As one of the eight inaugural Climate Tech Fellows selected by The New York Climate Exchange, Stephanie Taboada ’23, PhD used the program’s virtual closing showcase — during which the fellows described their research and projects — to highlight a technology that could help unlock the green hydrogen economy.
Taboada, an adjunct professor in materials science and chemical engineering at Stony Brook and an assistant professor of engineering at Suffolk County Community College, is the founder of HySep, a venture developing hydrogen storage systems designed to work within existing gas infrastructure.
“HySep is developing safe, scalable hydrogen storage to unlock the green hydrogen economy using existing gas pipelines,” Taboada said.
Hydrogen is viewed as a promising clean energy carrier, but storage and transport are major barriers to widespread adoption. Taboada explained that current methods can be costly or energy intensive, limiting the use of hydrogen commercially.
“We know hydrogen has incredible potential as a clean fuel, but the question has always been ‘how do we store it safely and move it efficiently?’” she said. “Our goal is to create a solution that integrates with infrastructure that already exists rather than requiring an entirely new buildout.”
Taboada emphasized that HySep’s approach is focused on safety and scalability. “If we want hydrogen to play a serious role in decarbonization, we need storage systems that communities and utilities can trust,” she said. “Safety is not optional. It is foundational.”
“The ability to use current gas networks lowers costs and reduces the time it takes to deploy,” Taboada said. “That changes the conversation from ‘someday technology’ to ‘near’term implementation.’”
The February 26 closing showcase marked the culmination of a six-month fellowship organized by The New York Climate Exchange. The program supports early-stage climate innovators as they move research from lab to market. Fellows received mentorship, venture development training and non-dilutive funding as they refined their technologies.
The fellowship experience helped Taboada to finalize HySep’s commercialization strategy. “As researchers, we are trained to think about discovery and validation,” she said. “The fellowship pushed me to think about customers, regulatory pathways and what real-world deployment actually requires.”
The transition from academic research to startup leadership was challenging and also energizing for Taboada. “You have to translate technical depth into clear value,” she said. “People need to understand not just how it works, but why it matters and why it matters now.”
Taboada kept the focus of her presentation on the potential impact of hydrogen storage systems. “If we can make hydrogen storage practical and safe at scale, we can support decarbonization across transportation, industry and power generation,” she said. “That is the bigger vision. This is about building technologies that do not stay in the lab; it is about creating solutions that communities can use and benefit from.”
— Beth Squire
