Benzhong |Robin| Zhao (email) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at McMaster University. Robin's background is in civil & environmental engineering, specializing in multiphase flow in porous media with applications to low-carbon energy systems. He earned his BASc from the University of Waterloo, SM and PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he worked on the fluid mechanics of geological carbon dioxide sequestration. He completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Toronto, where he worked on developing more efficient electrochemical devices for renewable energy storage.

Daniel Hallack is a postdoctoral fellow in the group, with a background in industry as a reservoir engineer at Petrobras in Brazil. He holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Unicamp, an MSc in Civil Engineering from UFRJ, and a PhD from the University of Notre Dame, where he studied mixing and transport in complex environmental flow systems, including porous and fractured media and stream ecosystems. His current research focuses on enhancing lithium extraction from deep subsurface brines, exploring technologies such as foam flooding and electrokinetics. Check out Daniel’s Google Scholar profile.

Tian Lan is a postdoctoral fellow in the lab. Tian holds a bachelor's degree (2016) and a Ph.D. (2021) from Wuhan University, where his research focused on the transition of displacement patterns for multiphase flow in porous media. Following his Ph.D., he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Wuhan University (2021–2024), during which he explored the impact of pore-scale mechanisms on capillary pressure curves. Currently, his research focuses on the physical and chemical mechanisms of underground hydrogen storage. Check out Tian’s Google Scholar profile.

Mahyar Malekzade is a postdoctoral fellow in the lab. His expertise lies in coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical modeling of porous materials within poromechanics frameworks. He completed his PhD in geomechanics at McMaster University, where he studied multiscale freezing and thawing processes in geological materials using numerical simulations built on open-source multiphysics platforms such as MOOSE and DEAL.II. Currently, he is extending these methods to nuclear materials, developing multiscale models for TRISO fuel. He also utilizes phase-field frameworks to simulate multicomponent, multiphase fluid behavior in porous media, with applications in underground hydrogen storage and carbon dioxide sequestration. In a parallel project, he is establishing digital rock physics protocols to convert micro-CT imagery into latent pore and grain representations, enabling machine learning models to predict macroscale properties of geological materials. Check out Mahyar’s Google Scholar profile.

Jaber Taheri-Shakib received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Tehran, where he studied the influence of electromagnetic waves on fluid flow in porous media. He worked as a postdoctoral fellow and later as a research associate at the University of Waterloo, focusing on corrosion processes, crack propagation in reinforced concrete, and sustainable construction materials (green concrete). As a postdoctoral researcher in the Zhao group, his research focuses on developing multiscale models for SMRs, hydrogen storage, and multiphase multicomponent flow in porous media. His interests include experimental and modeling studies of fluid flow, corrosion, and reactive transport in porous materials. Check out Jaber’s Google Scholar profile.

Nima Shakourifar is a PhD student in the lab. Nima got his BSc in petroleum engineering from the University of Tehran in 2015. His interest in numerical modelling led him to complete an MSc program in reservoir engineering at the Sharif University of Technology in 2018, where he worked on implementing high-order finite element methods to simulate multicomponent flow in porous media. Currently, his research is focused on developing numerical models to capture the evolution of oxygen bubbles in PEM water electrolyzers.

Mohammad Salehpour is a PhD student in the lab. Mohammad holds a Bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from University of Garmsar (2017), followed by a Master’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Shiraz University (2020). His past work focused on geologic CO2 storage at reservoirs using microfluidics. Currently, his research aims to understand the controlling factors of underground hydrogen storage. Check out Mohammad’s Google Scholar profile.

Vlad Brundula-Ilija is an undergraduate student in the lab. Vlad is currently completing a Bachelors of Civil Engineering & Society at McMaster University. In the past, Vlad has completed work both in industry and academia, focusing on fields ranging from municipal engineering to developing nanomaterial devices. Vlad's current work centers around the fabrication of experimental microfluidic devices using laser engraving. In his spare time, Vlad enjoys building, testing, and racing Concrete Canoes. Check out Vlad's LinkedIn profile.

Alumni

Graduate Students

Mahtab Masouminia was a PhD student in the lab. She developed novel experimental methods for investigating the impact of wettability on multiphase flow in porous media and the effectiveness of face masks for source control. Mahtab is currently a postdoctoral associate in the Higgins Lab at McMaster. Check out Mahtab’s Google scholar profile.

Negar Shahsavar was a PhD student in the lab. She studied the interaction of flow and chemical reaction in porous media. Negar is currently a hydrogeologist at Montrose Environmental Solutions. Check out Negar’s Google scholar profile.

Michelle Ragany was an MASc student in the lab. She conducted her master’s research on improving the efficiency of the agriculture infrastructure using closed loop systems. Michelle is currently a PhD student at University of Guelph.

Mohamed El-Morsy was a PhD student in the lab. He conducted his PhD research on using machine learning technologies to predict the properties of digital rocks. Mohamed is currently a consulting engineer. Check out Mohamed’s Google scholar profile.  

Ashkan Irannezhad was a PhD student in the lab. He conducted his PhD research on the impact of mixed wettability on multiphase flow in porous media. Ashkan is currently a postdoctoral associate in the Higgins Lab at McMaster. Check out Ashkan’s Google scholar profile.

Dan Zhao was an MASc student in the lab. He conducted his master’s research on implementing geological carbon sequestration in the Alberta oil sands. Dan is currently a sustainability analyst at Skyline Group of Companies.

Undergraduate Students

Endi Hajdari (2020-2022)

Jack Rynard (2021)

Charlotte Neumann (2020)

Ruby Yee (2020)

Marisa Caluori (2020)

Katelyn Wylie (2019)