2024 Top 40 Under 40: Sarah Kim
Sarah Kim
When Dr. Sarah Kim was a graduate student at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she obtained a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, her thesis was on experimental and computational evaluation and demonstration of an absorption cooling cycle that utilized HFC refrigerants as a working fluid. There, she co-led the first experimental demonstration of an absorption refrigeration system using ionic liquid and hydrofluorocarbon working fluids by construction of lab scale cooling cycle. She also assessed various refrigerant/absorbent combination cooling cycle system performances using thermodynamic equations of state and heat transfer computational models, and holds a B.S. in Chemical and Biological Engineering from Korea University.
As Dr. Kim was wrapping up her Ph.D. program, she came across a scientist position for developing the next generation refrigerants that led her to join the HVACR industry.
Over Kim’s time in the industry, she’s been named as one of The ACHR NEWS’ 2021 Top Women in HVAC, constructed and commissioned an in-house burning velocity test system to assess flammability of refrigerants, and served as chair of ASHRAE Standard 34, where she leads conversations related to the Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants. Dr. Kim was only the second woman ever to chair Standard 34, initially serving as the Designation and Nomenclature subcommittee chair. Kim then served as vice chair of the main committee from 2020 to 2022, until she assumed the role of main committee. Throughout the course of her involvement, Dr. Kim has been featured as an expert on several industry panels.
“I hope to make a positive impact towards a sustainable environment through the solutions I develop,” Kim said.
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