Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment

New research led by Wei Peng has uncovered a potential unintended consequence of the electric vehicle transition in India and China, finding that sulfur dioxide emissions could actually increase over current levels if the countries were to fully onshore their electric vehicle supply chains. The overwhelming majority of those emissions would come from refining and manufacturing nickel and cobalt — important minerals for today’s electric vehicle batteries. “People generally assume the transition to a greener technology is always going to be a win-win — there will be climate and air quality benefits,” said first author Anjali Sharma. "But without considering manufacturing, you might lower carbon and nitrogen oxide emissions but end up increasing the air pollution burden for communities near manufacturing centers." Full story: https://bit.ly/3VAoDWP

"I'll be done as soon I stop having ideas." From reclaimed wood and sheep's wool insulation to heat pumps and radiant heating systems, Forrest Meggers talks with The New York Times about how he is using his home as a "live-in laboratory" for fighting climate change. https://nyti.ms/3ON6Tna

The rise of AI poses both opportunities and risks for the clean energy transition, speakers agreed at the Andlinger Center’s thirteenth annual meeting. Speakers touched on all the ways that AI could both help and hinder the transition to a more sustainable future, from AI's impacts on the future of computing to its potential roles in energy technology development and climate research. “AI is influencing nearly every academic discipline — frankly, nearly every human endeavor,” said Jennifer Rexford, Princeton’s provost and the Gordon Y. S. Wu Professor in Engineering, during the day’s welcoming remarks. “This event is part of the conversation about how Princeton is advancing AI research to solve major societal challenges, including climate change.” Full event recap: https://bit.ly/3OLZcxv

AI for Climate 🌎 – Beyond the energy sector, can #AI improve how we approach challenges in environmental and #climate research? Gabriel Vecchi of Geosciences Princeton University and High Meadows Environmental Institute led a panel on the use of AI and machine learning tools to help researchers better understand earth systems at the Annual Meeting. Adji Bousso Dieng of Princeton Computer Science, Reed Maxwell of Princeton Engineering and HMEI, and Ning Lin of Princeton Engineering discussed both the opportunities — and notable limitations — of AI in the context of their work in materials discovery, hydrology, and hazard forecasting. The full panel is available to view here: https://lnkd.in/gt4-xEt8 Videos of all speakers and panels are also available to view: https://lnkd.in/eGzGwVdH

AI for Power 💡 – Despite its voracious energy consumption, how might we wield the power of AI to advance the development and operation of clean energy technologies? Minjie Chen of Princeton ECE and the Andlinger Center led a panel at the Annual Meeting that explored the ways in which AI could actually accelerate the energy transition by underpinning advancements in technologies from fusion energy to grid optimization. Panelists Lina Li of Harvard University, Tassos Golnas of US DOE, Chris White of NEC Laboratories America, Inc., and Egemen Kolemen of Princeton MAE, the Andlinger Center, and Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), discussed the best use cases for AI in the energy sector. They also touched on the key questions, such as safety, reliability, and data availability, that could dictate AI’s role in the future energy system. The full panel is available to view here: https://lnkd.in/eyRiJMR5 Videos of all speakers and panels are also available to view: https://lnkd.in/eGzGwVdH

Congratulations to Michele Sarazen on winning the 2025 Augustine Award from the Organic Reactions Catalysis Society! 👏 The award recognizes early career engineers and scientists who have made significant contributions to the field. In the award citation, the subcommittee recognized Sarazen’s diverse research contributions and her remarkable work on metal-organic frameworks. Sarazen, an assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering, investigates catalysis and green chemistry to address global grand challenges in energy and sustainable manufacturing. https://lnkd.in/g_T_FcfQ

Power for AI ⚡ – How can the U.S. energy system shift into growth mode after decades of relatively constant energy demand? Jesse Jenkins of Princeton MAE and the Andlinger Center moderated a panel at the center’s October 29 Annual Meeting about the existing bottlenecks and potential solutions for unlocking the clean energy supply needed to support rising energy demand in the U.S., which will be partly driven by the rise of AI and its accompanying data centers. Allison Clements, former commissioner at Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Lucia Tian of Google, and Matt DeNichilo of ECP (Energy Capital Partners) offered their perspectives on how the energy system might contend with a sustained period of load growth and make the necessary course corrections to ensure that the strategies for meeting that growth are aligned with a clean energy future. The full panel is available to view here: https://lnkd.in/g28Pghne Videos of all speakers and panels are also available to view: https://lnkd.in/eGzGwVdH

We’re thrilled to have Paul Dauenhauer as our featured speaker on Dec 5. He’ll discuss the exciting world of programmable chemistry and how it could solve the problem of slow or inefficient chemical reactions in energy conversion. Don’t miss it! Click the link for more details!

The Future of Computing 💻 – What will the rise of #AI mean for the future of computing? At the Andlinger Center’s Annual Meeting, David Wentzlaff of Princeton ECE led a panel examining the challenges facing the information sector as demand for computing increases and energy efficiency improvements become more difficult to make. Panelists Tom Gray from NVIDIA, Carole-Jean Wu from Meta, Stephen Kosonocky from AMD, and Mark Johnson from Clemson University offered their perspectives on the considerations that will be key for the industry as it navigates the uncertain, AI-driven future. The full panel is available to view here: https://lnkd.in/er--B_up Videos of all speakers and panels are also available to view: https://lnkd.in/eGzGwVdH

Videos from the Andlinger Center’s 2024 Annual Meeting are now available to view! Watch our keynote address from Melanie Nakagawa, Chief Sustainability Officer at Microsoft, describing how Microsoft is navigating both the opportunities and challenges that AI will create for the energy transition. Following her address, Nakagawa sat down with Provost Jennifer Rexford for a conversation about the growing importance of sustainability in organizational operations and how companies like Microsoft can form partnerships to accelerate the development and deployment of clean energy technologies, catalyzing the global energy transition. Video: https://lnkd.in/eXXpXPzr Videos of all speakers and panels are also available: https://lnkd.in/eGzGwVdH