Dr. Samuel Mao joins Khalifa University as the new Senior Director of Masdar Institute to bring his extensive experience in developing cutting-edge technologies, and promoting international collaboration and global commercialization of energy and environmental technologies to the UAE.
In July, Dr. Mao delivered a lecture on KU Main Campus discussing the route from innovation to commercialization for sustainable energy technologies. He covered the research of solar-driven photocatalytic hydrogen, and the commercialization of the world’s first lithium battery-powered heavy-duty hybrid electric truck.
Dr. Mao’s ambitions for Masdar Institute and Khalifa University at large center around delivering sustainable energy technologies to industry as well as academia. His main focus is ensuring the efforts and innovations of staff and researchers at the university can be optimally commercialized.
After receiving his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in 2000, Dr. Mao established the Institute of New Energy in Shenzhen, China, and began helping to commercialize sustainable energy technology. His background and experience over the last ten years will see him drive similar efforts at Masdar Institute and benefit the university beyond its contributions to science and academia.
Dr. Mao has published 160 research articles that have received more than 42,000 citations, and is the holder of 80 patents in the United States and abroad. In addition to co-founding three international materials and energy technology conferences, he also speaks globally and serves as a technical committee member, program review panelist, grant proposal evaluator, and national laboratory observer for the US Department of Energy.
Jade Sterling
News and Features Writer
26 January 2020
