Azapagic awarded Davis medal as IChemE announces 2023 prize winners

ADISA Azapagic has been awarded the Davis Medal for her work on sustainable production and consumption, and is among the winners of 20 medals and prizes that IChemE has given for exceptional contributions to the profession.

Azapagic is particularly known for her work in carbon footprinting, life cycle assessment, and sustainability. She is the first recipient of the Davis Medal, IChemE’s highest accolade, since 2016. Given not more frequently than every three years, the Davis Medal honours George E. Davis, the founding father of the profession. It is awarded to an eminent individual who has given exceptional service to chemical engineering.

The late John O’Shea, who held a variety of volunteering roles at IChemE over several decades, was awarded the Greene Medal in recognition of his a highly commendable long-term contribution to the progress of the institution. O’Shea’s roles included assessor of university and company training schemes, member of the professional formation forum, election panel registrar, and member of the appeals panel. His contribution to serving members of IChemE was valued by members, Trustees, and staff alike.

Yuval Elani is the 2023 winner of the Nicklin Medal, an early careers award which recognises talented chemical engineering researchers who have produced international-quality research. Elani has established chemical synthetic biology as an emerging research discipline, pushing the boundaries of the research area in ways that are likely to be critical for the future.

Nilay Shah, renowned for his leadership in the field of systems approaches to chemical engineering with a strong emphasis on sustainability, industrial practice, and influencing policy makers, has been awarded the Sharma Medal. It recognises sustained outstanding research contributions in chemical engineering.

For the article Ethics Series: Did you Sleep Well?, Dame Judith Hackitt has been awarded the Hanson Medal for the best article to appear in The Chemical Engineer magazine in a 12 month period. The article drew on personal experience to reflect on the choice between making an expedient decision that people want to hear, versus making a decision that allows you to know you have done the right thing when safety is at stake.

The Underwood Medal has been awarded to the multinational research team of Liyuan Deng, Marius Sandru, and Richard Spontak for their significant contribution to researching membrane separations, which is making a tangible difference to decarbonising the power and cement sectors.

Awarded for outstanding service in the field, the Clean Energy Medal has been awarded to Rose Amal, a highly respected chemical engineer, whose work especially in photocatalysis, led to the commercial use of solar energy to purify water and generate hydrogen. As an influential leader in both academic research and industrial deployment, Amal is a passionate mentor and outstanding role model for young women in science and engineering.

Alexandra Meldrum, chair of IChemE’s medals and prizes committee, said: “The IChemE medals and prizes provide recognition of outstanding contribution. Congratulations to all the winners, who have helped to advance our profession around the world – as volunteers, researchers, sustainability innovators, digital enthusiasts and process safety advocates. Our winners are role models who will inspire future chemical, biochemical and process engineers. I commend them all.”

The medal winners will be awarded their prizes during virtual webinars taking place throughout the year. For more information on all the medals and prizes visit the IChemE webpage.