Meet the RISE Students
Ph.D. Students
Yinjian "Klay" Li
BS Civil Engineering, Valparaiso University
MS Civil Engineering, Stanford University
Hometown: Shanxi, China
Research Interests: 3D printing cementitious materials
Fun Fact: Klay loves to travel, and he has been to over 20 states in the US.
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Diego Aparicio
BS Civil Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes
MS Civil Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes
Hometown: Santiago, Chile
Research Interests: Development of low-carbon cementitious materials
Fun Fact: Diego has played almost every sport
Matias Leon-Miquel
BS Civil Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes
MS Civil Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes
Hometown: Santiago, Chile
Research Interests: Development of novel cementitious materials in extreme environments
Fun Fact: Matias runs a pizza business in Chile with his brother
Xiaoqiang "Antonio" Ni
BS Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Hometown: Hong Kong, China
Research Interests: Self healing, low-carbon cementitious materials, Phase change materials
Fun Fact: Antonio worked as a project engineer/manager for 11 years before coming to the US as a Ph.D. student
Undergraduate Students
Nathan Denning
Civil Engineering, Michigan State University (2026)
Hometown: Annapolis, MD
Research Interests: Low-carbon cementitious materials, decarbonization of infrastructure
Fun Fact: Nathan is the President of MSU's chapter of Chi Epsilon.
Alumni
Brennan Sollenberger
BS/MS Civil Engineering, Michigan State University
Hometown: Marietta, GA
Research Accomplishments: Low-carbon concrete with phase change materials (PCM) for snow melting applications
Fun Fact: Brennan had a successful E-Sports career at MSU
