EDITORIAL pubs.acs.org/IECR
Preface to the Professor K. D. P. Nigam Festschrift
I
t is a distinct pleasure to present this Festschrift to honor Prof. Krishna Deo Prasad Nigam (popularly known as KDPN) of Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi) on the occasion of his 65th birthday. Prof. Nigam was born on January 1, 1947 in Kanpur, which stands as one of North India’s major industrial centers with its own historical, religious, and commercial importance. He did his schooling at the Ramakrishna Mission Higher Secondary School, Kanpur. This school emphasizes humility toward the society and self-discipline and this basic foundation had an incredible impact on his positive attitude toward life. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in 1965 from Agra University and Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering degree from Harcourt Butler Technological Institute (HBTI), Kanpur in 1969. He continued his education from the same institute and obtained his Master of Science in Chemical Engineering Design degree in 1971. He joined the doctoral program at UDCT, Bombay (now known as UICT, Mumbai) in January of 1972 and started working on problems related to modeling of complex flow systems under the mentorship of Professor K. Vasudeva. He was awarded the Ph.D degree in Chemical Engineering in 1976. Prof. Nigam started his academic career as a lecturer at IIT Delhi in 1976. He was quickly promoted to assistant r 2012 American Chemical Society
professor in 1979 and then to full professor in 1990, because of his extensive research contributions. He also served as the Head of Department of Chemical Engineering at IIT Delhi from 1999 to 2002. During his tenure as department head, significant growth was seen in terms of research funding, research publications, and the number of doctoral students in the graduate program. Furthermore, he spearheaded the effort to improve the basic infrastructure of the department’s laboratories, committee rooms, and seminar room. Prof. Nigam has been a distinguished researcher in the field of chemical engineering for more than 35 years. Through creative experimental and theoretical research, he has made pioneering contributions to the understanding, analysis, and design of multiphase reactors, heat exchangers, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). In these areas, he has authored or co-authored more than 120 archival original research publications/book chapters and monographs. His research in complex flow has Special Issue: Nigam Issue Received: September 27, 2011 Accepted: September 27, 2011 Published: February 01, 2012 1435
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Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research resulted in several innovative devices that are practical to implement. He developed a novel reactor configuration for the counter-current operation of a trickle-bed reactor. He developed a new coiled flow inverter for enhancing heat transfer, based on the novel concept of flow inversion. This innovative device has potential for the multifunctional applications in the process industry, such as use in inline mixers, chemical reactors, and separation processes, as well as use in cryogenic applications. He has also developed a four-zone axial mixer, which is a new class of static mixers, with his friend and long-time collaborator Bruce Nauman at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. While Professor Nigam’s research has always been at the cutting edge, he has never lost focus on social and national needs. He regularly participates in professional society meetings, where he has organized/chaired several technical sessions on various chemical engineering topics in prestigious national and international conferences. He has also delivered several plenary and invited lectures at these conferences. Recently, he delivered the invited Plenary Lecture at University of Pannonia, Hungary, in September 2011, on their Golden Jubilee. He was an invited speaker at the sixth ERA-Chemistry Flash Conference on “Extreme Chemical Efficiency—Driving to the Limits” in March 2010 at Roscoff, France, and at the Eighth World Congress Symposium in August 2009 at Montreal, Canada. Prof. Nigam is a gifted and dedicated teacher. Despite his busy research schedule, he has always made time to mentor his students. He has supervised 19 doctoral and 45 masters students at IIT Delhi. Several of his former students have received research awards, such as the Young Scientist Award and the Best Research Proposal Award from the Government of India. Even though he spent his entire academic career at IIT Delhi, he has also been involved in mentoring students via visiting faculty appointments at several international institutes, such as Concordia University (Canada), Chinese Academy of Science (China), University of Braunschweig (Germany), University of Sydney (Australia), University of New South Wales (Australia), INP-ENSIACET (France), ECPM (France), and ENSCCF (France). Prof. Nigam has also made significant contributions to science and technology policy by participating in several government advisory panels. He has served as a member of Scientific Advisory Committee of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (Government of India), and as a member of Innovation Council for the Fertilizer Sector, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers (Government of India). He is also a member of the research advisory committees of Fertilizers Association of India, Engineers India Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, and Regional Research Laboratories of CSIR. He has also served as honorable Council Member on the All India Council of Technical Education, which is the highest decision-making body on technical education in India. He is also a member of the European Federation of Chemical Engineers on working party education, a member of the International Scientific Committee for the SusTEM2011, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, and a member of the European Process Intensification Centre, The Netherlands. Prof. Nigam is the recipient of Humboldt Research Award for the year 2011, which is a rare distinction, making him the 15th Indian recipient of Senior Humboldt Fellowship. He has also been the recipient of fellowships from prestigious international organizations such as Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Deutsher Akademisher Austausch Dienst, British Council, and the French Government.
EDITORIAL
Prof. Nigam has been a role model for his students and colleagues. Many of his undergraduate and graduate students have contributed significantly to the scientific and academic fields, as well as to the industrial world. Prof. Nigam’s modesty, humility, and patience—and yet a strong resolve to make a positive contribution—has always inspired his students to strive for excellence. We would like to thank all the friends and collaborators of K. D. P. Nigam for their contributions to this special issue. We would also like to thank the efforts of Professor Donald Paul, Editor-in-Chief of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research and his staff for their expert handling of this issue. We are confident that Prof. Nigam’s recognition will help motivate the chemical engineering and academic fraternity globally. Srinivas Palanki Professor and Chair, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of South Alabama, Mobile, Alabama 366880002 (E-mail:
[email protected])
Devang V. Khakhar Director and Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Mumbai 400 076, India
Rakesh Bajpai Endowed Chair Professor of Bioproducts Manufacturing, Professor of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana 70504
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