CURRENT GROUP MEMBERS
Principle Investigator
Seth Dworkin, Ph.D., P.Eng., FCSME
Canada Research Chair in High Performance Computing for Sustainable Energy
Associate Professor, Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
Ryerson University
seth.dworkin@ryerson.ca
Education:
B.Eng. – McMaster University, 2003
M.Sc. – Yale University, 2004
M.Phil. – Yale University, 2005
Ph.D. – Yale University, 2009
Selected Awards:
2017 – McMaster University Alumni Association Arch Award, recognizing the achievements of McMaster alumni within fifteen years of graduation.
2015 – Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO), Engineering Medal – Young Engineer, for exceptional achievements in career, community and professional participation before the age of 35.
2014 – Ryerson University Early Research Career Excellence Award, for research achievements within five years of becoming a faculty member.
2013 – Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering (CSME) “I. W. Smith Award,” for outstanding achievement in creative mechanical engineering within ten years of undergraduate graduation.
2008 – Bernard Lewis Fellowship, The International Combustion Institute, recognizing research achievements and potential.
Click Here for Dr. Dworkin’s CV
Post-Doctoral Fellows
Dr. Leonardo Zimmer
leonardo.zimmer@ryerson.ca
Dr. Zimmer completed his Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), in Brazil, followed by his master’s and PhD at the same university. His master’s work focused on modeling coal combustion and on his PhD on modeling soot formation on laminar ethylene diffusion flames. He is now a Post-Doctoral fellow in the Dworkin group at Ryerson University, continuing his research on combustion phenomena and soot formation.
Dr. Aggrey Mwesigye
aggrey.mwesigye@ryerson.ca
Dr. Mwesigye completed his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at Makerere University, in Uganda, followed by a Masters degree focusing on Sustainable Energy Systems at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), in Sweden. He completed his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pretoria, in South Africa. His research focused on the optimisation of solar thermal energy systems using computational fluid dynamics and entropy generation minimization. He is now a Post-Doctoral fellow in the Dworkin group at Ryerson University focusing on thermodynamic optimisation of hybrid solar thermal and ground source heat pump systems for heating and cooling applications.
Dr. Sylvie Antoun
sylvie.antoun@ryerson.ca
Dr. Antoun completed her B.A.Sc and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the American University of Beirut (AUB) in Lebanon. During her masters, she focused on the optimization of a coaxial personalized ventilation system and window performance for human thermal comfort using hybrid CFD modeling. Later, she completed her PhD in Mechanical Engineering at Ryerson University, focusing on atomistic modelling using Enhanced Molecular Dynamics (MD) to predict thermal transport phenomena in complex systems. She is now focusing on optimized modelling and thermal management of hybrid energy systems using nano-materials for heating/cooling applications.
PhD Students
Hiep Nguyen
hiep.nguyen@ryerson.ca
Hiep completed his Bachelors and MASc. in Mechanical Engineering at Ryerson, in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Hiep’s research focuses on geothermal technology and other renewable alternatives. During his masters, Hiep consulted for HydroOne and received a MITACS internship. As Hiep pursues his PhD, he is also employed as a mechanical engineering software developer at HGS (www.hgeosoft.com).
Reza Daneshazarian
reza.daneshazarian@ryerson.ca
Reza completed his Bachelor degree in chemical engineering at Sharif University of Technology (2012) and his Masters degree in energy engineering in the field of Energy Technology at the University of Tehran (2016). The focus of his research has been on heat transfer enhancement in a parabolic trough collector by use of solar direct absorption and nanofluids. He joined the department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Ryerson University in 2017 to pursue his PhD. Reza’s research focus is on thermal storage in buildings and alternative energy.
Masters Students
Amin Mansouri
amin.mansouri@ryerson.ca
Amin completed his Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at Isfahan University of Technology (2011) and a Masters degree in mechanical engineering in the field of Energy Conversion at Tabriz University (2015). His research focus is on modelling soot emissions in combustion processes.
Sarah Nicholson
sarah1.nicholson@ryerson.ca
Sarah completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering at Ryerson University. She aims to bring a new approach to sustainable design that addresses interdisciplinary issues. During her undergraduate studies, Sarah was on the Dean’s List for four years and received numerous awards including Ryerson’s TA Award, the Canadian Congress of Applied Mechanics award for Thermofluids, the Mechanical Engineering Department’s Capstone award, and RBC’s Student’s Leading Change award. She is now pursuing a Master’s of Applied Science with research in sustainable energy production.
Saunak Shukla
saunak.shukla@ryerson.ca
Saunak completed his bachelor degree in Mechanical Engineering (2018) with specialization in thermofluids. His passion and strong work ethic has helped him be on Dean’s List all years throughout his undergraduate studies. In his quest for possessing well-rounded experience, Saunak completed a 16-month internship in the Aerospace industry and was involved in various case study and design competitions. He is pursuing a Masters in Applied Science now with a strong desire to learn more about renewable energy.
Pedram Hatefraad
pedram.hatefraad@ryerson.ca
Pedram completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering at Ryerson University. His passion towards renewable energies along with his work experience in the HVAC industry have developed his ability to work on novel research ideas. Pedram was honored to receive numerous awards and scholarships during his undergraduate studies such as the Canadian Congress of Applied Mechanics awards in Solid Mechanics, and an NSERC USRA. He is pursuing a Masters in Applied Science with a research focus on sustainable energy.
Undergraduate Students
Amir Kiamari
akiamari@ryerson.ca
Stevan Kostic
stevan.kostic@ryerson.ca
Alejandro Gonzalez-Ferras
agonzalezferras@ryerson.ca
Leya Kober
leya.kober@ryerson.ca
GROUP PHOTOS
Former Group Members
Former Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr. Ayman Bayomy
Dr. Meysam Sahafzadeh
Dr. Ali Khosousi
Dr. Armin Veshkini
Former PhD Students
Jamie Fine
Thesis: “Development of a Hybrid Solar Cascade Heat Pump Heating System” (2018)
Meysam Sahafzadeh
Thesis: “The Effect of Unsteady Stretch on Laminar Premixed Curved Flames” (2018)
Nick Eaves
Thesis: “The Effect of Reversibility and High Pressure on Soot Formation” (2016)
Ali Khosousi
Thesis: “Detailed Numerical Study of Soot Surface Growth and Oxidation in Laminar Diffusion Flames” (2015)
Armin Veshkini
Thesis: “Understanding Soot Particle Growth Chemistry and Particle Sizing Using a Novel Soot Growth and Formation Model” (2015)
Sanaz Arabzadeh Esfarjani
Thesis: “A Modeling Framework for the Synthesis of Carbon Nanotubes by RF Plasma Technology” (2013)
Former Masters Students
Nemanja Ceranic
Thesis: “The Influence of Aliphatics on Soot Inception Modelling” (2018)
Raymond Alexander
Thesis: “Development of a Soot Concentration Estimation Library for Industrial Combustion Applications Using Lagrangian Parcel Tracking” (2017)
Alisha Hunter
Thesis: “Comparative Life Cycle Assessment: Ground Source Heat Pump System Versus Gas Furnace and Air Conditioner System” (2017)
Adam Alaica
Thesis: “The Development of an Off-peak Ground Pre-cool Control Strategy for Hybrid Ground Source Heat Pump Systems” (2016)
Emily Law
Thesis: “Characterization of the Effects of Borehole Layouts in Geo-exchange” (2016)
Bijan Shahriari
Thesis: “Development and Validation of a Partially Coupled Soot Model for Turbulent Kerosene Combustion in Industrial Applications” (2014)
Hiep Nguyen
Thesis: “Analyses of the factors affecting hybrid ground-source heat pump installation potential” (2014)
Sepehr Bozorgzadeh
Thesis: “Development of a Soot Concentration Estimator for Industrial Combustion Applications” (2014)
Michael Di Paolo
Thesis: “Design of a smart manifold for geothermal HVAC installations” (2014)
Levon Larson
Thesis: “Numerical Simulation of Liquid Prechamber Fuel Ignition” (2013)
Kaveh Khalilian
Thesis: “Development and Validation of a Partially Coupled, Two-Equation Soot Model for Industrial Applications” (2013)
Masih Alavy
Thesis: “Optimization of Hybrid Ground Source Heat Pump Systems Design” (2013)
Zannatul Moiet Hasib
Thesis: “Residential Micro Tri-Generation System Based on a Gas Fired Stirling Engine CHP and Thermo Chemical Accumulator (TCA)”(2013)
Navid Ekrami
Thesis: “Feasibility of Residential Combined Cooling, Heating, and Power Generation System in Canadian Cities”(2013)
Nick Eaves
Thesis: “The Effect of Pressure and Conjugate Heat Transfer on Soot Formation Modelling” (2012)
Former Undergraduate Research Assistants
Rozhan Ghoreishi (2017/2018/2019)
Bobby Anand (2016/2017)
Talha Ansari (2016/2017/2018)
Akshay Chaudhari (2015)
Mihai Duica (2015)
Sana Askari (2015)
Raymond Alexander (2014/2015)
Nikola Kuzmic (2014/2015)
Vivian Truong (2014)
Emily Law (2013/2014)
Brian Reghelini (2013)
Adam Alaica (2013)
Chloe Zhou (2013)
Pushan Lele (2012)