People

Faculty

JENNIFER DUNN

Jennifer Dunn studies emerging technologies, their energy and environmental impacts, and their potential to influence air pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, and energy consumption at the economy-wide level. Particular technologies of interest include biofuels and bioproducts, automotive lithium-ion batteries, fuels and chemicals made from carbon capture and utilization technologies and from natural gas liquids. She applies life cycle analysis as a key tool to evaluate emerging technologies. Furthermore, she characterizes land use and land use change through collaborations with economic modelers and computer vision experts.

Jennifer is a Professor in Northwestern’s Chemical and Biological Engineering Department. Prior to joining Northwestern, she led the Biofuels Analysis Group at Argonne National Laboratory. She has also worked in environmental consulting, spending one year living in Brussels, and at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Jennifer earned her PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan and her B.S. in the field from Purdue University. She is a parent, a cat enthusiast, a middle school Science Olympiad coach, and enjoys hiking, biking, and forest bathing when she gets a chance. She grew up in Chicago and the shores of Lake Michigan are one of her favorite places to be.

Postdocs

Mohammadreza Heidari

Mohammadreza Heidari is a Research Assistant Professor at the Trienens Institute for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern University. His research focuses on decarbonizing industry and energy systems, advancing renewable energy deployment, fostering circular economy strategies, and promoting sustainability in infrastructure and technology. Mohammad earned his Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Michigan State University’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He also holds an M.Sc. in Hydraulic Structures from Sharif University of Technology and a B.Sc. in Water Engineering from the University of Tabriz. Prior to joining Northwestern, he served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan.

Swapana Jerpoth

Swapana Jerpoth is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. She earned a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Rowan University, New Jersey, holds a Master’s degree in Petrochemical Technology and a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from India. Her research expertise lies in mathematical modeling, techno-economic analysis, process design, and optimization, all aimed at enhancing the sustainability of products and processes in energy industry. At Northwestern, her primary research with Dr. Dunn focuses on the sustainable utilization of minerals in decarbonization technologies.

Guangcan Su

Guangcan is a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. He holds a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Malaya, Malaysia and completed his undergraduate studies in Nanjing Tech University. His research primarily explores the life cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of innovative direct air capture and CO₂ conversion technologies. Beyond his academic pursuits, he is passionate about music and sports, particularly playing the guitar and basketball.

Pengxiao Zhou

Pengxiao is a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. He received a Ph.D. degree and a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from McMaster University. He completed dual Bachelor’s degrees in Civil Engineering and Project Management at Jilin University before pursuing his graduate studies. Pengxiao is committed to improving environmental sustainability through advanced engineering techniques. His primary research focus with Prof. Dunn is on the Life Cycle Assessment and Techno-Economic Analysis of novel wastewater treatment techniques.

Graduate Students

Jenna Trost

Jenna Trost is a PhD candidate in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University, and a member of Jennifer Dunn’s group. She focuses on the analysis of the environmental and social sustainability of mining of minerals for decarbonization technologies. She will be the technical lead for the conventional E and S-LCAs.

Maddie Joseph (Co-advised)

Maddie received her BS in Molecular Engineering from the University of Chicago. As a PhD student in Chemical Engineering at Northwestern, she is coadvised between the Dunn and Tullman-Ercek groups. She is working on developing a framework to assess the environmental impacts of synthetic biology in agricultural use cases.

Ally Snead

Ally received her BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Connecticut. She is continuing her interest in sustainability by focusing on the impacts of mining operations on their surroundings. Outside of the lab, she is an avid sailor and enjoys crocheting and knitting.

Yilun Zhou

Yilun Zhou is a PhD candidate in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. She received her B.S in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University in 2022. Yilun is interested in applying consequential life cycle analysis and techno-economic analysis to mining and electric vehicles and also lead LCA on bio-graphene sensors. Outside of research, Yilun is very enthusiastic about her hay day farm. She also really loves her two cats, Da Pang and Da Fu.

Chayse Lavallais

Chayse Lavallais is a PhD candidate in Jennifer Dunn’s lab working on the life cycle and techno-economic assessment of transforming waste nitrogen into chemical products as part of the ECO-CBET project. He is also evaluating the impacts of improving nitrogen recovery on the nitrogen circular economy. He received his B.S in Chemical Engineering from Prairie View A&M University in 2019. Outside of research, Chayse enjoys playing basketball and cooking.

Jenesis Cochrane (Co-advised)

Jenesis received her BS in Chemical and Biomolecular engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. She’s coadvised with Justin Notestein and her project will focus on liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHCs). Outside of research, she likes to play volleyball, read, and thrift at local stores in Evanston and Chicago.

Maggie O'Connell

Maggie is a PhD candidate in Jennifer Dunn’s lab working on life cycle analysis of desalination and wastewater treatment technologies as part of CoWERC. She also works on incorporating Indigenous worldviews and knowledge systems into community-engaged life cycle analysis frameworks. Maggie received her B.S. in Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University while playing on the varsity volleyball team.

Jack ODonnell-Sloan

Jack received his B.S. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Colorado State University. He is currently working on applying systems analysis to clean hydrogen production for the DOE’s Midwest Hydrogen Hub. Outside of research, Jack enjoys skiing, playing recreational sports, and generally spending time outdoors.

Michael Brough

Michael Brough recently joined the Dunn lab group as a doctoral student in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. He received his B.S.E. in Chemical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in 2024. Michael is interested in learning more about Social LCAs and how to quantify their impact for decision-makers. Outside of research, he enjoys playing his saxophone, reading, and writing.

Undergrad