Bloom Energy is proud to announce that our Chief Technical Officer, Dr. Ravi Prasher, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Membership in the NAE is one of the highest professional honors for engineers. It’s also highly exclusive, with new initiates elected to the organization by current members to honor their outstanding contributions to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.” In their announcement, the NAE honored Prasher specifically for his “development of thermal management technologies for microelectronics and the decarbonization of thermal energy systems.”
“Cooling and heating accounts for roughly 50 percent of end use of energy and are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Prasher. “Additionally, rising temperatures are significantly driving up the demand for cooling. Today, virtually all cooling is enabled by using electricity. Big power users, such as data centers use up to 40 percent of their electricity for cooling. The electrically enabled cooling uses hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), highly potent greenhouse gases, as refrigerants. Therefore, I am humbled by this honor from NAE for acknowledging my contributions to decarbonizing this sector.”
Prasher added “One of the main reasons I decided to join Bloom Energy as CTO in 2022 was to integrate advanced combined cooling and heating options to Bloom’s robust Energy Server platform.”
“Ravi’s election to the National Academy of Engineering is a testament to his unparalleled expertise and dedication to advancing engineering excellence,” said KR Sridhar, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Bloom Energy and NAE member himself. “His contributions have been instrumental in driving Bloom Energy’s innovation and leadership in the energy sector. He led the development of our advanced combined heat and power system which enables net-zero cooling and heating needs for end customers such as data centers and the industrial sector. It also eliminates the need for using HFCs as refrigerants, thereby further reducing greenhouse gas emissions”
The NAE’s announcement of the new members, including Prasher, signifies a significant milestone in his illustrious career. In addition to his role at Bloom Energy, Prasher serves as an adjunct professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UC Berkeley, where he mentors Ph.D. candidates. Prior to his tenure at Bloom Energy, Prasher held pivotal positions including Associate Lab Director of the Energy Technology Area at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), where he spearheaded research and development across various energy sectors. He spent more than a decade at Intel corporation leading their microelectronics cooling research and development and was part of the founding team of US DOE’s high-risk high-reward funding agency ARPA-E.
His research and development work has spanned the areas of applied physics, science of thermal materials, and technology development related to liquid cooling of chips which is becoming increasingly important for AI Chips and decarbonization technologies, including carbon free hydrogen.
Individuals in the NAE’s newly elected class, including Prasher, will be formally inducted into the organization during their annual meeting on Sept. 29, 2024. To see the full list of new members, you can go to the NAE website.
