People

Professor Marc Porosoff received his BS in 2009 and MS in 2010, both in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University.  In 2015, he completed his PhD in Chemical Engineering at Columbia University, with a thesis on developing catalysts for carbon dioxide conversion.  Porosoff then worked as a National Research Council sponsored postdoctoral fellow at the Naval Research Laboratory on the ‘Seawater to Fuel’ project. At Rochester, Porosoff plans to investigate low-cost, alternative catalysts for CO2 hydrogenation and natural gas conversion into value-added chemicals and fuels. Dr. Porosoff’s CV can be found here.

Jane Ngozi Agwara received her B.Eng in Chemical Engineering with first-class honors from Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria in 2016. From 2017 to 2018, she served as a Teaching Assistant in the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Bayero University Kano, Nigeria for her one-year mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). She joined the University of Rochester in the fall of 2018 to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering. Her research is focused on the design of metal supported zeolite catalysts for CO/CO2 hydrogenation into alternative and renewable fuels and chemicals.

Shane Michtavy is a Ph.D. student in Chemical Engineering at the University of Rochester, where he previously earned his B.S. in the same field. Before beginning his doctoral studies, Shane conducted undergraduate research at both Cornell University and Brookhaven National Laboratory, which sparked his interest in catalyst design using artificial intelligence. His current research focuses on developing novel and optimal heterogeneous catalyst designs for CO2 valorization. Shane is committed to advancing the field of chemical engineering and strives to leave any environment he encounters better than he found it.

Hasitha Perera received his BS with honors in Chemical and Process Engineering in 2015 and MS in Sustainable Process Engineering in 2020 from the University of  Moratuwa. His master’s research focused on CFD modeling of a biomass torrefaction reactor. He has industrial experience in polymer product and process design, water and effluent treatment and enterprise resource planning. He joined the Chemical Engineering department at the University of Rochester in the fall of 2022 to pursue his PhD. His research interest is heterogeneous catalysis focusing on catalyst design for CO2 conversion and CO2 hydrogenation reaction mechanisms.

Rashad is a Chemical Engineering PhD student at the University of Rochester, with experience in industry. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Baku Higher Oil School, Azerbaijan, in 2022. He has worked as a process engineer in 5 different companies and is a certified Aspen HYSYS user. With hands-on experience in industry, Rashad has developed skills in leadership, public speaking, problem-solving, data science, and process engineering. Rashad is interested in optimizing chemical processes and improving catalytic performance using different techniques, including machine learning. He is particularly interested in exploring the potential of these techniques in various areas of chemical engineering, with a focus on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of catalytic reactions with different catalysts.

Szymon Kuzniar is a junior majoring in Chemical Engineering. He is interested in catalyst research and applications for renewable energy, formation of key products and tandem reactions, and enjoys the analytical thinking required in a lab. He is additionally a part of the University of Rochester AIChE chapter.

Phyllis is a junior majoring in Chemical Engineering with an intended minor in Environmental Engineering. Her research interests involve the study of CO2 adsorption on porous materials and the application of machine learning to catalysis. She is a member of the University of Rochester's AIChE chapter, and she holds an executive board position in the University's Mock Trial organisation as well.

Adel is a junior majoring in Chemical Engineering. He is passionate about the study and synthesis of catalysts and spending time mixing solutions in the lab as well as mixing creativity with problem-solving. He is also a leader and Peer Student Guide for up-and-coming undergraduates in the chemical engineering field at King Abdullah's University of Science and Technology (KAUST).