Hub for Advancing Building’s graduate students received competitive ASHRAE Grant in Aid Awards

Graduate students from left to right: Nehul Agarwal, Jinyoung Ko and Alex Mendell

Three Ph.D. students Nehul Agarwal, Jinyoung Ko and Alex Mendel, working with CivMin faculty in the Hub for Advancing Buildings (HAB), were awarded competitive ASHRAE Grant in Aid Awards. Out of 67 global applications this year, only 20 awardees were chosen. It’s worth noting that 15% of the awardees (3 out of 20) are from the University of Toronto. Each student awardee will receive a $10,000 USD scholarship and the opportunity to present their work at an ASHRAE conference that will be held during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Awardees include: 

  • Nehul Agarwal (CivE PhD student under the supervision of  Prof. Sarah Haines) Their project title is: ” Open Plenums & Indoor Environments (OPEN): Characterization of System Performance & IAQ Impacts”. This work falls under the scope of the Society’s Technical Committee TC 4.03, Ventilation Requirements & Infiltration. 
  • Jinyoung Ko (CivE PhD student under the supervision of Prof. Seungjae Lee) Thier project title is: “Development of Informative Feedback-based Occupant-Centric Solution toward Carbon Neutral Buildings and Society”. This work falls under the scope of the Society’s Technical Committee TC 7.10, Occupant Behavior in Building Design and Operation. 
  • Alex Mendell (DLPSH PhD candidate under the supervision of Prof. Jeffrey Siegel and Prof. Seungjae Lee).  Their project title is: “Improved strategies for reducing exposure to particulate matter in residential environments. This work falls under the scope of the Society’s Technical Committee TC 2.04, Particulate Air Contaminants and Particulate Contaminant Removal Equipment.