Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering Graduate Seminar Series
About the event
The Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering is hosting a seminar presented by Thomas E. Graedel, Clifton R. Musser Professor Emeritus of Industrial Ecology and Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering, Yale University.
Professor Graedel was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering for “outstanding contributions to the theory and practice of industrial ecology, 2002.” His research is centered on developing and enhancing industrial ecology, the organizing framework for the study of the interactions of the modern technological society with the environment. His textbook, Industrial Ecology, cowritten with B. R. Allenby of AT&T, was the first book in the field and is now in its second edition. It, and his 2004 textbook Greening the Industrial Facility, are used for F&ES courses of the same names. His current interests include studies of the flows of materials within the industrial ecosystem and the development of analytical tools to assess the environmental characteristics of products, processes, the service industry, and urban infrastructures. He is a fellow of Pierson College.
Professor Graedel graduated from Washington State University in 1960 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. He will receive the 2019 WSU Regents’ Distinguished Alumnus Award on April 2.
Long-Term Prospects for Engineering Materials
Modern society and its artifacts such as transport, housing, and electronics are entirely dependent on materials. Well-trained engineers transform those materials into products we all use every day. Supplies of materials are not infinite, however, and rates of material use are increasing rapidly. What is the future potential for matching demand to supply? This presentation will consider product life extension, reuse, and recycling from the perspective provided by scenarios that paint pictures of possible material futures from now until mid-century.