Antonio Esquivel-Puentes

When Antonio Esquivel-Puentes was growing up, he wanted to understand how machines worked. That curiosity eventually led him to a career designing energy systems that can improve people’s lives.

Esquivel-Puentes is an assistant professor in the clean energy systems program at The Polytechnic School, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University. Before joining ASU, he was a postdoctoral research associate in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University, where he earned a doctoral degree in agricultural and biological engineering with a focus on fluid power and fluid mechanics in 2024.

His research centers on energy harvesting and conversion, the energy-water nexus, carbon dioxide capture and thermal systems. He plans to build a research program that combines advanced modeling, validation and government and industry partnerships to develop technologies that improve energy harvesting and efficiency of multi-domain systems while providing students with hands-on experience in solving real-world challenges.

His passion for the field took shape during his doctoral studies, when he developed, modeled and validated new energy conversion systems and saw his ideas become working prototypes.

“That experience made me realize that I wanted to spend my career developing technologies to address some of society’s most pressing challenges while mentoring the next generation of engineers,” Esquivel-Puentes says.

ASU’s collaborative culture and focus on innovation drew him to the university. He looks forward to working with colleagues, students, national labs and agencies as well as with industry partners while advancing interdisciplinary research in clean energy systems and sustainable thermal technologies.

In the classroom, Esquivel-Puentes wants students to leave with more than a strong understanding of engineering fundamentals. He hopes they gain the confidence to solve complex problems, the curiosity to continue learning throughout their careers and a sense of responsibility for applying engineering in ways that benefit society.

“As a mentor, my goal is to create an inclusive and supportive environment where students feel challenged, encouraged and empowered to grow into independent researchers, innovative engineers and creative critical thinkers,” he says.

One achievement that he is proud of is developing an integrated clean energy system that generates electricity while producing fresh water using a hydraulic wind turbine. For Esquivel-Puentes, the project reflects years of persistence, collaboration and learning, and it strengthened his commitment to addressing society’s needs through engineering.

Outside the lab and classroom, he enjoys cycling, roller skating, playing soccer and working with flight simulators.

Written by Joy Gaeraths