Dr. Maryam Younessi Sinaki, an assistant professor of practice with the department of Mechanical Engineering, was selected as a recipient of the Faculty Explorer award in the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) EnergyTech University Prize 2024 Faculty Track! She is one of 10 faculty from various universities across the US to receive this award. 

The EnergyTech University Prize (EnergyTech UP) has traditionally focused on growing student awareness of promising energy technologies and their commercialization potential, then asking students to propose a business plan to bring this technology to market. This year, the competition expanded to incorporate faculty-focused programming. The new Faculty Track asks collegiate faculty to develop and implement educational activities to engage more students in energy technology commercialization and entrepreneurship topics at their institutions. "As the faculty leader for this Faculty team, Dr. Maryam Younessi Sinaki is the key to increasing student learning centered around energy entrepreneurship and commercialization at Cleveland State University and beyond. I once again offer my congratulations for their successful participation in this impactful program," stated Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan, Chief Commercialization Officer, U.S. Department of Energy Director, Office of Technology Transitions.

Dr. Younessi developed an interest in mechanical engineering due to an early love for mechanics and mathematics. After completing her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering, she worked for several years in industry. This included conducting projects related to the operation and overhaul of boilers, steam turbines and gas turbines; the design of innovative rotary engines; and the optimization of cooling towers. She ultimately decided to pursue her passion for working in academia and continued her doctoral studies at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Her Ph.D. research focused on the production of hydrogen using methane. Due to the multidisciplinary nature of this research, she gained experience in the areas of kinetic modeling and combustion, two phase liquid solid flows and fluidization, catalytic processes and numerical modeling. After completing her Ph.D., she worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Akron before joining the Washkewicz College of Engineering in 2017. Her teaching philosophy is based on the idea that any subject in engineering can be interesting to students if they learn its application.

Therefore, her courses include a significant number of practical problems and group work, so students can see for themselves how engineering concepts and mathematical equations actually operate in the real world. Her efforts led to her earning the Most Outstanding Mechanical Engineering Faculty Member Award in 2018 and 2023.

Apart from teaching, Dr. Younessi is currently organizing the Thermodynamics Laboratory for use as an educational tool and as a research resource for students and faculty. Her own scholarly interests are mostly in the energy field, including numerical modeling of energy systems for investigating their performance and design.

Announcement of this award can be found on the Department of Energy website here.

Learn more about our Mechanical Engeering program here.

About CSU and the Washkewicz College of Engineering 

Cleveland State University is a public institution in Cleveland, Ohio. The university has over 16,000 students enrolled in programs at the baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral levels. The University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Washkewicz College of Engineering offers graduate and undergraduate programs. The undergraduate programs are accredited by ABET. The College recently celebrated its Centennial Anniversary. To learn more about our College, please visit: engineering.csuohio.edu.