Jack Brouwer
American engineer at UCI
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jacob A. Brouwer (born December 26, 1965) is an American engineer and hydrogen fuel cell researcher.[1][2][3] He is Chancellor's Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) and former director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center from 2018 to 2022.[4][5] Since 2022, he is director of the UCI Clean Energy Institute.
Jacob A. Brouwer | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 26, 1965 |
| Academic background | |
| Education | University of California, Irvine (BS, MS) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD) |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | UC Irvine Clean Energy Institute |
| Main interests | |
| Website | eng.uci.edu/jack-brouwer |
Career
Brouwer studied mechanical engineering at the University of California, Irvine, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1987 and a master's degree in 1989.[6] He graduated with a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1993, where he was also a postdoctoral research fellow.
In 1993, he left MIT to join the University of Utah as an assistant professor. He served as a member of the technical staff at Reaction Engineering International, a consulting firm, and as a staff scientist at Sandia National Laboratories.[7] Brouwer joined UC Irvine in 1997 as the associate director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center.[8] He became assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering in 2011[9] before being appointed a chancellor's fellow in 2022 with joint appointments in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering as well as Civil and Environmental Engineering.[10]
His research focuses on high-temperature electrochemistry, hydrogen fuel cells, and electrolyzers.[11] He also studies renewable energy system dynamics and infrastructure for hydrogen production and storage.[12][13] His research applications focus primarily on the net-zero emissions systems and energy grid of California,[14] where his work has informed policy on electric vehicles.[15][16][17] He is a member of the Center for Hydrogen Safety at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.[18]