Echo St. Germain

PhD Student in Mechanical Engineering | Materials Science Researcher

About Me

Portrait of Echo St. Germain smiling in lab, wearing blue lab coat with blue-tinted hair

I'm a PhD student at Northeastern University studying combustion and material science, researching new methods of combustion and nanoparticle synthesis. I work with Prof. Levendis in the Combustion and Air Pollution Lab and with Prof. Erb in the Directed Assembly of Particles and Suspensions lab. I also have a strong interest in engineering education for all age groups and helping other engineers improve their technical communication skills.

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Latest Publication

📄

An experimental study on the ignition temperature of iron particles in an electrically-heated drop-tube furnace

D. Chang*, E. St. Germain*, R. M. Erb, X. Mi, J. M. Bergthorson, Y. A. Levendis

*Co-first authors

Fuel, 2026

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2025.136199

Current Research

  • PhD student at Northeastern University exploring iron combustion as a source of clean energy storage and generation
  • Chair's Fellowship recipient working with Professors Levendis and Erb
  • Investigating iron particle combustion and nanoparticle formation for carbon-free energy cycles
  • Focus on rapid iron oxidation, heating rates, and oxide layer growth effects on iron powder ignition

Education & Background

  • B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Northeastern University (2023), with minors in History and Mathematics
  • Industry experience at Fortify, Hydrow, and Zaiput Flow Technology through co-op programs
  • R&D Materials Engineer at Fourier LLC developing novel thermoformable ceramics
  • Published in Advanced Materials on thermoformable boron nitride based all-ceramics

Publications & Presentations

  • Published in peer-reviewed journals: Fuel and Advanced Materials
  • Presented at U.S. National Combustion Meeting, Materials Research Society Fall Meeting, and Harvard's Radcliffe Science Symposium on Alternative Energy
  • Won best poster award at Northeastern's 2024 Graduate Research Expo for work on nanoparticle generation through iron combustion

Teaching & Outreach

  • Communication Lab Fellow at Northeastern - helping students create research posters and develop professional materials
  • Mentor for high school students through the Young Scholar Program
  • Engineering demonstrations presenter through the Building Bridges program
  • Volunteer with the Petey Greene Program teaching math and science to incarcerated individuals in Massachusetts
  • Outreach Coordinator for the Engineering for Women's Health Conference