Karunesh Kant

Biography

Karunesh Kant received his bachelor's degree from Uttar Pradesh Technical University in Mechanical Engineering (2012) and master’s from National Institute of Technology Srinagar, in Mechanical System Design (2014). He received his doctorate in Renewable Energy (2019) from Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology Jais Amethi (An Institute of National Importance Established under the Act of Parliament). He was awarded the prestigious Bhaskara Advanced Solar Energy Fellowship by IUSSTF and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) Government of India to undertake a part of his doctoral thesis work at the Advanced Materials and Technologies Laboratory, Virginia Tech, USA. His research interests are: Heat Transfer, Phase Change Materials, Thermal Energy Storage Materials, Solar Energy, Thermo-chemical Energy Storage.

Research Projects

Erosion and abrasion wear of component surfaces in a falling particle-based concentrating solar power system

Fractal textured absorber surfaces for high temperature concentrating solar power

Thermal management of battery systems

Multifunctional nonwetting surfaces for anti-icing, drag reduction, and self-cleaning energy applications

Thermal/thermochemical energy storage

Analysis and design of air ventilated building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system incorporating phase change materials

Hexagonal waveguide concentrator for solar thermal applications

Sponsors

Publications

1. K. Kant, P. Kondaiah, and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis of Erosion of Surfaces in Falling Particle Concentrating Solar Power,” ASME Journal of Solar Energy Engineering, 147(2), 021010, 11 pp., 2025.
2. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis of Abrasion Wear in Particle Storage and Valve Subsystem for Falling Particle Concentrating Solar Power,” Tribology International, 201, 110259, 2025.
3. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Erosion Wear Analysis of Heat Exchange Surfaces in a Falling Particle-Based Concentrating Solar Power System,” Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, 264, 112629, 2024.
4. A. Fuller, K. Kant, and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis of Freezing of a Sessile Water Droplet on Surfaces over a Range of Wettability,” Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 653, Part A, 960–970, 2024.
5. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, Solid Particle Thermal Energy Storage for High-Temperature CSP Applications, Chapter 13 in Thermal Energy, A. Shukhla, A. Sharma, and K. Kant, eds., pp. 262–274, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 2023 (ISBN: 9781003345558).
6. K.P. Sibin, K. Kant, and R. Pitchumani, “High-Temperature Air Stability of Electrodeposited Copper Cobalt Oxide and Copper Manganese Oxide Absorber Coatings for Concentrating Solar Power,” ACS Applied Energy Materials, 6(17), 8759–8774, 2023.
7. S. Hatte, K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Freezing Characteristics of a Water Droplet on a Multiscale Superhydrophobic Surface,” Langmuir, 39(33), 11898–11909, 2023.
8. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis and Design of Battery Thermal Management Under Extreme Fast Charging and Discharging,” Journal of Energy Storage, 60, 106501, 2023.
9. S. Bhavsar, K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Robust Model-Predictive Thermal Control of Lithium-Ion Batteries under Drive Cycle Uncertainty,” Journal of Power Sources, 557, 232496, 2023.
10. K. Kant, K.P. Sibin and R. Pitchumani, “Novel Fractal-textured Solar Absorber Surfaces for Concentrated Solar Power,” Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, 248, 112010, 2022.
11. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Fractal Textured Glass Surface for Enhanced Performance and Self-Cleaning Characteristics of Photovoltaic Panels,” Energy Conversion and Management, 270, 116240, 2022.
12. A. Shukla, K. Kant, P.H. Biwole, R. Pitchumani and A. Sharma, “Melting and Solidification of a Phase Change Material with Constructal Tree-Shaped Fins for Thermal Energy Storage,” Journal of Energy Storage, 53, 105158, 2022.
13. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Advances and Opportunities in Thermochemical Heat Storage Systems for Buildings Applications,” Applied Energy, 321, 119299, 2022.
14. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis of a Novel Constructal Fin Tree Embedded Thermochemical Energy Storage for Buildings Applications,” Energy Conversion and Management, 258, 115542, 2022.
15. K. Kant, K. Nithyanandam and R. Pitchumani, “Analysis and Optimization of a Novel Hexagonal Waveguide Concentrator for Solar Thermal Applications,” Energies, 14, 2146, 2021.
16. K. Kant and R. Pitchumani, “Laminar Drag Reduction in Microchannels with Liquid Infused Textured Surfaces,” Chemical Engineering Science, 230, 116196, 2021.
17. K. Kant, R. Pitchumani, A. Shukla and A. Sharma, “Analysis and Design of Air Ventilated Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) System Incorporating Phase Change Materials,” Energy Conversion and Management, 196, 149–164, 2019.