Juan Pablo Trelles

Juan Pablo Trelles is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the Francis College of Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell. He serves as the Director of the Graduate Program in Energy Engineering and leads the Re-Engineered Energy Laboratory (REng|Lab), which focuses on developing renewable and sustainable energy solutions through fundamental and applied research.

Dr. Trelles earned his educational credentials from prestigious institutions: a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota (2007), an M.S. in Energy Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Lowell (2003), and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería in Lima, Peru (2001). Before joining UMass Lowell in 2012, he worked as a Senior Software Engineer at Intel Corporation in Hillsboro, Oregon.

His research focuses on devising concepts, methods, and devices for the direct use of solar energy and electrical energy in industrial processes, ranging from the synthesis of high-value chemicals and materials to the modification of materials and surfaces. A fundamental aspect of Trelles' research is the combination of experimental and computational approaches to achieve impactful understanding. His group develops strategies for solving transport problems at the core of most energy systems, which typically involve multi-scale and multi-physics phenomena. These methods have been applied to analyze diverse plasma flows, thermal systems, radiation transport, and multi-phase problems.

Dr. Trelles' recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on plasma-based energy conversion technologies, particularly for CO₂ conversion, hydrogen production, and ammonia synthesis. His work bridges computational modeling with experimental validation, emphasizing sustainable chemical synthesis using renewable energy sources. Key research themes include solar-plasma reactors, non-thermal plasma applications, computational fluid dynamics of plasma systems, and waste-to-energy conversion processes.

Scientific Awards

• Early Career Research Award (2017) - U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Science
• CAREER Award (2015) - U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF)
• Logic Technology Development Division Award (2011) - Technology Manufacturing Group, Intel Corporation

Dr. Trelles has successfully advised numerous graduate students, with 11 PhD graduates and 3 Master's graduates to date, and currently mentors 4 PhD students. His laboratory, the Re-Engineered Energy Laboratory (REng|Lab), investigates processes based on concentrated solar energy and plasma technologies for sustainable chemical synthesis. Current projects include nonthermal plasma hydrogen production from polymeric waste, plasma catalysis for ammonia synthesis, solar-enhanced plasma-chemical synthesis, and modeling of atmospheric pressure columnar discharges.