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Recent News Items:
Gaden Honored with 2009 NAE Russ Prize
UVa AIChE Student Chapter "Outstanding"
for 2007-8
Mike King (MS '76) Funds CHE Graduate Fellowships
Hudson Elected to National Academy of Engineering
O'Connell's 70thcelebrated
AIChE Wilhelm Award to Neurock
Emmett Award to Davis
Links to UVa and SEAS News
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Elmer Gaden Honored with 2009 NAE Russ Prize
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Elmer Gaden, Professor Emeritus, has been awarded the
2009 Fritz
J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize of the National Academy
of Engineering that biennially recognizes “a
bioengineering achievement which significantly improves
the human condition.” Elmer is honored for “pioneering
of the engineering and commercialization of biological
systems for large scale manufacture of antibiotics and
other drugs.”
Elmer is
known as the “father of biochemical engineering.”
He established the primary journal for the sharing of
bioprocess engineering and research, Biotechnology &
Bioengineering, serving as its editor for 25 years.
Elmer was
on the faculty at his alma mater, Columbia University,
and at the University of Vermont, before coming to UVa
in 1979. Many generations of UVa Chemical Engineering
students enjoyed Elmer’s teaching of basic and
advanced courses, especially laboratories.
The Russ
$500,000 cash prize was established in 1999 to honor
esteemed Ohio University alumnus and engineer Fritz
Russ and his wife, Dolores.
Read more
about Elmer in his
AIChE Centennial Mini-History.
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UVa's AIChE Student Chapter selected as Outstanding for 2007-8
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American Institute of Chemical Engineers has recognized
the UVa Student Chapter as one of its 15 Outstanding
Chapters for 2008. Congratulations to last year's President,
Elyse McKenney, and her Executive Board!
It is truly
excellent in the Centennial year for both UVa-CHE and
AIChE, that our student leaders and members have been
judged among the very best. The competition for this
award is quite fierce, but our officers and members
have shown dedication and creativity in providing valuable
professional service and social activities.
A plaque
was awarded to the Chapter President and Advisor during
the Student Program at the AIChE Centennial Annual Meeting
in Philadelphia, November 14-17. An all-time high of
22 UVa undergraduates traveled to the meeting. |
Alumnus Mike King Funds CHE Graduate Fellowships
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Mike King (MS ’76) has donated $200,000 to endow
Chemical Engineering Centennial Graduate Fellowships
at UVa.
Mike’s
chemical engineering career was with Merck & Co.,
Inc. in research, manufacturing, engineering, environmental
and safety, strategy development, and change management.
Most recently, he served as special advisor to the
CEO and as Senior Vice-President, Science and Technology,
Merck Manufacturing Division. He has long been an
active supporter of CHE and SEAS, having served on
both Advisory Boards and the UVa Engineering Foundation
Board.
In
2007-8 he was the Brenton S. Halsey Distinguished
Visiting Professor in CHE and this year he is teaching
the Technology and Product Development Lifecycle course.
Read more
about Mike.
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Jack
Hudson Elected to National Academy of Engineering
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Jack
Hudson, Wills Johnson Professor of Chemical
Engineering, has been elected to the United States
National
Academy of Engineering. This is among the highest
professional distinctions awarded to engineers. It
honors those who have made outstanding contributions
to engineering research, practice or education, and
to the pioneering of new and developing fields, making
major advancements in traditional fields, or developing/implementing
innovative approaches to engineering education. The
citation honoring Jack is "For advances in the
understanding and engineering of complex dynamic chemical-reaction
systems."
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John
O'Connell's 70th Birthday celebrated with
Festschrift and Symposium
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The
occasion of John O'Connell,
the Harry Douglas Forsyth Professor of Chemical Engineering,
reaching the age of 70 was celebrated by a Festschrift
in IEC Research with 30 papers by colleagues from
14 countries and by 3
sessions at the AIChE Centennial Meeting in Philadephia
organized by Paul Mathias (Fluor), Rafiqul Gani (Danish
Tech. U.), and Matt Neurock (UVa). Over 50 colleagues,
former students, and family gathered for a luncheon
organized by Tim Anderson (U. Florida) and Herb Cabezas
(EPA). They describe the memorable event as having
"sage advice from John Prausnitz, long lost etchings
from the Mayeaux brothers, O'Connell family slides
never before seen in public, the gift of a striking
photo of two snowy egrets by Charlie Sleicher, and
a constant smile on John's face." |
Matt
Neurock selected for AIChE Wilhelm Award
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Matthew
Neurock the Alice M. and Guy A. Wilson
Professor of Chemical Engineering, has been selected
to receive the 2007 R.H.
Wilhelm Award from the American
Institute of Chemical Engineers. The award recognizes
an individual's significant and new contributions
in chemical reaction engineering. The recipient is
to have advanced the frontiers of chemical reaction
engineering through originality, creativity, and novelty
of concept or application. Matt was recognized specifically
for his efforts in pioneering the application and
development of quantum mechanical methods and atomistic
simulations to catalysis and chemical reaction engineering
practice. The Award consists of a plaque and $3,000,
plus up to $500 for travel allowance to the presentation
at the AIChE Annual Meeting Honors Ceremony and
session honoring the recipient. |
Bob
Davis selected for Paul H. Emmett Award in Fundamental
Catalysis
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The
purpose of the Award is to recognize and encourage
individual contributions (under the age of 45) in
the field of catalysis with emphasis on discovery
and understanding of catalytic phenomena, proposal
of catalytic reaction mechanisms and identification
of and description of catalytic sites and species.
The selection
of Bob Davis marks the first
time that faculty from the same university have received
back-to-back awards. Matt Neurock
won the last award in 2005. |
Bob received
the Emmett Award for "his pioneering contributions
to the use of in-situ spectroscopic methods coupled
with both steady-state and transient kinetic methods
to elucidate how oxide supports and basic promoters
alter the active catalytic sites for a variety of reactions,
including the selective oxidation of hydrocarbons, acid/base
conversions, and ammonia synthesis."
A distinguishing
characteristic of Davis's research is its integration of multiple
experimental techniques for characterizing heterogeneous catalysts
and the kinetics of reactions occurring on their surfaces.
Davis has employed a comprehensive set of spectroscopic tools
including extended X-ray absorption fine structure, X-ray
absorption near-edge structure, infrared, Raman, nuclear magnetic
and electron spin resonance, adsorption microcalorimetry,
electron microscopy together with steady state as well as
transient kinetic analyses to determine the local electronic
and geometric structure of the active site(s), the influence
local environment, and the reactivity of novel supported catalysts
under working conditions. This wide array of tools has enabled
him to discover the fundamental features that control a wide
range of important catalytic systems.
Bob gave
a plenary lecture and was recognized at the North American
Catalysis Society meeting in Houston. See
the write-up at UVa
Research News
Links to UVa and SEAS Information
Sites
UVaToday
- News from the University of Virginia
UVa
Research News - Office of the Vice President for Research
and Graduate Studies
Spotlight
on SEAS - Faculty and Student Achievements
SEAS enews
online - Office of the Dean of the School of Engineering
and Applied Scienc
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