Westmoreland wins AIChE Institute Award for Excellence in Industrial Gases Technology

Dr. Phillip R. Westmoreland, professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at North Carolina State University, has been named the 2017 recipient of the AIChE Institute Award for Excellence in Industrial Gases Technology. He is cited “for his quantitative and mechanistic insights into gas pyrolysis, combustion, and industrial chemistry through measurement and modeling, especially of hydrofluorocarbons and aromatic pollutants.”

The award, sponsored by Praxair, Inc., recognizes an individual’s sustained excellence in contributing to the advancement of technology in the production, distribution and application of industrial gases.

It will be presented at the Institute’s Honors Ceremony on Sunday, October 29, during the AIChE’s 2017 Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, Minn.

The award recognizes his work on clean, efficient energy and fire safety. To burn any fuel, tens of thousands of chemical reactions occur, involving the fuel, oxygen and many byproduct molecules. Westmoreland has measured and predicted the rates of these reactions. With this knowledge, industry develops new, cleaner furnaces, engines.

Another result is the hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) that replaced chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as chemical fire extinguishers and refrigerants. CFCs were damaging the stratosphere’s protective ozone and creating an ozone hole, allowing dangerous amounts of ultraviolet light from the sun. Working since the 1990s with the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Md., and with his students at NC State and the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Westmoreland developed the reaction rates that explain how HFCs work safely, leading to the development of new, better HFCs.

Westmoreland, who also serves as director of the Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute’s Southeast Regional Manufacturing Center, is a resident of Chapel Hill, NC, and a native of Statesville, NC.

AIChE is the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, a professional society of more than 53,000 chemical engineers in 110 countries. Its members work in corporations, universities and government using their knowledge of chemical processes to develop safe and useful products for the benefit of society. Through its varied programs, AIChE continues to be a focal point for information exchange on the frontier of chemical engineering research in such areas as nanotechnology, sustainability, hydrogen fuels, biological and environmental engineering and chemical plant safety and security. More information about AIChE is available at www.aiche.org.