IChemE announces medal winners

ICHEME has announced the names of the 25 winners of its 2016 medals and prizes, which recognise achievement in chemical engineering in both industry and research.

In total, 16 medals and prizes will be presented at a number of IChemE events this year, recognising achievements of the previous 12 months. Winners include young engineers, those who have made a research breakthrough and those who have given outstanding service in a particular industrial field. Several awards are given to IChemE members who have made a special contribution to the Institution.

A new medal joins the programme this year, the Davidson Medal, which recognises an individual who has demonstrated exceptional mentorship to a young engineer. It was named in honour of University of Cambridge emeritus professor John Davidson, who last year received an IChemE medal himself, the first Bird, Stewart & Lightfoot Medal for outstanding contribution to the field of transport phenomena. The winners of the inaugural Davidson Medal are Julian Chaudhuri from the University of Bradford, UK and Silvana Cardoso from the University of Cambridge, UK.

The Hanson Medal, for the best article in The Chemical Engineer in 2016, will be presented to Martin Atkins at the University of Waikaito, New Zealand, for his article Choice Cuts, published in the May issue. The article looked at the lessons which can be learned from New Zealand’s push for renewable electricity.

The Sargent Medal, which recognises a major contribution to research in the area of computer-aided product and process engineering, has been awarded posthumously to Christodoulos Floudas, formerly of Texas A&M University, US. Floudas was a world-renowned authority in mathematical modelling and helped to shape the field of process systems engineering. He tragically passed away at the age of 56 in August 2016.

Other winners include Rob Best, former dean of engineering at London South Bank University, UK, who won the Council Medal for services to IChemE; Christina Phang, of Environmental Resources Management in Malaysia who won the Franklin Medal for services to process safety and loss prevention; and Kathryn Mumford, of the University of Melbourne, Australia, who won the Warner Prize for a young researcher who has made a major impact in sustainable chemical processing.

“We have a truly international honour roll for 2016 with chemical engineers from Australia, Brazil, China, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, the US and the UK all being recognised for their outstanding achievement within our profession. Our fully inclusive programme continues to receive a great deal of quality nominations each year, and it’s great to see that kind of peer support from the chemical engineering community,” said IChemE’s director of policy and publications, Claudia Flavell-While.

Visit the IChemE website for the full list of winners.