Meet the Tarpeh Lab

A multidisciplinary team working across chemical engineering, materials science, environment engineering, mechanical engineering, and chemistry to turn wastewater into resources.

Principal Investigator

William Tarpeh

Dr. William Tarpeh is an associate professor of chemical engineering at Stanford University. The Tarpeh Lab develops and evaluates novel approaches to resource recovery from “waste” waters at several synergistic scales: molecular mechanisms of chemical transport and transformation; novel unit processes that increase resource efficiency; and systems-level assessments that identify optimization opportunities. Will completed his B.S. in chemical engineering at Stanford and his M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental engineering at UC Berkeley, supported by an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship, and a UC Berkeley Chancellor's Fellowship. He conducted postdoctoral training at University of Michigan in environmental engineering. Will’s honors include a MacArthur Fellowship, an NSF CAREER Award, the Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award, Paul Busch Award, Electrochemical Society Young Investigator Fellowship and AIChE 35 Under 35 and Environmental Division Early Career Awards. Tarpeh's CV is available here.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Pingyu is a postdoctoral scholar in the Tarpeh lab. He obtained his PhD in materials science and engineering from Stanford University where he developed technologies for interfacing with the retina for high-acuity vision restoration. Inspired by the transformative role of sensor technologies in healthcare, Pingyu is excited to bring these technological advances to environmental sensing and monitoring. In the Tarpeh lab, he is developing a low-cost, continuous, and autonomous sensing platform for nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas 300 times stronger than carbon dioxide. He uses a user-centered approach to tailor the technology development to meet the demands of the real world. Outside the lab, Pingyu enjoys thrifting and listening to old vinyl records, experimenting with various coffee-making techniques, trying new cooking recipes, and cuddling with his cat Java.
Email: pingyu(at)stanford(dot)edu

Samay is a postdoctoral researcher in the Tarpeh Group studying molecular electrocatalysts for the capture and conversion of wastewater-borne nitrate. He earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley, where he studied regenerative fuel cells in Dr. Adam Weber’s group at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. He earned Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University under the advisement of Prof. Jingguang Chen, and his doctoral research focused on developing tandem reactor systems for the sustainable conversion of carbon dioxide into valuable products, including aromatic hydrocarbons and carbon nanomaterials. Outside of the lab, Samay is an avid runner, and he enjoys cycling, hiking, cooking, and going for walks with his dog, Bucky.

Mike Baird is a Stanford Energy Postdoctoral Scholar working jointly between the Tarpeh and Xia labs to develop electrolytic membrane reactors for battery waste upcycling. Mike obtained Ph.D in chemistry from University of California, Berkeley in 2024, where he worked in the laboratory of Brett Helms to synthesize microporous polymer membranes and sorbents for lithium extraction from natural feedstocks which are highly dilute in the target species. Prior to his doctoral training, Mike recieved a B.S. in chemistry from University of California, Riverside. Outside the lab, Mike enjoys playing golf, snowboarding, and spending time with family.
Email: bairdm(at)stanford(dot)edu

Carlos is a postdoctoral researcher working in the design of electrochemical systems for converting nitrogenous species in wastewater and gaseous emissions into ammonia. He earned both his B.S. (2018) and Ph.D. (2024) in Mechanical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. His Ph.D. research, under the guidance of Prof. Marta C. Hatzell, focused on advancing decarbonized, decentralized, and electrified ammonia production systems and developing integrated solutions for carbon capture and conversion to fuels and chemicals. Outside of his research, Carlos enjoys cycling, skiing, and kitesurfing.
Email: carlosfo(at)stanford(dot)edu

Veronica is an A*STAR International Postdoctoral Fellow in the Tarpeh Lab. Her research focuses on developing actuatable hydrogels adsorbents for the recovery and remediation of valuable resources, including lithium and phosphate, from wastewater. She obtained her Ph.D. in Chemistry from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore in 2026, under the supervision of Prof. Lee Hiang Kwee. Her doctoral research focused on developing magnetically actuatable hydrogel–metal nanoparticle conjugates for portable trace pollutant sensing using multimodal techniques, and sustainable wastewater remediation. Outside the lab, Veronica enjoys traveling, practicing yoga, and trying new foods.

PhD Students

Joyce is a PhD student in Materials Science and Engineering. She is from the suburbs of New Jersey and received her B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from MIT. In the Tarpeh Lab, she is interested in selective resource recovery and regeneration using adsorbents and incorporating systems-level analysis into her work. In her free time, she enjoys reading, painting, and trying vegan recipes.
Email: anjoyce(at)stanford(dot)edu

Uran is a PhD student in Chemistry. She was born in Michigan and raised in Japan/Belgium. She received her B.S. in Chemistry from Michigan State University. She is interested in homogeneous molecular catalyst design for understanding the nitrate reduction mechanism. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, baking, running, crocheting, and rock climbing.
Email: iwataura(at)stanford(dot)edu

Daniel is a PhD student in Chemistry. He grew up in Madison County, Iowa raising Christmas trees on his family's tree farm. He earned a B.S. in Chemistry at Iowa State University. Because his home state is dependent on agriculture and stricken with nitrogen-polluted waterways, Daniel hopes the research he does in the Tarpeh lab can enable humans to more sustainably manage nitrogen cycles. Daniel is a self-described theatre kid, band kid, choir nerd, board game enthusiast, Star Trek fan, and plant geek.
Email: dkhowell(at)stanford(dot)edu

Ouriel is a PhD student in the Civil and Environmental Engineering department. She is passionate about water treatment technologies, chemical purification processes, and transformation of waste into high value products. Her research journey started at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where she obtained her B.S. in Chemical Engineering. Before joining Stanford, she earned her M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Princeton University. Outside of research, she engages in various academic mentoring and engagement programs that support the next generation of leaders at both the national and international levels.

Victoria is a PhD student in Chemical Engineering. She was born and raised in Tallahassee, FL, and received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is interested in using process engineering to inform the efficient recovery of resources from wastewaters. Outside of the lab, Victoria enjoys thrifting, playing intramural volleyball with her cohort, and doing all of the NYT mini games.
Email: vyyang(at)stanford(dot)edu

Peter Cruz-Grace is a PhD student in Chemical Engineering. Originally from rural South Dakota, he received his B.S. in Earth & Environmental Engineering from Columbia University in 2022. Between undergrad and Stanford, he worked in consulting building carbon accounting platforms for multinational corporations. He is interested in selective aqueous separations for applications in resource recovery and waste refining. Outside of class and lab, he enjoys cooking, reading, and occasionally running.
Email: pcruzgrc(at)stanford(dot)edu

Lia is a Ph.D. student in Chemical Engineering. Growing up in Louisiana, Lia has always been fascinated about questions surrounding energy and sustainability. She received her B.S. in chemical engineering from MIT with a minor in political science. Her previous research experiences at MIT focused on developing the fundamental understanding of platinum catalyst electrodeposition for energy storage.
At Stanford, Professor Will Tarpeh and Dr. Adam Nielander at SLAC serve as her co-advisors. Her interests include exploring fundamental catalysis questions surrounding valuable product bond formation. In her free time, Lia enjoys running, reading about history, and sketching flowers.

Wylie is a PhD student in Chemical Engineering. Originally from Orcas Island, Washington, he received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Washington, in Seattle in 2020. Between undergrad and Stanford, he worked at a Seattle-based startup focused on the commercialization of perovskite materials for photovoltaic applications. He is interested in the development of technologies to make use of renewable electrons in applications spanning electrochemical energy conversion and resource recovery. Outside of the lab, he enjoys being outdoors, skiing, rock climbing, cycling, and reading.
Email: wyliekau(at)stanford(dot)edu

Nick is a PhD student in Chemical Engineering. After growing up in Torrance, CA, he attended undergraduate near home at UCLA where he received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering. He attended EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland, where he received his M.S. in Energy Science and Technology. His previous research experiences involved electrochemical phosphate recovery from wastewater, glycerol electrooxidation for hydrogen production, and redox-resolved cryo-EM imaging of the plant protein RuBisCO. Today, his interests lie in the electrochemical conversion between species along the nitrogen oxidation state spectrum. Outside of the lab, he is still searching for someone to discuss comic books with.
Email: snydern(at)stanford(dot)edu

Diana is a PhD student in Chemical Engineering. She was raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and her family is originally from Guadalajara, Mexico. She earned her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry from Temple University. Before beginning her PhD, she conducted research at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion as a Fulbright fellow.
Diana is interested in coupling fundamental chemistry and community-oriented engineering to design and integrate electrochemical catalysis and separation systems that convert resources in wastewater into value-added products. She hopes to implement these technologies to expand access to sanitation, advance responsible waste management while promoting resource recovery, and foster sustainable growth and development in communities.
Outside of the lab, Diana enjoys cooking, boxing, fencing, hiking, running, and dancing salsa and bachata.

Masters/Undergraduate Students and Research Assistants

Tyler is a freshman majoring in Chemical Engineering. He is from Minnetonka, MN, and is interested in environmental water chemistry and catalysis. He is currently working with Nick and Uran on nitrogen electrochemistry and catalysis for the selective interconversion of nitrogen oxidation states. Outside of the lab, he enjoys rock climbing, exploring San Francisco, and traveling to new countries.

Jaden is a sophomore majoring in chemical engineering. He was born and raised in Santa Barbara, CA, and is interested in batteries and battery recycling. He is currently working with Wylie and Kristen on developing ligand-functionalized membranes for key mineral separations in battery waste and brines. Outside of the lab, he enjoys going to the gym, playing video games, and road biking.

Tooba is a senior majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a coterminal master’s student in Sustainability, and will begin medical school in 2027. Born in Istanbul, Turkey, she was raised across multiple countries. She is currently working with Pingyu on developing and testing an ECS-based total ammonia nitrogen sensor for optimizing wastewater treatment processes and water quality monitoring. Outside the lab, she enjoys designing and making clothes and jewelry, as well as horse riding.

Arden is an undergraduate majoring in Chemical Engineering. They’re currently working with Mike to develop polymer membranes to separate rare earth elements from mixed-metal feedstocks, including e-waste and mine tailings. Outside the lab, they care deeply about politics and enjoy spending time in nature and fossil hunting.

Edwin is an undergraduate student at Stanford studying chemical engineering. He is from Pelham, Alabama and is interested in sustainability. Outside of lab, he likes to hike, garden, sing, play guitar, box, workout, and sleep.

Lab Administrator

Email: thao89(at)stanford(dot)edu
Room: Shriram Center 091
Phone: 650-498-1648

Lab Pets

Friday is a three-year-old cat. He was born on the streets of Opelika, Alabama, where he lost most of his tail, and he was later adopted from the Atlanta Humane Society by Hannah. Friday's diverse research interests include ornithology (bird behavior when a cat is nearby), food science (sensory analysis of wet food, preferably chicken flavor), and sleep psychology (how early he can wake his human up). In his free time, Friday enjoys giving headbutts, sitting by open windows, sleeping on his cat tower, and eating.

Bucky is a Siberian husky born and raised in the Bay Area. His research interests include the scent-based analysis of mammalian wastewater streams, suburban botany & ecology, and psychosocial engineering studies performed on human subjects. He also enjoys sleeping, going hiking, eating string cheese, and sleeping.

Born on the streets of San Jose, Java had a mobile childhood moving from the city shelter to a foster home, and then to the humane society before being adopted by Pingyu and Chen. His name Java is borrowed from the pronunciation of a dialect word “喳哇” from Pingyu and Chen’s hometown, which describes his chatty personality – nothing to do with coffee or the programming language! As a feline researcher, his primary projects include the dynamics of rolling spherical objects (as depicted in the photo), and the “prey-akinness” of domestic surfaces when excited by 630–670 nm red lasers–aka cat laser pointers. When off duty, Java indulges in a pinch of catnip, embarking on a journey to the euphoric realms of beta-endorphins. He also has the reputation of being a rigorous peer reviewer of human petting skills.

Vicky (left) and Piper (right) are collaborative research assistants and ever the best of friends, at least Vicky thinks so. Piper’s research interests are in energy conservation (sleeping) while Vicky has a true passion for technological applications (automatic feeder). They bring a paws on approach to the sciences, with Vicky bringing two extra thumbs to the table. Together they are exploring new ways to untangle the mysteries of yarn balls and how best to mitigate the deleterious encroachment of birds on their windows.

Postdog Koa Terrell-Perica Tarpeh was born in Oregon, but has received all of his training here at Stanford. Koa is a labradoodle known for his love of humans and dogs, and tends to show that love by jumping up and licking ears. He is a cuddly presence at lab socials, and has been known to be the most sought after guest at group parties.

Ollie and Neri are three-year-old lap cats who joined the Tarpeh group in 2024 as the purrfessional snack scavengers. They love to cuddle and never miss an opportunity to occupy a lap, ensuring their human colleagues are never alone when seated. Together, this dynamic duo keeps morale high and stress levels low, bringing smiles wherever they roam.

Lab Alumni

Degree/Role

Current Position

Name

Contact

Dr. Edward Apraku

Dr. Kristen Abels

Dr. Orisa Coombs

Dr. Hannah Holmes

Dr. Taigyu Joo

Dr. Ekashimi Eathoew

Dr. Woonghee Lee

Dr. Amilton Barbosa Botelho Jr

Dr. Elizabeth Corson

Dr. Xi Chen

Dr. Qianhong Zhu

Dr. Linchao Mu

Dr. Neha Sharma

Dr. Lorelay Mendoza

Dr. Brandon Clark

Dr. Jinyu Guo

Dr. Kindle Williams

Dr. Sam Bunke

Dr. Dean Miller

Dr. Valerie Niemann

Dr. Anna Kogler

Dr. Matthew Liu

Dr. Anita Shao

Ashley Marinez

Danna Soriano

Amy Pham

Nailah Donatto

Shiloh Bolden

Carolina Muñoz

Sarah Yribarren

Diego Bustamante

Robert Matthew Wood

Kristy Chan

Genesis Gilles

Diana Tiburcio

Smiti Mittal

Chloe Marie Laguna

Ouriel Ndalamba

James Juma

Julia Simon

Sydney Jonson

William Chow

Yichong Wang

Naomi Ray

Oluwanifemi Bankole

Prof. Madalyn Radlauer

Meili Gong

Elizabeth McNally

Tyler Gogal

Yixuan Huang

Valmik Lakhlani

Ziyan Wu

Mikaela Williams

Gradie Ngaruka

Haoyan Du

Shievani Upadhyay

PhD student

Postdoctoral fellow

PhD student

Postdoctoral fellow

PhD student

Undergraduate Researcher

Visiting Scholar

Master’s student

Postdoctoral fellow at University of Michigan

Assistant professor at University of Minnesota

Assistant Professor at Chonnam National University

Professor at NTNU

Assistant Professor at The University of Kansas

Assistant Professor at City University of Hong Kong

Senior Member of Technical Staff at QuantumScape

Assistant Professor at Georgia Tech Shenzhen Institute

Lab manager in the Tarpeh Group

Co-founder of Ky-tan, Inc.

Co-founder and CEO of Recovered Potential

Co-founder and CTO of Recovered Potential

Zero Waste Specialist at UC Berkeley

Postdoctoral scholar at SLAC

Postdoctoral scholar at University of Bern

Ion Exchange Scientist at Banyu Carbon

Consultant at Boston Consulting Group

PhD student at University of Michigan

PhD student at New York University

Stanford undergraduate student

Master’s student at USC

Stanford undergraduate student

PhD student at Stanford

PhD student at UCSF-UC Berkeley

Co-term student at Stanford

Stanford undergraduate student

Data analyst at Opareta

PhD student at Yale

PhD and MBA student at MIT

Co-term student at Stanford

PhD student at Harvard

Business Technology Analyst at Deloitte

Stanford undergraduate student

Associate Professor at San Jose State University

Master’s student at UC Berkley

PhD student at Georgia Tech

Process Engineer at Fluor Corporation

PhD student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison

Master’s student at Stanford

MBA student at Stanford

Group Website

Meet the Tarpeh Lab

Principal Investigator

William Tarpeh

Postdoctoral Fellows

Pingyu Wang

Samay Garg

Mike Baird

Carlos Fernandez

Veronica Pereira

PhD Students

Joyce An

Uran Iwata

Daniel Howell

Ouriel Ndalamba

Victoria Yang

Peter Cruz-Grace

Lia Bu

Wylie Kau

Nick Snyder

Diana Tiburcio

Masters/Undergraduate Students and Research Assistants

Tyler Clair

Jaden Elliston

Tooba Riaz

Arden Wiese

Edwin Hernandez

Lab Administrator

Thao Nhin

Lab Pets

Friday

Bucky

Java

Vicky and Piper

Koa

Ollie and Neri

Lab Alumni