Dr. Akanksha Menon is an Assistant Professor in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech, where she directs the Water-Energy Research Lab (WERL). Prior to this, she was a Rosenfeld Postdoctoral Fellow at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), where she continues to be a Research Affiliate. Dr. Menon also has as a Joint Faculty Appointment at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Her research focuses on decarbonizing water and energy (heat) systems by leveraging advances at the intersection of thermal engineering and materials science. Dr. Menon is a proud Yellow Jacket, having received her M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech.
Dr. Menon is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, ACS-PRF Doctoral New Investigator Award, and the ASME – Pi Tau Sigma Gold Medal for her contributions to the field of mechanical engineering. Dr. Menon also leads two DOE projects focused on thermochemical energy storage for heat decarbonization as part of the Energy Earthshots initiative. Dr. Menon is passionate about teaching and mentoring students, and she was selected for the Class of 1969 Teaching Fellows cohort. She has also been featured by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as part of their Woman @ Energy series, the Restore Our Earth panel, and the Peggy Smedley Show.