Iryna Zenyuk

Polytechnic Alumni Association - International Board of Directors

(Term ending August 31, 2025)

Iryna Zenyuk is now an Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California Irvine (UCI). She is also an Associate Director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center at UCI, where her mission is to accelerate the development and deployment of renewable hydrogen energy technologies. Iryna graduated from Polytechnic University (now NYU Tandon School of Engineering) with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering (2008), summa cum laude. She continued her studies at Carnegie Mellon University, where she earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees.

Iryna was a postdoctoral fellow at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), investigating energy conversion and storage. She joined Tufts University as an Assistant Professor from 2015-2018 and moved to UCI in 2018. She has authored more than 70 journal publications in the electrochemical technologies area and has given more than 90 invited presentations. She directs a research group whose aim is to develop technologies that will decarbonize historically difficult sectors such as chemical manufacturing, aviation, shipping, and long-haul transportation to reach a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.

She is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award (2017), Interpore Society Fraunhofer Award for Young Researchers (2017), Research Corporation for Science Advancement Scialog Fellowship in Advanced Energy Storage (2017-2019), Electrochemical Society (ECS) Toyota Young Investigator Award (2018), UCI Samueli School of Engineering Early Career Faculty Excellence in Research Award (2019), ECS Energy Technology Division Srinivasan Young Investigator Award (2021), and UCI Beal Applied Innovations Early Career Innovator of the Year honors (2021).

As a dedicated teacher and researcher, Iryna is excited to see the NYU Tandon School of Engineering’s recent growth and strategic plan targeting key global challenges, including sustainability and renewable energy. As a member of the International Board of Directors, Iryna hopes to guide students and provide insight into academic career pathways including graduate schools. Iryna is committed to sustainability and would like to work with NYU Tandon School of Engineering students and alumni to enable sustainable solutions to energy, manufacturing, and other sectors through innovative engineering.