John Michael Prausnitz | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 7, 1928 (1928-01-07) (age 97) Berlin, Germany[1] |
| Citizenship | American |
| Alma mater | Cornell University (B.Che.) University of Rochester (M.S.) Princeton University (Ph.D.) |
| Known for | Molecular thermodynamics,NRTL,UNIQUAC,UNIFAC |
| Children | Stephanie Prausnitz,Mark Prausnitz |
| Awards | National Medal of Science(2003) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Chemical engineering |
| Institutions | University of California, Berkeley |
| Doctoral advisor | Richard H. Wilhelm |
John Michael Prausnitz (born January 7, 1928) is an emeritus professor of chemical engineering at theUniversity of California, Berkeley.[2][3]
Prausnitz is a member of theNational Academy of Sciences[4] and theNational Academy of Engineering for contributions to the thermodynamics of phase equilibria and its application to industrial process design.[5] In 2003, he received theNational Medal of Science for his work inmolecular thermodynamics.[6] He developed many of theactivity coefficient models used for the design of major chemical plants.[7]
Prausnitz was born in Berlin, Germany, on January 7, 1928. His father and his mother's stepfather were both Jewish doctors. In 1933, when theNazi Party rescinded thelicenses of Jewish doctors, they were able to continue to work because they had been Frontkämpfer, "front fighters," during World War I.[1]
In 1937,[8] at age 9, Prausnitz emigrated with his parents and sister to the United States, where he had an uncle inLynbrook, New York onLong Island. His father was able to practice medicine because his German medical license was recognized by the State of New York. Prausnitz lived briefly in Lynbrook, then in Manhattan, andForest Hills, Queens. He attended Public School 101 in New York.[1]
In 1950, Prausnitz earned his B.Ch.E., a five-year degree, fromCornell University. In 1951, he received his M.S. in chemical engineering from theUniversity of Rochester. He then joinedPrinceton University as a student ofRichard H. Wilhelm. He was able to spend two summers working at theBrookhaven National Laboratory.[8]Prausnitz received his Ph.D. in chemical engineering fromPrinceton University in 1955 after completing a doctoral dissertation titled "Liquid-phase turbulent mixing properties."[9]
Prausnitz joined the College of Chemistry at theUniversity of California, Berkeley in 1955, attracted by the work ofJoel Hildebrand on mixtures and by the opportunity to help shape what was then a young department.[2][8] Although he officially retired from teaching in the Department of Chemical Engineering in 2004,[8] Prausnitz remains a Faculty Senior Scientist at theLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a Professor of the Graduate School at Berkeley.[4][10]
Through his work on thermodynamics and phase behavior, Prausnitz has developed the field ofmolecular thermodynamics, relating macroscopic properties to those of single- and multi-atom molecules. He initiated work on a number of important models forphase equilibria and the analysis of mixtures of solids, fluids, and gases, including theNRTL,[11]UNIQUAC, andUNIFAC models.[8][12] He is recognized for his engineering-oriented approach to molecular thermodynamics[13] and its application to industrial process design.[5]
During his career at Berkeley, Prausnitz published hundreds of scientific papers, monographs and books detailing his theoretical and experimental work.[12] In 2011, theJournal of Chemical and Engineering Data published an issue as aFestschrift in his honor.[8] At that time Prausnitz was credited with having published more than 760 articles, in 134 journals, with 421 different co-authors, from over twenty countries.[1][8]
Prausnitz was the foundingeditor of theAnnual Review of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, working with it from 2008 to 2018.[14][15] His books includeComputer Calculations of Vapor−Liquid Equilibria (1967), the graduate textbookMolecular Thermodynamics of Fluid-Phase Equilibria (1969; 1986; 1999), and later editions ofRegular and Related Solutions (1970) andThe Properties of Gases and Liquids (1977; 1987; 2001).[8]
Prausnitz was also a supporter of the Leonardo Project, an initiative to connect sciences with society, art, and philosophy, inspired byJacob Bronowski andThe Ascent of Man. The project developed and shared multidisciplinary case studies, primarily for use in undergraduate classes.[1][16]
John Prausnitz has a son,Mark Prausnitz, who is a professor at theGeorgia Institute of Technology.[17]
Prausnitz was elected a member of theNational Academy of Sciences in 1973[5][4] and theNational Academy of Engineering in 1979 for contributions to the thermodynamics of phase equilibria and its application to industrial process design.[5] He was elected to theAmerican Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1988.[4]
Prausnitz has been given many awards, from the Colburn Award of theAmerican Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) in 1962[18] to theNational Medal of Science for his work in engineering-orientedmolecular thermodynamics in 2003.[13][6] In 2012, he received the Lifetime Achievement in Chemical Engineering Pedagogical Scholarship, given by theAmerican Society for Engineering Education.[19]
As of 2016, theAmerican Institute of Chemical Engineers renamed the Institute Lecturer Award in his honor as the John M. Prausnitz AIChE Institute Lecturer Award.[20][21]
