Dr Eli Ruckenstein is a Distinguished Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, also commonly known as the University at Buffalo or UB, is a public research university and a "University Center" in the State University of New York system. The university was founded by Millard Fillmore in 1846. UB has multiple campuses...

. His main research areas are catalysis

Catalysis

Catalysis is the change in rate of a chemical reaction due to the participation of a substance called a catalyst. Unlike other reagents that participate in the chemical reaction, a catalyst is not consumed by the reaction itself. A catalyst may participate in multiple chemical transformations....

, surface phenomena

Surface science

Surface science is the study of physical and chemical phenomena that occur at the interface of two phases, including solid–liquid interfaces, solid–gas interfaces, solid–vacuum interfaces, and liquid-gas interfaces. It includes the fields of surface chemistry and surface physics. Some related...

, colloids and emulsions, and bio-compatible surfaces and materials.

Biography

He received his PhD from the Polytechnic University of Bucharest

Polytechnic University of Bucharest

Universitatea Politehnica din Bucureşti is a technical university in Bucharest, Romania. It was founded in 1864 based on the older technical school of Gheorghe Lazăr and it was renamed "Politehnica" in 1920.-History:...

 in 1949. He started his academic career as an Assistant Professor with his alma mater. In 1969, he was invited to spend six weeks in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 at the University College

University College London

University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...

 and Imperial College

Imperial College London

Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...

. After this he received an invitation as National Science Foundation

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...

 Senior Scientist at Clarkson College

Clarkson College

Clarkson College is a private college located in Omaha, Nebraska that offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the health sciences. Areas of study include nursing, medical imaging, imaging informatics, radiologic technology, health care business, physical therapist assistant and professional...

. Subsequently in 1970, he joined the University of Delaware

University of Delaware

The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...

 as a Full Professor. He then joined University at Buffalo (UB) in 1973.

Now at more than 80 years of age he is still works as full time member of the UB faculty, and continues to conduct original research and publish peer-reviewed journal articles at a rate well above the average.

Awards

Ruckenstein is the recipient of numerous awards and honors. Among the most prominent of these are his induction into the National Academy of Engineering in 1990, and his award in 1998 of the National Medal of Science

National Medal of Science

The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and...

, which is the highest scientific honor bestowed by the United States.