Meet the Team

Chief Technology Officer

Dr. McLarty built a $1million/yr solid oxide research lab, produced several patents, dozens of publications, and thousands of citations. He left his tenured faculty position in Mechanical and Materials Engineering after 9 years at Washington State University to commercialize this technology. As a former US National Team swimmer and professional triathlete, he knows hard work and teamwork create success.

Dr. Dustin McLarty

Chief Technology Officer

Test Systems Lead

Sage Pratt, an Idaho native and US Air Force Veteran, leads test system development at Alternative Energy Materials. Sage has built everything from button cell to stack test stations. Sage earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Idaho before serving in military space operations.

Sage Pratt

Test Systems Engineer

DPP-AM Lead

Spencer leads the development of Alternative Energy Material’s Gen2 DPP-AM printer. He applies his experience in rapid prototyping, 3D modeling and FDM/SLA 3D printing, with a strong foundation in robotics, automation and control. Spencer earned a mechanical engineering BS from Washington State University.

Spencer Kinder

DPP-AM Lead

DPP-AM Quality Control

Willa Steeb started working at AEM as an additive manufacturing development intern and has continued developing the automated powder coating and powder deposition systems. Willa brings outstanding technical and design skills and decision making into a collaborative team environment working towards a sustainable energy technology.

Willa Steeb

DPP-AM Quality Control

Material Automation Lead

Camden leads the automation and scale-up of the nanomaterial production. A Washington State University graduate in Mechanical Engineering, Camden applies his experience in CAD, 3D printing, and automation and control to increase throughput and yield of a proprietary reverse strike precipitation and spray drying production system.

Camden Adams

Material Production

High Pressure Test Engineer

Steve leads the high-pressure testing of direct ammonia synthesis from a high temperature electrolyzer. Steve earned a MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Warwick in the UK and began his career as a front-end systems engineer in the automotive industry, leading the design and development of injection-molded components before beginning his PhD studies at Washington State University.

Stephen Woodward

High Pressure Test Engineer

Software Development

Daniel leads the development of both the front-end and back-end of an in-house control suite for all test systems and furnaces. Daniel earned a BS in Computer Science from Washington State University.

Daniel Book

Software/Controls Development

Our Story

I left a tenured academic position to found Alternative Energy Materials with a vision of displacing fossil fuels with lower cost alternatives synthesized directly from renewable power, water, and air. I needed to ensure our laboratory innovations were commercialized for maximum impact. My team combines deep technical expertise in solid oxide ceramics with a passion for innovation. We have developed, patented, and de-risked the materials, manufacturing, and test systems needed to scale a modular and highly efficient green ammonia technology for global impact.

We believe that process intensification of the electrochemistry and thermochemistry is key to solving the fuel synthesis challenge. Splitting water under the high temperature and high pressure conditions necessary for fuel synthesis unlocks performance, efficiency and cost benefits. Our commitment to a step-change in performance and cost drives us to continuously push the limits of materials and manufacturing technology to deliver a market defining technology.