Gaurav Kamat | Student Spotlight

Gaurav Kamat
Ph.D. ‘24
Chemical Engineering
Jaramillo Lab
"Growing up, my parents would often find me tinkering in the garage, using pantry items as chemical reagents, or building intricate contraptions that most kids would find daunting. I’ve always had an affinity for building things, ever intrigued by the journey you go on when you’re creating something new, from scratch. This affinity for building continued to grow as I pursued a degree in Chemical Engineering at UC-Berkeley – I learned how to frame and understand global challenges and the fundamental principles that govern them. I remember one of my first professors saying “Chemical Engineers design functional processes at every length scale – from tiny nanoparticles for drug delivery to miles-long petrochemical processing facilities. There is no other discipline that is so powerful in its ability to change the world around us, yet that power must be used with great caution.”
Being a California resident for most of my life, I grew up experiencing climate change first-hand, seeing wildfires and their destructive capabilities. Even recently in the dire events in Los Angeles, we have seen the sustained impacts of our modern energy production techniques, in part, on the environment. I recognized from early on that climate change is one of the most defining global challenges of our time. My undergraduate career had many elements of sustainable principles for energy built in, such as a capstone design project that tasked us with designing a water electrolyzer that would enable the production of green hydrogen. I decided that the next step in my academic journey needed to be one where I could learn to develop independence, as a scientist, and create sustainable technologies that would change our paradigm of energy production. A PhD seemed like the clear choice, a degree where you have the propensity to continue gaining in-depth knowledge, while developing independence as a researcher and an engineer.
During PhD interviews, I came across Dr. Thomas Jaramillo’s lab at Stanford University. It became very clear to me that Prof. Jaramillo’s work spanned everything from understanding the fundamentals of electrocatalysis, to using that understanding to create deployable technologies that had an impact in the field. Aside from the science, I appreciated how inclusive Prof. Jaramillo and lab members were, and I saw how the team sought to collaborate, both amongst lab members, and with industry partners – I knew it was a team I would learn a lot from. My undergraduate experience in catalyst synthesis for CO2 transformation to fuels seemed to be a great complement for the hydrogen fuel cell project in the lab, which was an active collaboration with the Toyota Research Institute. In this project, I truly learned how our understanding and intuition of electrocatalysis only scratched the surface – new variables and unforeseen challenges arose as we started working towards adapting the technology for a deployable product. Despite the advances that are yet to be made, it was clear that green hydrogen technologies had the potential to make a sizable, global impact.
I sought to learn more about these technologies and found a home at Stanford’s Hydrogen Club, a diverse group of individuals who were passionate about the role of hydrogen in decarbonizing the world’s energy systems. I had the opportunity to attend forums with fellow scientists, industry experts, and policy makers, who broadened my understanding of the multi-faceted challenges facing hydrogen technology development. One of my fondest memories was attending industry tours through Hydrogen Club, particularly startups in the space. I could feel the excitement and innovation around me, not to mention the sheer amount of fun they were having as a team. I had never considered the idea of a startup; however, being exposed to the interdisciplinary environment at ChemE and Stanford more broadly, it seemed like a path forward to make novel ideas a reality. Of the many lasting friendships I made at Stanford, I suppose it shouldn’t have been too surprising that one of them evolved into that of a co-founder.
When my co-founder and I embarked on this journey, we sought to design something that wouldn’t upend our current system of energy distribution, rather something that would remove the need for fossil fuels in a manner that is compatible with existing infrastructure. We were fortunate to harness the widespread connection with industry experts that Stanford possessed, particularly to validate our approach and its implementation. We enrolled in courses such as Startup Garage and Stanford Climate Ventures, through which we received immense mentorship and guidance. Our idea evolved into a company called Circularity Fuels, where we strive to create fuels that are 0% fossil, but 100% drop-in compatible with current energy consumption practices to enable rapid progress to net-zero carbon emissions. I am extremely grateful to have had this idea grow during my time at Stanford, and I strongly believe that my PhD experiences contributed to where I am headed today. I hope to use all that I have learned to make a lasting impact and to change how we approach challenges in energy production and climate change."