The first recipient of the award, in 1996, was Dr. Neal R. Amundson, after whom the award was named. Dr Amundson is Cullen Professor of Chemical Engineering and Professor of Mathematics at the University of Houston. A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Neal R. Amundson received a master’s degree in chemical engineering and a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Minnesota. After taking his degree, Professor Amundson remained at the University of Minnesota, teaching both chemical engineering and mathematics. In 1949 he became head of the department of chemical engineering. It was a post he was to retain for the next 25 years, relinquishing it a short time before he joined the University of Houston’s chemical engineering department in 1977. Professor Amundson’s honors and awards are legion. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Professor Amundson has published six books and almost 200 scholarly articles. He has also been awarded four honorary doctorates. The most dramatic symbol of his many successes, however, is undoubtedly Amundson Hall at the University of Minnesota, which was named in his honor in 1980.

The 1996 award was presented at ISCRE 14 at Brugge, Belgium.

This page updated May 28, 2004