Michael Martin is a nationally-recognized expert in fluid mechanics and heat transfer in engineering systems who applies this expertise to problems in sustainability, ranging from green steelmaking to energy efficiency in quantum computing. He joined NREL in 2017 after holding research positions at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, NASA-Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Louisiana State University, as well as policy positions with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research and the U.S. Senate. He also has several laboratory planning roles, including serving as NREL’s practicum coordinator for the DOE Computational Science Graduate Fellowship (CSGF), representing NREL in the HPC4EI program, and serving on the directorate’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Team. 

Research Interests

Green manufacturing

Supercritical carbon dioxide systems

Computational heat transfer and fluid dynamics

Thermal management

Quantum computing

Education

Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan

M.S., Science and Technology Studies, Virginia Tech 

M.A., East Asian Studies, University of Michigan

M.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan

B.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Florida

Professional Experience

ASME Congressional Science and Engineering Fellow, United States Senate (2016–2017)

AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow, U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, Advanced Scientific Computing Research (2014–2016)

Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Louisiana State University (2008–2014)

Summer Faculty Fellow, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (2009–2012) 

Postdoctoral Researcher, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (2006–2008) 

Associations and Memberships

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)

American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Member, Energy and Public Policy Committee

National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).  New Voices Program

Featured Work

Exploring the Limits of Empirical Correlations for the Design of Energy Systems With Complex Fluids: Liquid Sulfur Thermal Energy Storage as a Case Study, Journal of Energy Resources Technology (2023)

Energy Use in Quantum Data Centers: Scaling the Impact of Computer Architecture, Qubit Performance, Size, and Thermal Parameters, IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Charging (2022)

Modeling Subsurface Performance of a Geothermal Reservoir Using Machine Learning, Energies (2022)

How Equation of State Selection Impacts Accuracy Near the Critical Point: Forced Convection Supercritical CO2 Flow Over a Cylinder, The Journal of Supercritical Fluids (2021)

Measurement of Variation of Momentum Accommodation Coefficients with Molecular Mass and Structure, Journal of Thermophysics and Heat Transfer (2019)

2015 Department of Energy Quadrennial Technology Review (2015) 

Momentum and heat transfer in laminar slip flow over a cylinder, AIAA Journal of Thermophysics and Heat Transfer (2013)

 

Awards and Honors

Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2023

Milton Van Dyke Award, American Physical Society, 2022

New Voices Cohort 2, The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2021

American Society of Mechanical Engineers Congressional Fellowship, 2016

The Secretary’s Appreciation Award, US Department of Energy, 2016

Associate Fellow, American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2014