Meet Our Team
Principal Investigator
Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Role
- Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University. Founder and Director of the Dalle Ave Lab.
- Bio
- I started my university career at McMaster where I completed my bachelor’s degree in engineering, specializing in process systems engineering, with a minor in computer science. My research career also started at McMaster with a master’s degree in chemical engineering, funded by an Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) under the supervision of Dr. Tom Adams. Following that I moved to Germany where I received a Marie Curie Doctorate Fellowship as part of an Industrial Doctorate Program (part of the PRONTO project). During my PhD I worked at ABB Corporate Research in Germany and at the same time pursued my studies at the Technical University of Dortmund under the joint supervision of Dr. Iiro Harjunkoski and Prof. Sebastian Engell. During my time at ABB, I had exposure to many industries including mining, steelmaking, chemical, and oil and gas. I then moved to Hitachi Energy Research where I worked as a scientist in the domain of power systems engineering for several years before returning to McMaster as a faculty member in January 2024. My work focuses mainly on the optimization and operation of energy systems.
- Outside of work
- I enjoy biking, cooking, video games, and practising piano and violin.
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- dalleagf@mcmaster.ca
Postdoctoral Fellows
Jamie Rose
Postdoc- Position
- Postdoctoral Fellow, Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Sustainable energy conversion processes
- Ph.D. thesis
- Reduction in ironmaking life-cycle carbon emissions using alternative feedstocks
- Industrial partner
- ArcelorMittal Dofasco
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
Graduate Students
Steffan Ankrah
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Candidate in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Christopher Swartz, Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Optimal Planning and Scheduling, Optimization of Dynamic Systems and Hybrid First-Principles/Data-Driven Models
- ankrahs@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Co-Optimization of Process and Renewable Energy Sourced Power Systems
- Industrial partner
- Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- Running, biking, hiking, movies, acoustic guitar, music
Liam Diamond
M.A.Sc.- Program
- M.A.Sc. Student in Engineering Physics
- Supervisors
- Dr. David Novog, Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Nuclear Systems
- diamol3@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Cogeneration using small modular nuclear reactors in industry
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- I love traveling, hiking and biking.
Lina Hamed
M.A.Sc.- Program
- M.A.Sc. Student in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Christopher Swartz, Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Hybrid first-principles/data-driven models; Optimal planning and scheduling; Sustainable energy systems
- hamedl@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Optimizing Green Hydrogen Production by Scheduling PEM Electrolyzer Operations
- Industrial partner
- Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
Mehrdad Hassanzadeh
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Student in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Algorithmic Power Trading and Energy Systems Optimization
- hassm40@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- TBC
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- Outside of work and study, I enjoy playing soccer, poker, swimming, spending time in nature, and being with my family and friends.
Mohammad Hosein Molla Ali
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Candidate in Mechanical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave, Dr. Keena Trowell
- Research
- Techno-economic analysis of energy systems; Power-to-X and circular fuels; Clean energy solutions for remote, off-grid regions
- hajimolm@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Techno-economic modelling of the integration of metals into energy systems
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- I follow global energy news and explore developments in AI, with a focus on cooling requirements and the energy systems needed to support its growth.
Rashida Omowunmi Olomowewe
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. student, joined September 2026
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- TBC
- olomower@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- TBC
Jose Daniel Rojas Dorantes
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Candidate in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave, Dr. Moncef Chioua
- Research
- Latent Variable Methods, Machine Learning
- rojasdoj@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Root Cause Analysis using Alarm Data
- Industrial partner
- Imperial Oil Limited
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- I enjoy hiking when I’m not researching.
Derrick Sarpong
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Student in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- sarpond@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- TBC
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- In my spare time, I am fond of watching football, biking, hiking and running.
Amanda Sullivan
M.A.Sc.- Program
- M.A.Sc. Student in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave, Dr. Kamil Khan
- Research
- Optimization Theory and Algorithms; Machine Learning; Optimal Planning and Scheduling
- sullia8@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Constraint-Programming Models for Fibre Optic Glass Manufacturing Scheduling
- Industrial partner
- Corning Incorporated
- Outside of work
- Travelling, hiking, weight training, football, cooking
Dariush Zahmatkesh
PhD- Program
- Ph.D. Candidate in Chemical Engineering
- Supervisors
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave, Dr. Dennis Janka
- Research
- Optimal planning and scheduling; Optimization of dynamic systems
- zahmatkd@mcmaster.ca
- Thesis
- Improving closed-loop scheduling for process industries
- Industrial partner
- ArcelorMittal Dofasco
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- Hiking, running, biking, and team sports like volleyball and football; relaxing with movies; cooking to good music; learning musical instruments.
Undergraduate Researchers
Arpitha Sathe
Undergrad- Program
- 4th-year undergraduate, Chemical Engineering
- Supervisor
- Dr. Giancarlo Dalle Ave
- Research
- Nuclear Alarm Management
- sathea@mcmaster.ca
- Links
- LinkedIn Profile
- Outside of work
- Badminton, crocheting, video games