The Ralph O’Connor Sustainable Energy Institute (ROSEI) can announce Fei Hu and Bhathiya Rathnayake as the selections for the inaugural ROSEI Postdoctoral Scholars Program.
The program will support two postdoctoral stipends in the fixed amount of $60K each in the upcoming academic year. The aim of the program is to:
- Broaden or deepen ROSEI’s impact in energy research, while also increasing the diversity of energy scholars closely associated with the institute
- Provide a touchpoint with scholars who will be impactful academics
- Connect and strengthen ROSEI objectives/pillars/identified needs
- Increase connectivity to ROSEI itself for faculty
“We had a lot of accomplished researchers apply for the program, and the two that were ultimately selected by the committee are particularly impressive,” said Susanna Thon, ROSEI’s associate director. “I have high hopes that they will positively impact the ROSEI and Hopkins energy community in multiple ways, and that being supported by this program will aid in those efforts.”
Fei Hu (L) and Yuting Luo (R)
Hu was nominated for the program by Yuting Luo, a ROSEI core faculty member and assistant professor of materials science and engineering. Luo referred to Hu as a “driven rising star” in the energy storage field who “has the blend of scientific rigor, creativity, and leadership that makes him an invaluable asset to any academic or research institution.”
Hu’s work aims to create novel strategies to address the persistent limitations of anode-free lithium metal batteries (AFLMBs). His research plan proposes an innovative interfacial design to revolutionize the current landscape of energy storage systems and facilitate sustainability through reduced material costs and simplified manufacturing.
“It is my honor to be named one of the two inaugural ROSEI Postdoctoral Scholars, I am deeply grateful to the institute for providing this support,” Hu said. “This prestigious recognition motivates me to fully dedicate myself to advancing my independent research projects focused on improving the safety and energy density of rechargeable batteries. In particular, I am excited to explore the interfacial designs I have proposed for high-energy-density anode-free batteries, which have the potential to significantly enhance electrochemical performance, while also working to uncover the fundamental mechanisms behind them.”
Bhathiya Rathnayake (L) and Sijia Geng (R)
Rathnayake, who will join Hopkins in July after completing his PhD from University of California-San Diego, was nominated for the program by Sijia Geng, a ROSEI core faculty member and assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering. In her nomination letter for Rathnayake, Geng noted that he is the “type of scholar we need in the energy field to build strong theoretical foundation to address the critical challenges in real-world energy systems.”
Rathnayake’s work aims to develop a scalable and reliable safety-critical control framework for future inverter based resources (IBR) dominated power networks to enable large-scale integration of renewable resources. His research plan proposes integrating control barrier functions (CBFs), decentralized control architectures, hybrid dynamic models, and physics-informed AI techniques to enhance the stability and resilience of future power systems.
“I’m deeply honored to be selected as one of the inaugural ROSEI Postdoctoral Scholars. This is an excellent opportunity for me to work with leading energy researchers on developing intelligent, safe, and resilient control frameworks for future power systems,” Rathnayake said. “By combining theoretical advances with real-world impact, I look forward to contributing to ROSEI’s mission of accelerating the transition to sustainable energy.”