We are proud to add Alicia Gardner and Ray Mentzer as recipients of the 2024 Outstanding Chemical Engineer Award. The OChE Award recognizes alumni who have achieved distinction as leaders while making significant contributions to their fields, thus reflecting the value of a chemical engineering degree.

There’s a lot more to the wonder drugs that provide life-changing treatments than the research breakthroughs that enable them. Just because you make something work in a lab doesn’t mean you can produce it at scale, especially given the fact that pharmaceuticals are inherently unstable. After discovery of the novel substance (molecule) comes follow-on steps like manufacturing (at acceptable yields), packaging, quality assurance, storage/preservation, logistics/transportation, and regulatory approval — all obstacles to overcome so the new therapeutic’s benefits can be realized across society, including remote, underserved populations. Elizabeth Topp and Alina Alexeenko discuss the ins and outs of advanced pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturing — including in space — and the nexus of Purdue and Indiana as a powerhouse in this strategic economic and social impact sector.

James Caruthers, the Gerald and Sarah Skidmore Professor of Chemical Engineering, along with collaborators from Purdue University Davidson School of Chemical Engineering, have published several significant studies that advance our understanding of the glass transition and the physics of the glassy state.

Led by Professors Agrawal and Gounder, CISTAR has forged a pivotal partnership with Susteon, a technology company known for its integration of industry, government, and academic research to develop innovative decarbonization technologies

Purdue faculty researcher Zhenhua Zeng is recognized for using his Toastmasters skills to continue to advance his learning.