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Chemical Engineering: Challenges and Opportunities in the 21st Century

Completed

This three year study will outline an ambitious vision to guide chemical engineering research, innovation, and education for the next 30 years. A broad representation of the chemical engineering community will provide the study team with input on the current state of the profession and where growth is needed.

Our study will cover several areas, including chemical engineering undergraduate and graduate education, promising intellectual and investment opportunities, and potential economic and national needs. The final report will provide guidance to funders, researchers, educators, and industry professionals. Our recommendations will focus on science needs and priorities.

Description

An ad hoc committee will prepare a report that will articulate the status, challenges, and promising opportunities for chemical engineering in the United States. In particular, the report will:
1. Describe major advances and changes in chemical engineering over the past three decades, including the importance and contributions of the field to society; technical progress and major achievements; principal changes in the practice of R&D; and economic and societal factors that have impacted the field.
2. Address the future of chemical engineering over the next 10 to 30 years and offer guidance to the chemical engineering community:

  • Identify challenges and opportunities that chemical engineering faces now and may face in the next 10-30 years, including the broaderimpacts that chemical engineering can have on emerging technologies, national needs, and the wider science and engineering enterprise.
  • Identify a set of existing and new chemical engineering areas that offer promising intellectual and investment opportunities and newdirections for the future, as well as areas that have major scientific gaps.
  • Identify aspects of undergraduate and graduate chemical engineering that will require changes needed to prepare students and workers for the future landscape and diversity of the profession.
  • Consider recent trends in chemical engineering in the United States relative to similar research that is taking place internationally. Based on those trends, recommend steps the United States might take to secure a leadership role and to enhance collaboration and coordination of such research and educational support, where appropriate, for identified subfields of chemical engineering.

Collaborators

Committee

Chair

Member

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Staff Officer

Sponsors

American Chemistry Council

Arkema

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

Colorado School of Mines

Department of Energy

Dow Chemical Company

DuPont de Nemours, Inc.

Eastman Chemical Company

Evonik Industries AG

ExxonMobil

Georgia Institute of Technology

Honeywell International, Inc.

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Louisiana State University

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

National Institute of Standards and Technology

National Science Foundation

North Carolina State University

Northwestern University

PPG Industries, Inc.

Princeton University

Procter & Gamble Company

Purdue University

Rice University

Shell

Texas A&M University

The American Chemical Society

The American Institute of Chemical Engineers

The Pennsylvania State University

University at Buffalo

University of Arkansas

University of California, Berkeley

University of California, Davis

University of California, Los Angeles

University of California, Merced

University of Delaware

University of Florida

University of Houston

University of Maryland, Baltimore County

University of Michigan

University of Minnesota

University of Notre Dame

University of Texas at Austin

University of Virginia

University of Wisconsin

West Virginia University

Staff

Maggie Walser

Lead

MWalser@nas.edu

Brenna Albin

BAlbin@nas.edu

Liana Vaccari

LVaccari@nas.edu

Jessica Wolfman

JWolfman@nas.edu

Guru Madhavan

GMadhavan@nas.edu

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