-authored a funded research award from the US National Science Foundation (NSF) on my Ph.D. dissertation topic. I also earned a master of science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University under the guidance of Prof. Mahdi Shahbakhti, where I worked on modeling and analysis of fuel injection parameters on combustion and performance of advanced dual-fuel combustion engines. My academic research experiences have been cross-disciplinary and I am well-suited for scientific collaborations across multiple departments including Chemical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Chemistry.
My Ph.D. research has focused on photo-electrocatalyst design and synthesis, including plasmonic and hybrid plasmonic with semiconductor and transition metal nanomaterials for renewable fuel production in photo-electrochemical systems. These systems have shown great promise to be integrated with intermittent renewable sources (e.g., solar, wind) for grid energy storage. I have been studying operando spectroscopy and microscopy techniques to probe the active site and reaction mechanisms at the solid-liquid interface (electrode-electrolyte), leading to the rational design of more efficient (photo) electrocatalysts for value-added chemicals production. I was the recipient of the TI:GER (Technology Innovation: Generating Economic Results) Fellowship from the Scheller College of Business at Georgia Tech to work on developing business models and commercial plans for my Ph.D. dissertation technology in the multidisciplinary team consisting of three MBA students (Scheller College of Business-Georgia Tech) and two JD students (School of Law-Emory University). This experience provided me with a unique opportunity to communicate my Ph.D. research effectively with non-technical experts in my field of study and taught me how to manage successful and productive team projects.
My CV is enclosed for more details concerning my education and experience. Please visit different pages on this website and do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions or need any information.