The LAF Charger’s ultimate goal is to develop a mid-sized, yet scalable, Compressed Air Energy Storage system that uses renewable energy to demonstrate potential to mitigate grid demand due in part to increased Electric Vehicle usage.
Explore: Our Schedule and Team Breakdown • Our Reflection on Progress • Our Budget • Our Safety Plan
Danielle Mullan
Team Role: Background Literature
Subsystem: Generator
Danielle is a mechanical engineering major excited to address energy storage to help build a more sustainable and resilient world. On campus, she is involved with WJRH Radio, Society of Women Engineers, and Club Basketball. She is also a Pardner and Writing Associate. Some of her hobbies include: listening to music, reading, bowling, watching movies, and hiking.
Colin Shalk
Team Role: Webmaster
Subsystem: Heat Exchanger
Colin is a mechanical engineering major excited to join the team and learn more about solutions to the energy crisis facing the world. He hopes to develop skills throughout this project that he can take with him to the professional world. Colin used to play on the tennis team at Lafayette. He works for Recreation Services as a Fitness Assistant and likes to help out on the Lafarm. Some of his hobbies include: playing tennis, exploring new places, biking, and feeding the groundhog that lives in his backyard!
Jill Warabak
Team Role: Project Manager
Subsystem: Heat Exchanger
Jill is a mechanical engineering major and architectural studies minor from Pittston, PA. She is a hurdler on Lafayette’s Track and Field Team, president of Athlete Ally, a member of SWE and Alpha Alpha Alpha, and is an Ambassador of Lafayette. Besides being involved in activities at Lafayette, she is interested in skateboarding, guitar, piano, video games, and plants. She has an interest in energy storage due to the demand for energy throughout the world and the wide range of possibilities that come out of this field.
Dylan Minghini
Team Role: Project Manager
Subsystem: Compressor
Dylan, a mechanical engineering major, plays on the Baseball Team at Lafayette. His hobbies include: sports, traveling, and reading. He is excited to join the team. He believes energy storage is a deciding factor in the world’s transition to renewable energy production. Dylan wants to address the issues that come with having a surplus of energy, especially from renewable energy sources.
Kristen Steudel
Team Role: Presentations
Subsystem: Generator
Kristen Steudel is a mechanical engineering and mathematics/economics double major. On campus, she is the Vice President of ASME, Vice President of the Running Club, and the Tau Beta Pi Secretary. She is also involved with Club Volleyball and the Monroe Street literature house. Her hobbies include hiking, being outdoors, cooking, ice skating, and traveling. She chose the energy storage project because she is passionate about climate change. She is able to combine mathematics/economics and engineering in a renewable energy project. Kristen is excited to have a real impact on improving lives and protecting the earth.
Riley Tropp
Team Role: Project Standards
Subsystem: Compressor
Riley Tropp is a mechanical engineering major who works as a lab assistant for the ME210 labs. He chose the energy storage project because he believes that in our current world, we need ways to store the energy produced from renewable energy sources and add it to the grid. Some of his hobbies include gaming, hiking, and photography.
Danny Sachs
Team Role: Budget
Subsystem: Generator
Danny is a mechanical engineering major with a minor in German. Outside the classroom, he is head of recruitment for Lafayette Club Rugby and the Vice President of Finance for the Delta Upsilon chapter on campus. He is also passionate about guitar and aviation. His interest in energy storage stems from the need to create lightweight, efficient energy storage systems that can replace unsustainable fuels and engines used in aircraft.
Kazuki Osawa
Team Role: Design
Subsystem: Compressor
Kazuki is a mechanical engineering major on the Lafayette Men’s Golf Team. In his free time, he enjoys listening to music and spending time with friends. His interest in energy storage stems from a class he took last semester called Sustainable Building Design. In this class, Kaz and his classmates talked about the importance of using renewable energy in buildings and the impact of building a net-zero society. He became interested in understanding the functions of energy storage systems and how they are integrated into our society. He is excited to learn a lot from this project!
Jenny Chen
Team Role: Webmaster
Subsystem: Heat Exchanger
Jenny is a budding mechanical engineer and data analyst with an intense interest in urban planning and sustainable tech. As an Asian American Gen Z, she was the first in her family to attend college and received a scholarship to attend Lafayette. At school, she leads the data division at Lafayette Consulting Club and is President of the Table Tennis Club. From middle school through college, she immersed in FIRST Robotics League and Urban Design Initiatives. Jenny feels it is a blessing to be born in this day and age where technological breakthroughs will redefine the way humans live.
Eduardo Rodriguez Gomez
Team Role: Design
Subsystem: Heat Exchanger
Eduardo is a Mechanical Engineering major from St. Louis, MO. Outside of class, Ed is part of the Hispanic Society of Lafayette, a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and serves as Program Coordinator for the first year Orientation Program. In addition, Ed enjoys running, hiking, swimming, and spending time with his friends and family. Through this project, Ed wants to develop a deeper understanding of the challenges of renewable energy storage and hopes to contribute to the development of the necessary technologies to make renewable energy a feasible option in areas where it currently might not seem possible.
Gunnar Simons
Team Role: Risk Manager
Subsystem: Generator
Gunnar is a mechanical engineering major and current President of Men’s Rugby. He also serves as the Men’s Rugby treasurer. He has a curiosity in climate change that has encouraged his interest in sustainability, renewable energy, and environmental engineering. With renewable energy sources looking to replace fossil fuels, traditional energy storage must adapt to a more sustainable alternative, and CAES is a viable option. Gunnar is excited to work with the team to research this topic further. Outside of schoolwork, Gunnar enjoys music, playing the guitar, and playing rugby.
Professor Van Asselt
Team Role: Advisor
Professor Amy Van Asselt is three time mechancial engineering graduate. On campus, she is the Society of Women Engineers Advisor. She is interested in energy storage because she believes it to be a crucial bottleneck in our transition to fully renewable energy generation. She loves working with students to help solve this problem. In her free time she enjoys playing with her cats and her kids, as well as reading!