summer internships
Energy-related research opportunities with faculty members, as well as with non-profit and government organizations, are listed below. Alternatively, a student may self-initiate an energy-related project with a faculty member of their choice.
- Applications open on November 20, 2023. Students should apply for an Andlinger Center summer internship in the Student Activities Funding Engine (SAFE). Application instructions can be found below.
- Princeton first-years, sophomores, and juniors in good academic and judicial standing may apply for up to two Andlinger Center summer internship opportunities.
- Students on a leave of absence for the 2023-2024 academic year are not eligible to apply for summer 2024 internships.
- The final deadline for submitting applications is January 8, 2024.
- Selected students receive a stipend of $600/week, plus a research-related or travel-related award, if applicable.
- Questions? Contact Moira Selinka at mselinka@princeton.edu
Summer internships are funded by the Peter B. Lewis Fund for Student Innovation in Energy and the Environment and the Dede T. Bartlett P03 Fund for Student Research in Energy and the Environment.
Internships with Faculty
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This project seeks a capable software engineering intern to apply computer science, machine learning, and AI to build tools that can bridge theoretical net-zero scenarios with real-world infrastructure deployment characteristics. Working with experienced engineers and harvesting real-world datasets, this role will develop algorithms and models to reflect investment decision behaviors, infrastructure development and construction sequences, and cross-sector dependencies. The research aims to provide climate policy and investment planning tools for government and industry. Ultimately it has the potential to impact decision-making that today directs hundreds of billions of dollars and guides the US decarbonization pathway!
Your work will be part of a larger research project at the Andlinger Center with funding from Princeton University, Clean Air Task Force, Deloitte, and Google. Primary supervisor name and title: Associate Research Scholar Dominic Davis
Background desired: Software engineering skills are essential, and exposure to machine learning and artificial intelligence is highly beneficial.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
Application Materials: include a resume, cover letter, and informal, electronic transcript with your application in SAFE.
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The student will conduct research in synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, microbiology and/or fermentation technology to develop yeast and/or bacterial strains for the production of advanced biofuels and valuable chemicals from renewable sources. The student will work on developing and deploying dynamic controls of engineered metabolism using optogenetic circuits. These controls may be applicable for yeast or bacterial species and may be used to control biosynthetic pathways for fuel or chemical production. Alternatively, they may be used to control strain growth rates with light in order to enable optogenetic control of the population composition of microbial communities engineered to produce fuel or chemical production in co-culture fermentations. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. José Avalos.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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The random phase approximation (RPA) has attracted increased interest in the field of heterogeneous catalysis since it is a promising quantum mechanical theory that can solve certain surface catalysis modeling problems such as the CO puzzle (namely, standard density functional theory within the generalized gradient approximation mostly incorrectly predicts the preferred adsorption site of CO on metal surfaces). We recently applied our research group’s quantum embedding method to RPA and obtained a 100 times speedup with very small errors for hydrogen activation energetics. This embedding scheme also will allow more resource-intensive RPA variants such as second-order screened exchange (SOSEX) and RPA with exchange interactions (RPAX2) to be deployed, which are cost-prohibitive for periodic boundary condition quantum mechanical catalysis modeling. Comprehensive benchmarking may facilitate application of these methods (RPA/SOSEX/RPAX2) to ground-state heterogeneous catalysis.
The student will perform quantum simulations, specifically, embedded RPA/SOSEX/RPAX2 calculations), and analyze resulting data, under the supervision of a postdoctoral researcher and a faculty member. The student may participate in the write-up of a manuscript, depending on progress and results. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Emily A. Carter.
Background desired: previous experience with quantum mechanics/chemistry is preferred but not required.
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (flexible: June 3 to July 26, or June 10 to August 2, 2024)
Location: Hybrid preferred to attend in-person research group meetings on campus
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Olivine (e.g., (Mg0.1Fe0.9)2SiO4) is an iron- and magnesium-containing mineral that, upon dissolution, can potentially store dissolved carbon dioxide in water via magnesium carbonate (MgCO3) precipitation and generate hydrogen (H2) via iron (Fe) oxidation. The latter is possible due to the oxidation state of Fe being +2 in the mineral, which can further increase (oxidize) to +3 and concurrently reduce the protons in water to H2. The mechanisms by which these processes proceed are yet to be fully elucidated, much less their simultaneous occurrence and synergy (if at all possible).
Prof. Carter’s (Princeton/PPPL) and Dr. Martirez’ (PPPL) groups are actively exploring a multi-level simulation approach to understand the dynamics of various chemical processes in seawater that lead to CO2 mineralization. They also aim to fully understand, at the atomic scale, the elementary processes involved in CO2 mineralization and H2 production in seawater as mediated by natural occurring mineral rocks, which could help the design of future chemistries and techniques that can accelerate deployment of such a CO2 capture and H2 generation strategy. Because these crucial processes occur at the boundary of the mineral and water, with this project, the student will survey different facets of olivine and assess their stability when in contact with saltwater (approximately 0.5 M sodium chloride). The student will use density functional theory (DFT) to conduct atomic-scale simulations in order to determine the prevailing structures at this critical interface, which will inform the type of chemistry and reaction pathways one needs to explore to understand aforementioned reactions in the future. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Emily A. Carter.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, at Princeton Plasma Physics Lab
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The intern will develop power electronics hardware and control for a piezoelectric soft robot system. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Minjie Chen.
Background desired: Basic Electronic Circuits and Programming Knowledge
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 10 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Accelerating the development of biofuel production processes from renewable lignocellulosic sources is of global importance for combating the climate crisis. Second-generation biofuel processes, where non-food lignocellulosic biomasses are converted to liquid fuels by engineered microbes, are of interest to fill this need. Typical biofuel processes consist of two steps: saccharification and fermentation. In saccharification, cellulase and hemicellulase enzymes are added to lignocellulosic biomass to convert plant cell wall polysaccharides to fermentable sugars. Then these sugars are fermented by metabolically engineered microbes to fuel and chemical products. The strategy of “Consolidated Bio-Processing” (CBP) combines these steps but requires the use of an organism (or consortium of organisms) that both degrades lignocellulose and produces products of interest. In the Conway lab, we are focused on engineering lignocellulosic thermophilic organisms and their enzymes for CBP.
Over the past 15 years, advances have enabled genetic manipulation of thermophilic cellulolytic organisms and demonstrated production of industrially relevant molecules like ethanol and acetone. Yet, gaps still exist in our knowledge of the enzymes from these organisms and their ability to utilize a wide variety of sugars released from biomass. Filling these gaps is necessary to develop these promising organisms as hosts for second-generation biofuel processes. Here we will utilize extremely thermophilic anaerobic Caldicellulosiruptor bescii, the most thermophilic lignocellulose-degrading bacteria known (optimal growth temperatures between 70-78°C), as our host organism to investigate sugar transport and enzyme production. Native and engineered enzymes from C. bescii and related organisms will be investigated for their ability to improve biomass saccharification. And we will engineer strains of C. bescii with altered sugar utilization to explore how diverse sugars are transported into the cell for metabolism. This will enable further work on the metabolic engineering of C. bescii for converting the released sugars into fuel and chemical products. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Jonathan Conway.
Background desired: Science or Engineering majors is preferred. Basic laboratory skills and prior laboratory experience are preferred, but not required. University lab safety and Biosafety trainings are required to be completed prior to the internship start date.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Liquid crystals (LCs) are intermediate phases between liquids and solids, encompassing myriad structures with a range of orientational and positional order. In LCs, the interplay between these ordering parameters and the chemical structure results in interesting optical, electrical and mechanical properties that have led to potential new applications, notably as elastocaloric devices to achieve more efficient solid-state refrigeration devices. Recently, the Davidson group has synthesized a series of monodisperse asymmetric liquid crystals molecules and oligomers. Preliminary investigation has revealed that these systems exhibit a wide range of crystalline and liquid crystalline phases with unusual morphologies. The phases observed (and the transitions between them) can be tuned via changes to the oligomer length and sequence as well as the processing conditions. However, exploring and exploiting the properties of these LC phases require a complete understanding of the LC microstructure. This project will focus on developing processing methods to isolate and stabilize particular LC phases, and subsequently employing polarized optical and X-ray scattering techniques to characterize the internal ordering in these LCs. These studies will help identify and rationalize the properties of these LC oligomers, allowing further optimization of the chemical structure to enhance the elastocaloric effects. We anticipate these studies will enhance the potential of LC materials in solid-state refrigeration system as a replacement for conventional energy intensive cooling methods. Primary supervisor name and title: Clement Chan, Postdoctoral research associate.
Background desired: Most appropriate for a student in chemical engineering, chemistry, physics, or pursing a materials science certificate.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Disordered hyperuniform (DHU) structures are patterns that have shown to be able to create photonic band-gaps, highly reflective spectral regions, that are isotropic in space. The latter property makes the DHU structures interesting for thermal radiation, and related applications such as radiative cooling, etc.
This project first aims at researching the radiative cooling potential of DHU meta-surfaces, followed by modeling, fabrication, and testing. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Claire Gmachl
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Deep decarbonisation of society requires rapid expansion of clean energy supply chains and deployment of clean energy technology capacity across the globe. However, various bottlenecks, constraints and barriers act to limit the speed of the required energy transition, both domestically and internationally, risking achievement of our net-zero emissions goals. This internship will examine recent and ongoing experience in the deployment of renewable electricity and transmission projects, and identify solutions to speeding up deployment. The tasks involved in this internship include:
* Creating a database of recently commissioned and expected energy projects among wind, solar PV, electricity transmission and other key technologies, to examine the growth dynamics domestically and internationally.
* Characterising the capacity, cost, development/construction time, and any constraints on deployment of recent and proposed projects.
* Evaluating the ‘deployment gap’ between recent and proposed projects, and the capacity required by net-zero system models, such as the Net Zero America Project.
* Identifying potential solutions to speeding up deployment of clean energy resources.
Primary supervisor name and title: Associate Research Scholar Dominic Davis
Background desired: Engineering/science and/or finance background would be useful, but open to all disciplines
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Examine fast sintering approaches for manufacturing solid state batteries. The person will look at assembling batteries and electrochemical characterization of performance and properties. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Kelsey Hatzell
Background desired: No prior experience necessary, just a willingness to work in a lab setting.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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The project will develop an experimental platform to understand the mechanism of plasma assisted electrode materials recycling and conduct experimental measurements of species and characterization of battery materials. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Yiguang Ju
Background desired: An understanding of thermodynamic principles or chemical reactions
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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In May, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new regulations to address greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric generating units (EGUs). Two emission control technologies, carbon capture and storage (CCS) and hydrogen turbines, are provided in the guidelines for both new and existing fossil fuel-fired EGUs to achieve ambitious GHG emission reductions. Prof. Jenkins’s research group is working on evaluating the impacts of proposed GHG regulations on the power system. The objective of this project is to 1) estimate how retail electricity prices would be impacted by the proposed regulations and compare outcomes with several alternative GHG mitigation strategies and 2) develop a toolkit for the open-source capacity expansion model, GenX, to estimate the actual impact of modeled results on retail prices, accounting for differences between competitive markets and cost of service markets.
The intern will be expected to 1) understand the purpose and workings of the GenX model; 2) understand the workings of EPA’s Retail Price Model (RPM); 3) run RPM or modify existing RPM based on outputs from GenX; 4) analyze and visualize outputs from both GenX and RPM. Through this internship, the intern will learn how capacity expansion model works and understand how different technologies affect electricity prices. Primary supervisor name and title: Qian Luo, Postdoctoral Researcher.
Background desired: Ideal applicants for this internship would be majoring in a field of science, engineering, economics, or public policy. Experience and proficiency with programming languages (e.g., Python, VBA, or Julia), Excel, and data analysis will be beneficial.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Transforming industrial sectors such as cement and steel is essential to reach net-zero emission targets by 2050. Electricity Centric-multi-sector capacity expansion models (such as MACRO developed by ZERO lab) play a vital role, presenting promising pathways to reach net-zero goals. Within this context, ZERO lab is looking for an intern student (9 weeks) to present decarbonization pathways for the MACRO cement industry, contributing 2% of the total CO2 emitted U.S. It is expected to
- Investigate the present demographic distribution for demand and production for cement in the US.
- Study the present approaches for cement production in the U.S., and its techno-economic and environmental impact.
- Investigate/develop possible production pathways to decarbonize cement production.
- Develop flow models presenting energy, materials, cost, and CO2 emissions for alternative cement production pathways.
- Implement the alternative production pathways in MACRO-multisector-capacity expansion model.
The assessment results will be translated into tables, graphs, and papers. The intern will learn industrial decarbonization pathways in the future macro energy system and use the capacity expansion model for future energy system planning. Primary supervisor name and title: Associate Research Scholar Dr. Dasun Perera.
Background desired: Experience with Julia (or other programming languages), background in process engineering/simulation, and linear programming. Students from Chemical & Biological Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering or Civil and Environmental Engineering majors are encouraged to apply.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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Understanding how charged particles (ions) transport through selective polymer membranes is essential for advancing new electrochemical technologies that support water purification, industrial waste recycling, resource recovery, and clean energy generation. A powerful way to study ion transport is by quantifying activation energy barriers, which normally requires measuring the ionic conductivity of a sample at different temperatures. These measurements can be time-consuming. Preliminary data suggests that there is an alternative method which is faster, equally accurate, and can be done entirely at room temperature. In this project, you will carry out ion conductivity measurements using both methods to demonstrate the validity of the new technique. By collecting activation energies for multiple types of ions, you will also contribute important fundamental knowledge to the study of new selective membranes. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Ryan Kingsbury.
Background desired: Background in basic chemistry (including kinetics) needed. Prior experience in a wet chemistry lab and/or with electrical or electrochemical measurements helpful but not required.
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to July 26, 2024)
Location: In-person, on campus
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We work on building magnetic fusion devices that aim to bring the power of the Sun to Earth for commercial use. The stellarator is one of the leading fusion reactor designs, which is like a twisted 3D torus that uses magnetic fields to hold very hot gas (called a plasma) in place long enough to fuse together, releasing energy. In order to create commercially viable fusion power, stellarator designs must be created which are able to confine the hot plasma long enough for the fusion reactions to occur, as well as meet other physics, cost, and engineering design requirements. This needs optimization over the design space in order to find optimal designs. However, this space is large and hard to search through, so we want to look to statistical or machine learning techniques can help speed up the optimization process.
The Plasma Control group has developed a stellarator equilibrium and optimization code called DESC to help solve this problem. A database of over 100k possible designs has been created using DESC, with the aim of using statistical and/or machine learning techniques to analyze the database and use the information to help find better stellarator designs. The summer project will involve analyzing use data-based techniques to optimize for the best fusion reactor. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Egemen Kolemen
Background desired: Basic coding skills, ideally Python
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: Flexible-may be in-person on campus, hybrid, or remote
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Liquid metals are promising to handle heat loads in nuclear fusion applications. In the Plasma Control Group, we are working on the LMX-U (Liquid Metal eXperiment Upgrade), a liquid metal loop device capable of free-surface liquid metal flow within a magnetic field. The working fluid of LMX-U is Galinstan (an alloy of gallium, indium, and tin), a metal that is a liquid at room temperature, and down to -19˚C.
The main work expected from the intern would be to design upgrades and assist in the experiments on the Liquid Metal Experiment Upgrade (LMX-U). Basic knowledge in Solidworks or CAD software would be ideal, but can be learned. Specific projects can include utilizing diagnostics such as Ultrasound Doppler Velocimetry (UDV) to measure velocities within the flow. The student can assist in running liquid metal experiments and 3D fluid simulations.
What you can get out of this experience:
– Hands-on laboratory experiment experience, diagnostics, data analysis
– Engineering design and prototypingPrimary supervisor name and title: Prof. Egemen Kolemen
Background desired: Prior lab experience is not necessary, just an interest in hands-on lab work. University lab safety training is required to be completed prior to the internship start date.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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Deep decarbonization of society requires rapid expansion of clean energy supply chains and deployment of clean energy technology capacity across the globe. However, various bottlenecks, constraints and barriers act to limit the speed of the required energy transition, both domestically and internationally, risking achievement of our net-zero emissions goals. This internship will examine the supply chain needs of the energy transition and identify solutions for speeding up the availability of critical energy technologies and resources. The tasks involved in this internship include:
– Reviewing current and planned manufacturing/production capacity along the full value chain (from resource extraction to technology manufacture) across the US and internationally, for solar PV, wind, batteries and other key clean energy technologies/resources.
– Characterizing the flow of clean energy technologies into the US and internationally, and any constraints on clean energy supply chains.
– Evaluating the required supply chain capacity (and the ‘supply chain gap’) for the US’ net-zero transition, based on energy system modelling, such as the Net Zero America Project.
– Identifying potential solutions to speeding up deployment of clean energy technology manufacturing capacity and other critical supply chain resources.
Primary supervisor name and title: Associate Research Scholar Dr. Dominic Davis
Background desired: Engineering or Science major with strong interests in the energy transition
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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This summer research opportunity will focus on the discovery and engineering of a class of enzymes, PETases, that have the ability to break down polyethyleneterephthalate (PET) polymers into their monomers building blocks. PET, the plastic used in disposable water bottles, is produced in large amounts but very little of the material is recycled. The enzymes developed in this project can be deployed in processes to more effective recycle PET keep it out of landfills and the ocean. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. A. James Link.
Background desired: Some familiarity with molecular biology is helpful but not required.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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We are working with industry collaborators and faculty across several departments to demonstrate the potential of new cooling technologies that use materials science to enhance the capabilities and performance of radiant heat transfer as designed into building systems and components. Interns will help build experimental models and prototypes of radiant cooling panels and heat pump systems to drive them. Some knowledge of the physics of heat is advantageous, but generally, the Princeton curriculum does not cover radiant heat transfer in depth so as part of the internship interns will be given a deep dive into radiant heat systems. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Forrest Meggers
Background desired: Experience with Arduino or similar microprocessor components and Python and/or C is useful but skills can be gained. Good maker/construction/carpentry skills are very appreciated.
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (flexible: June 3 to July 26, or June 10 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus; some modeling can be done remotely
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Ammonia is a zero-carbon alternative fuel that is more easily transported than hydrogen. Compared to hydrocarbon fuels, ammonia has poor combustion characteristics, which can be improved by partially cracking ammonia into a mixture of ammonia, hydrogen, and nitrogen. The primary challenge with ammonia combustion then is minimizing emissions of nitrogen oxides and nitrous oxide. The goal of this project is to utilize our computational modeling framework to evaluate new ammonia combustion concepts and understand the potential for reducing nitrogen oxides and nitrous oxide. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Michael Mueller
Background desired: Basic Chemistry, Fluid Mechanics, Computing
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to July 26, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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Large Language Model Applications for Environment, Sustainability, and EnergyZ. Jason Ren (CEE/ACEE)
The multidisciplinary nature of grand environmental problems and the ever-changing natural and anthropogenic conditions, demands extensive information retrieval and sophisticated investigations for resolution. However, challenges persist with limited data for hard(expensive)-to-measure variables, and remain significant hinder AI implementation in emerging research topics in environmental science and engineering, such as decarbonization, resources recovery, and emerging contaminant (e.g., PFAS, microplastics) management. To resolve the problem of limited data, transfer learning, a type of ML technique that facilitates the transfer of knowledge acquired from one domain to another, presents a practical and effective solution. Large language models (LLMs) represent an ideal avenue to development, as environmental systems encompass diverse facets that cannot be adequately captured by a single or a few datasets. In contrast, LLMs possess the capability to process information from various sources, types, and formats. In this internship opportunity, the student(s) will have the opportunity to engage the cutting-edge LLM research that is applied to environment, sustainability, and energy through data collection, model development, and fine-tuning. The overall objective of this project is to develop domain-specific LLM for question-answering tests and implementation. Primary supervisor name and title: Junjie Zhu, Associate Research Scholar.
Background desired: General knowledge about environment, sustainability, and energy. Python coding, Google Colab, and cloud computing are preferred.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: Hybrid
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This project will explore the fabrication and testing of nanolaminate organic/inorganic semiconductor hole transport layers and their use in halide perovskite solar cells. The student will make and test these thin film layers in solar cells as well as to determine their ability to transport charge yet block transport of iodine. Primary supervisor name and title: Postdoctoral Fellow Jisu Hong.
Background desired: None required; laboratory safety training prior to the internship is mandatory
Duration: 8 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (flexible: June 3 to July 26, or June 10 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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Zeolites are an industrially indispensable class of solid acid catalysts whose thermal stability, diverse range of pore size and dimensionality, and tunable nature of acid sites make them applicable to a wide range of catalytic applications including natural gas upgrading to liquid products and waste plastic upcycling to fuels and monomers. These two applications utilize zeolites as supports for metal nanoparticles (e.g., Au, Pd, Pt, Ni, Fe, Cu) which perform additional chemistry such as oxidation and/or hydrogenolysis in tandem with zeolitic acid catalysis to achieve the desired overall chemical transformations. Metal nanoparticles can be deposited post-synthetically onto zeolite surfaces or encapsulated within crystallites during hydrothermal crystallization. Since distances and therefore diffusion timescales between functionalities differ for these two metal incorporation techniques, reactant molecule conversions and product selectivities will also differ; however, proximity effects between zeolitic acid and metal nanoparticle functionalities have not been significantly probed for natural gas upgrading or plastic upcycling. To that end, this project will focus on hydrothermal syntheses of zeolite-encapsulated metal nanoparticle catalysts for use in plastic upcycling and/or methane partial oxidation chemistries. Metal precursors will be incorporated in situ during zeolite/zeotype synthesis with varying heteroatoms (e.g., Al, B, Fe, Ga) to modulate strength of acid sites. Catalytic consequences of varying acid strength, metal incorporation method, and presence of meso/macropores will be evaluated as well as their effects on metal nanoparticle encapsulation. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Michele Sarazen.
Background desired: None required, but any lab experience (classes included) is helpful.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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Using the tools of modern dynamic game theory, one comes to the realization that renewable energy does not come at zero cost, financially or environmentally. As long as one cannot rely on widespread efficient battery storage at a large scale, their intermittency causes frequent and significant departures from forecasts, which have consequence on a day-to-day basis. For example, running reserves to protect a grid operation from load shedding and blackouts, caused in part by actual renewable production underperforming forecasts, requires running thermal power plants and dirty peakers. This has obvious financial costs, and environmental costs because of the ensuing carbon emissions. Often the thermals that can be called upon in a pinch are like big car engines in emission terms. Our project is to study the design and impact of a carbon price to re-inform the unit commitment taking minimizing emissions as an additional objective. This future-looking study would thereby not just promote renewable production by their low cost, but also penalize fossil fuel sources for their carbon emissions. Primary supervisor name and title: Prof. Ronnie Sircar.
Background desired: Python programming experience. Statistics, probability & optimization useful.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
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This project investigates the relationship between state-level energy policy and consumers’ engagement with the energy transition, mediated by their perceived level of agency. Interns may assist in constructing a database of nationwide residential consumer energy policies, explore the role of Public Utility Commissions (PUCs) in shaping utility programs across the U.S., explore avenues for public participation in PUCs/utility programs/city-level energy initiatives, assist in extending and validating the energy engagement scale for broader U.S. application, and/or develop an interactive dashboard to host utility programs across the U.S. Those with strong computational skills and/or strong qualitative skills are encouraged to apply. Primary supervisor name and title: Aya Salim, BSPL Lab Manager.
Background desired: Social Science (Psychology, Economics, Sociology, Politics, Public Policy) and/or Computer Science background preferred but not required. Statistical knowledge and coding experience (R/Python) helpful.
Duration: 9 weeks, full-time 35-40 hours/week (June 3 to August 2, 2024)
Location: In person, on campus
Internships with Non-profit and Government Organizations
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Converting residential buildings from using fossil fuels to using efficient electric alternatives is a critical step for mitigating climate change. Individual decision-making, whether by homeowners or multifamily building owners, is important to understand to encourage this conversion. The ACEEE Behavior, Health, and Human Dimensions Program conducts research on energy efficiency from a behavioral perspective and will be examining this topic in two research projects in 2024. The intern will be asked to conduct background literature reviews and preliminary interviews to inform guides for state energy offices on how they can use behavioral science to their advantage. The intern will assist with these projects and others conducted by the Behavior, Health, and Human Dimensions program. As a part of the program, the intern will learn and strengthen their research skills. ACEEE will publish one or both of these studies in 2024 and the intern’s work will be featured in these publications. If the intern has an interest in the health aspects of energy efficiency, internship duties also focus more on projects on that topic within the program. Primary supervisor name and title: Dr. Reuven Sussman, Director of the Behavior, Health and Human Dimensions Program.
Background Required: Experience, skills or knowledge in psychology, behavioral science or public health are preferred but not required. A keen interest in learning, a strong work ethic, and an interest in the topic area is important.
Duration: 10 weeks (May 27 to August 5, 2024)
Location: Washington, D.C. or remote (we prefer intern work in the office at least part of the internship but are flexible).
Application Materials: Include a resume with your application in SAFE.
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Job Description
EDF internships provide high-quality experiences (including relevant projects and opportunities for networking) that form the foundation for any individual who is serious about pursuing an environmental career.
Program/Department Overview
The U.S. Region, led by Joe Bonfiglio, is made up of six teams of talented EDFers working to create bold policies, climate smart regulations and political will in order to stabilize the climate, build thriving communities and sustain human health across the United States.
US Region Initiatives, led by Derek Walker, is home to many U.S.-focused projects including clean energy, domestic methane, state carbon markets, ZEVs, energy decarbonization, western water, smart agriculture and health. Staff nested here will pull together matrixed teams across EDF to execute our strategies on these organizational priorities. Within this division, the Federal Climate Innovation (FCI) Team is focused on designing and advancing federal policy for climate innovation that promotes rapid, safe, and equitable development and deployment of new climate technologies and solutions.
Overall Function
The Federal Climate Innovation team seeks an intern to help us deepen and expand the impact of this platform, including by contributing research specific on each of the anticipated hydrogen and DAC hubs. The intern’s work would be built into high-quality projects that can be embedded into the BetterHubs platform and provide concrete deliverables to demonstrate the intern’s achievements. Examples include a report and blogs on the BetterHubs platform. The role will report to the Senior Policy Analyst, Federal Climate Innovation. It will require extensive qualitative data analysis of publicly available information about the hubs, as well as careful consideration of equity and justice implications of hub design and implementations strategies.
Key Responsibilities
Tasks will include but are not limited to:
- Work with the FCI Team and external consultants to research specific hydrogen and DAC hubs in various geographies across the country, utilizing publicly available information.
- Interact across various EDF teams and with external stakeholders, including government officials and other subject matter experts.
- Collaboratively define performance criteria, analyze hubs’ performance against the established BetterHubs objectives and synthesize key insights for EDF advocacy.
- Provide support to the team in drafting hub-specific talking points and participate in meetings with broad groups of stakeholders regarding hub deployments.
- Provide additional analytical support to the team as needed in a fast-paced and exciting environment.
- Participate in advancing EDF Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals in which people from all backgrounds and experiences feel connected, included, and empowered to address the environmental and organizational challenges in alignment with EDF values.
Qualifications
- Demonstrated interest in federal policy and technological innovation.
- Demonstrated attention to detail and the ability to manage and analyze quantitative data (e.g., quantitative sciences, policy analysis).
- Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and the ability to think creatively about collecting and categorizing data.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
- Must be well-organized, motivated, and detail-oriented.
- Ability to multi-task, prioritize, and meet deadlines.
- Ability to work collaboratively and proactively in a team setting and ability to work independently when projects are due.
- Demonstrated self-awareness, cultural competency and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across diverse cultures and backgrounds.
- Demonstrated initiative and problem-solving skills.
Duration: 10 weeks, (35 hrs/week)
Location: Hybrid out of Washington, D.C. (preferred) or U.S. Remote.
Application Materials: Interested applicants should attach their cover letter and resume to their application in SAFE.
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Job Description
EDF internships provide high-quality experiences (including relevant projects and opportunities for networking) that form the foundation for any individual who is serious about pursuing an environmental career.
Program/Department Overview
EDF envisions a world in which people from all backgrounds and experiences feel connected to the environmental challenges we face and are engaged in creating durable, equitable solutions. EDF has long been a leading voice on the design of U.S. climate policy and a champion of market-based solutions to environmental issues, including programs to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants. We helped design the sulfur dioxide cap-and-trade program; were instrumental in passing and implementing California’s emission trading system under its AB32 law; and played a lead role in the effort to pass comprehensive climate legislation in the U.S. Congress in 2009-2010. EDF’s U.S. team continues to be at the center of this policy analysis and development, incorporating economic, scientific, and legal expertise to secure effective and equitable policy change at the state, federal, and regional levels to curb climate and conventional pollution. This work will support the Build to Zero Initiative and the Decarbonizing US Power workstream.
Overall Function
Reporting to the Director of the California Energy Program, this intern will support EDF’s engagements in fostering a western wide energy market. The intern will support technical, policy, and economic analysis. In addition to general support for the west-wide governance pathways initiative, the intern will support and have direct input into original work to be mutually agreed upon.
Key Responsibilities
Tasks will include but are not limited to:
- Research on electricity market structures and how to import best practices to the western electricity market.
- Support work with a diverse set of public interest stakeholders.
- Prepare notes and comment summaries to stakeholders.
- Support in conducting quantitative emissions and affordability research.
Participate in advancing EDF Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals in which people from all backgrounds and experiences feel connected, included, and empowered to address the environmental and organizational challenges in alignment with EDF values.
Background Desired:
- Enrolled in an undergraduate degree program and/or demonstrated interest in energy, economics, public policy, engineering or other related fields.
- Coursework in economics, public policy, energy or negotiations recommended.
- Experience in energy issues is preferred.
- Basic proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
- Must be well organized, motivated, and detail oriented.
- Ability to multi-task, prioritize and meet deadlines.
- Ability to work in a team setting and have the ability to work independently when projects are due. • Demonstrate self-awareness, cultural competency and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across diverse cultures and backgrounds.
- Demonstrate initiative and problem-solving skills.
Duration: 10 weeks, (35 hrs/week)
Location: Hybrid out of San Francisco or U.S. Remote.
Application Materials: Interested applicants should attach their cover letter and resume to their application in SAFE.
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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), located in Washington, D.C., regulates interstate sales of electricity and transmission of electricity. FERC also promotes strong national energy infrastructure, including adequate transmission facilities. FERC’s Office of Energy Market Regulation, Division of Electric Power Regulation analyzes regulatory filings involving Regional Transmission Organization (RTO)/Independent System Operator (ISO) wholesale electricity markets and other electric rate matters related to wholesale energy sales and transmission of electric energy in interstate commerce.
The intern will learn about the fundamentals of wholesale electricity markets from FERC experts, participate in interdisciplinary teams analyzing regulatory filings, and work with a mentor to define an independent research project at the intersection of engineering, economics, and policy. At the conclusion of the internship, the intern will present their research findings to the Office of Energy Market Regulation’s senior leadership. Past research topics include: (1) participation rules for new energy technologies, including renewables, demand response, and storage resources in electricity markets; (2) transmission expansion required to achieve decarbonization goals; and (3) electricity market reforms necessary to integrate distributed energy resources. Primary supervisor name and title: Doug Roe, Manager.
Background Required: Enrolled in a bachelor’s program in engineering, economics, or related field. The ideal candidate will have a demonstrated interest in electricity markets and previous energy-related coursework, research, or work experience. Must be a U.S. citizen.
Duration: 10 weeks (flexible start and end dates), 40 hours per week.
Location: This position is hybrid. Interns are expected to come in person at least once per week (typically, Wednesdays). Located in Washington, D.C.
Application Materials: Include a cover letter and resume with your application in SAFE. The internship is contingent upon the successful completion of a background investigation.
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If you are passionate about water issues and environmental equity, please consider joining our Moonshot Missions team! Moonshot Missions is led by George Hawkins, a visionary leader in the water sector and well known for transforming DC Water into an innovative, customer-driven enterprise. We are a small but rapidly growing non-profit start-up, working directly to improve drinking water quality and wastewater services, as well as affordability and resiliency for underserved communities. Whether you are just launching your career or looking to broaden your experience in the water industry, becoming part of the Moonshot Missions team will enable you to work alongside veteran water leaders, make a direct impact on our sector, while helping to ensure safe and clean water is delivered to the people who need it most! To learn more about us visit: www.moonshotmissions.org.
Moonshot Missions seeks an intern to serve as a technical resource to the organization, reporting to a Senior Utility Advisor and/or a Managing Director, and to support the research team. The associate will apply research and knowledge to address the challenges facing drinking water and wastewater utilities, particularly in economically distressed communities. Moonshot Missions is currently working on topics related to environmental equity, such as drinking water and wastewater operational optimization and affordability, providing access to clean water in communities across the U.S. Our work aims to level the playing field in the water sector, so every American has access to clean and affordable drinking water and sanitation services. Primary supervisor name and title: Gloria Cadavid, Chief of Operations.
Job Duties:
– Conduct research on water and wastewater utilities using publicly available information.
– Review and interpret documents highlighting the operational, managerial, and financial characteristics of prospective and current utility clients.
– Identify economic, social, and environmental characteristics of the communities served by utilities.
– Research and participate in learning about field-tested and innovative water and wastewater utility solutions that can improve service delivery and reduce costs for Moonshot Missions utility clients.
– Develop Moonshot Missions modules, and standard guidance documents that provide solutions and steps to implementation for specific water and wastewater utility issues that can be applied by and among utility clients. -Support the Moonshot Missions team in engaging with prospective and current utility clients, including the evaluation and identification of potential utility challenges and recommendations of effective and field-tested solutions.
– Research potential funding sources and opportunities to support the implementation of client utility projects.
– Support Moonshot Mission’s partnerships with various organizations that align with the Moonshot Missions’ vision and mission.
– Engage with utility sector experts to provide field-tested solutions to Moonshot Missions utility clients.
– Collaborate with the Moonshot Missions team to deliver optimal services to utility clients.
– Conduct additional research of publicly available information as required and prepare written reports
Background Required:
-Strong interest in the water and wastewater utility sector, specifically related to the engineering, operations, and maintenance of these systems.
– Ability to identify and review technical studies, interpreting and extracting relevant information.
– Effective written and verbal communication skills, ability to present technical information in clear, easy-to-understand language.
– Ability to interact positively in an evolving, fast-paced team environment.
Duration: 10 weeks (May 27 to August 1, 2024)
Location: Remote
Application Materials: Include a resume and cover letter with your application in SAFE.
application instructions
Applications must be submitted via SAFE.
Activity Type: Undergraduate Internships
Period: Summer Break
Opportunity: Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment Undergraduate Summer Internships
- For internships with faculty members chosen from the list of available projects, include with the application: a copy of your transcript and a copy of your resume/CV. Though it is not required, we recommend contacting the faculty member whose internship you plan to apply for to let them know you are interested and find out additional details about the project.
- For self-initiated, internships with faculty members, include with the application: a project description of no more than two pages, a note from the faculty member who has agreed to supervise your project, a budget for project materials if needed, a copy of your transcript and a copy of your resume/CV. Indicate whether the project will be worked on in person or remotely.
- For internships with non-profit organizations, include with the application: a copy of your transcript and a copy of your resume/CV. If the internship is located outside of Princeton, include your anticipated travel expenses in the budget section. Applications for internships with these non-profits and government agencies are reviewed by the host organization in addition to Princeton faculty and program coordinators in order to determine the most suitable candidates for each position. The host organization may contact the student to arrange a telephone or Zoom interview. **Please carefully review the application requirements–some of these opportunities also require a cover letter and/or writing sample.**
Important things to note about the SAFE application form:
- In the Budget section, put $1.00 if you do not have travel expenses or project materials to include. The stipend is a set amount meant to help cover your summer living expenses, so there is no need to estimate your summer lodging or food costs, but the form cannot be submitted without a dollar amount.
- In the “Project Details” section, under “Internship Title” put the specific title of the internship for which you are applying.
- Be sure to complete the “Undergraduate Internships Questions” section. If a “Supervisor of Internship” is not listed in the internship description on our site, you do not need to fill this out.
Check that your application is submitted and locked before the January 8, 2024 final deadline. Incomplete and/or draft applications will not be considered.
If you have any questions about the application process, contact Moira Selinka, Program Manager, Education and Outreach, at mselinka@princeton.edu.