2019 Recipients

The following are the recipients of the 2019 National Awards administered by the American Chemical Society (ACS). Vignettes of the award recipients appeared in the Jan. 28, 2019 issue of C&EN. The recipients were honored at the awards ceremony on Tuesday, April 2, 2019 in conjunction with the ACS Spring 2019 National Meeting & Exposition in Orlando. The Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award recipients will be honored during the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

ACS Award for Achievement in Research for the Teaching and Learning of Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Exams Institute

Diane M. Bunce, The Catholic University of America

Award Citation: For her work to understand how students acquire and retain chemical knowledge, as well as her efforts to improve chemical education research.

Address to be presented before the Division of Chemical Education. 

ACS Award for Affordable Green Chemistry

Sponsored by Dow Chemical and endowed by the Rohm and Haas Company

Richard A. Gross, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Award Citation: For the discovery and implementation of new biocatalysis platforms, including omega-hydroxyl fatty acids, polyesters and peptides for uses in materials science and cost-effective biosurfactants with tunable properties.

Address to be presented before the Division of Polymer Chemistry. 

ACS Award for Computers in Chemical and Pharmaceutical Research

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Computers in Chemistry

Arnie Hagler, Valis Pharma

Award Citation: For seminal advances in force field rigor, bimolecular simulations, and algorithm development.

Address to be presented before the Division of Computers in Chemistry. 

ACS Award for Creative Advances in Environmental Science and Technology

Sponsored by ACS and the ACS Division of Environmental Chemistry

Jerald L. Schnoor, University of Iowa

Award Citation: For pioneering the science and practice of phytoremediation, a natural, green, and cost-effective means for cleaning hazardous waste sites, contaminated soil and groundwater, and agricultural runoff.

Address to be presented before the Division of Environmental Chemistry.

ACS Award for Creative Invention

Sponsored by ACS Corporation Associates

Jonathan L. Vennerstrom, University of Nebraska Medical Center

Award Citation: For the identification of an antimalarial synthetic trioxolane drug development candidate.

Address to be presented before the Division of Medicinal Chemistry.

ACS Award for Creative Work in Fluorine Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Fluorine Chemistry

Norio Shibata, Nagoya Institute of Technology, Nagoya, Japan

Award Citation: For his outstanding contributions to synthetic organic fluorine chemistry, including pioneering work on enantioselective fluorination and trifluoromethylation methods and the development of shelf-stable reagents.

Address to be presented before the Division of Fluorine Chemistry at the 2019 Biennial Winter Fluorine Conference in Clearwater Beach, FL.

ACS Award for Creative Work in Synthetic Organic Chemistry

Sponsored by MilliporeSigma

M. Christina White, The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Award Citation: For her pioneering work in the development of site-selective C-H functionalization chemistry for complex molecule synthesis and late-stage functionalization.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry.

ACS Award for Distinguished Service in the Advancement of Inorganic Chemistry

Sponsored by Strem Chemicals, Inc.

Debbie C. Crans, Colorado State University

Award Citation: For important contributions to fundamental coordination chemistry, and speciation, especially of vanadium, study of metals in medicine, and exceptional leadership to the inorganic chemistry community.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

ACS Award for Encouraging Disadvantaged Students into Careers in the Chemical Sciences

Sponsored by The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation

Edward C. Alexander, San Diego Mesa College

Award Citation: For his outstanding accomplishments and voluntary service with underrepresented minority students, resulting in increased student and workforce diversity in the chemical sciences.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry. 

ACS Award for Encouraging Women into Careers in the Chemical Sciences

Sponsored by The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation

Ruth E. Baltus, Clarkson University

Award Citation: For her leadership as an outstanding role model and mentor to women faculty, and to female graduate, undergraduate, and pre-college students in science and engineering.

Address to be presented before the ACS Women Chemists Committee.

ACS Award for Research at an Undergraduate Institution

Sponsored by Research Corporation for Science Advancement

Carol A. Parish, University of Richmond

Award Citation: For her role as an outstanding teacher, mentor, computational chemist, and research advisor, inspiring legions of young people to pursue careers in physical and theoretical chemistry.

Address to be presented before the Division of Computers in Chemistry.

ACS Award for Team Innovation

Sponsored by the ACS Corporation Associates

Eric K. Lin, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Vivek M. Prabhu, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Christopher L. Soles, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Wen-li Wu, National Institute of Standards and Technology (Retired)

Award Citation: For developing quantitative measurement methods and data that led to improvements in the chemically amplified photoresists used in deep and extreme-ultraviolet lithography for semiconductor fabrication.

Address to be presented before the Division of Polymeric Materials: Science & Engineering.

ACS Award in Analytical Chemistry

Sponsored by the Battelle Memorial Institute

Milton L. Lee, Brigham Young University

Award Citation: For innovations in column technologies, instrumentation, applications, and commercial implementation of micro-separations and combined micro-separations/mass spectrometry.

Address to be presented before the Division of Analytical Chemistry.

ACS Award in Applied Polymer Science

Sponsored by Eastman Chemical Company

Shanti Swarup, PPG

Award Citation: For significant advancements in the field of applied polymer research for the benefit of the global coatings industry.

Address to be presented before the Division of Polymeric Materials: Science & Engineering.

ACS Award in Chromatography

Sponsored by MilliporeSigma

Gert Desmet, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium

Award Citation: For his outstanding contributions to the field of chromatography through the development of theory, simulations, and novel experimental chromatographic devices.

Address to be presented before the Division of Analytical Chemistry. 

ACS Award in Colloid Chemistry

Sponsored by Colgate-Palmolive Company

Naomi J. Halas, Rice University

Award Citation: For pioneering nanoparticles with tunable optical properties derived from their surface plasmons with applications in sensing, fluorescence enhancement, nanomedicine, sustainability and photocatalysis.

Address to be presented before the Division of Colloid & Surface Chemistry.

ACS Award in Industrial Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry

Guy R. Humphrey, Merck & Co

Award Citation: For innovative work that has supported the commercialization of a number of new drugs, bringing tremendous benefit to patients worldwide.

Address to be presented before the Division of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry.

ACS Award in Inorganic Chemistry

Sponsored by MilliporeSigma

George Christou, University of Florida

Award Citation: For pioneering work in magnetic metal-oxo clusters and the discovery of numerous single-molecule magnets, many exhibiting unprecedented physical properties important to new 21st century technologies

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry. 

ACS Award in Organometallic Chemistry

Sponsored by The Dow Chemical Company Foundation

Alan S. Goldman, Rutgers University

Award Citation: For deep insight into the mechanisms of organometallic reactions, including the development and mechanistic analysis of catalytic systems involving the dehydrogenation of alkanes.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

ACS Award in Polymer Chemistry

Sponsored by ExxonMobil Chemical

Timothy M. Swager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Award Citation: For the design, synthesis, and study of polymers with innovative molecular designs to create materials with superior sensory, electronic, optoelectronic, and mechanical properties.

Address to be presented before the Division of Polymer Chemistry.

ACS Award in Pure Chemistry

Sponsored by the Alpha Chi Sigma Fraternity and the Alpha Chi Sigma Educational Foundation

Danna Freedman, Northwestern University

Award Citation: For the design of qubits at the molecular level, opening new opportunities in quantum computing and information processing.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

ACS Award in Separations Science & Technology

Sponsored by Waters Corporation

Sheng Dai, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and University of Tennessee

Award Citation: For his outstanding and sustained contributions in pioneering and developing novel separation systems based on porous materials and ionic liquids.

Address to be presented before the Division of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry. 

ACS Award in Surface Chemistry

Sponsored by the Procter & Gamble Company

Hans-Joachim Freund, Fritz-Haber Institute of the Max-Planck Society

Award Citations: For seminal contributions to the determination of the surface chemistry of complex systems and to the development of spectroscopies to enable measurement of these properties.

Address to be presented before the Division of Colloid & Surface Chemistry.

ACS Award in the Chemistry of Materials

Sponsored by DuPont

Krzysztof Matyjaszewski, Carnegie Mellon University

Award Citation: For the development of precision polymer synthetic methods for soft materials and enabling the preparation of new advanced polymeric materials, bioconjugates, and organic–inorganic hybrids.

Address to be presented before the Division of Polymer Chemistry. 

ACS Award in Theoretical Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Physical Chemistry

Donald G. Truhlar, University of Minnesota

Award Citation: For creative contributions to theoretical chemistry, in electronic structure, chemical dynamics, continuum solvation, and the development of new density functionals for practical calculations of thermochemical quantities.

Address to be presented before the Division of Physical Chemistry.

Award for Volunteer Service to the American Chemical Society

Sponsored by the American Chemical Society

Carolyn Ribes, The Dow Chemical Company

Award Citation: For contributing impactful leadership, an extraordinary commitment to diversity, and tireless volunteerism to the ACS at the local, divisional, and national levels.

Address to be presented before the ACS ChemLuminary Awards Ceremony at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Roger Adams Award in Organic Chemistry

Sponsored by Organic Reactions Inc. and Organic Syntheses Inc.

Stephen L. Buchwald, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Award Citation: For breakthroughs in catalysis and ligand design that have had a profound impact on the synthesis of medicines, novel materials, agricultural agents, and natural products.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry at the 46th National Organic Chemistry Symposium in Bloomington, IN.

Alfred Bader Award in Bioinorganic or Bioorganic Chemistry

Sponsored by the Alfred R. Bader Fund

Joan B. Broderick, Montana State University

Award Citation: For seminal contributions to understanding the role of the 4Fe4S cluster in the Radical SAM Enzyme Superfamily: SAM binding and a novel organometallic intermediate.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

Earle B. Barnes Award for Leadership in Chemical Research Management

Sponsored by The Dow Chemical Company Foundation 

Sarah E. Kelly, Pfizer, Inc.

Award Citation: For outstanding scientific leadership to the field of pharmaceutical sciences and a passion for the growth and development of the next generation of innovative scientists.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry. 

Ronald Breslow Award for Achievement in Biomimetic Chemistry

Sponsored by the Ronald Breslow Award Endowment

David A. Tirrell, California Institute of Technology

Award Citation: For his contributions to the development of artificial proteins and non-canonical amino acids.

Address to be presented before the Division of Biological Chemistry.

Herbert C. Brown Award for Creative Research in Synthetic Methods

Sponsored by the Purdue Borane Research Fund and the Herbert C. Brown Award Endowment

Huw M. L. Davies, Emory University

Award Citation: For the development of catalyst-controlled approaches to achieve site selective and stereoselective C-H functionalization reactions.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry.

James Bryant Conant Award in High School Chemistry Teaching

Sponsored by the Journal of Chemical Education and ChemEd X

Derrick C. Wood, Conestoga High School, Pennsylvania

Award Citation: For outstanding achievement as an innovative high school chemistry teacher, science fair mentor, and science olympiad coach who inspires his students to pursue excellence.

Address to be presented before the Division of Chemical Education.

Arthur C. Cope Award

Sponsored by the Arthur C. Cope Fund

Dieter Seebach, ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Award Citation: For fundamental and practical contributions to chemistry, including theory, innovative concepts, and methods for chemical synthesis, along with preparation and study of novel bioactive structures.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry at the Arthur C. Cope & Arthur C. Cope Scholar Symposium at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Arthur C. Cope Late Career Scholars Award

Sponsored by the Arthur C. Cope Fund

Varinder Aggarwal, University of Bristol, United Kingdom

Award Citation:  For his highly creative work in the development of asymmetric homologation of boronic esters and their applications in natural and nonnatural product synthesis.

Alison Butler, University of California, Santa Barbara

Award Citation: For outstanding accomplishments in the bioorganic chemistry of siderophores and the biosynthesis of halogenated marine natural products by haloperoxidases.

Robert McMahon, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Award Citation: For his insightful studies of the structures and reactivity patterns of foundational organic molecules and the insights he has provided to a broad scientific community.

Masahiro Murakami, Kyoto University, Japan

Award Citation: For his seminal contributions in developing reactions that activate carbon-carbon bonds en route to generating molecules of increased complexity for streamlined organic synthesis.

Addresses to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry at the Arthur C. Cope & Arthur C. Cope Scholar Symposium at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Arthur C. Cope Mid Career Scholars Award

Sponsored by the Arthur C. Cope Fund

Eugene X.-Y. Chen, Colorado State University

Award Citation: For outstanding accomplishments in organocatalysis and organic polymers, particularly for developing selective catalysts, new organocatalytic or metal-mediated reactions, and novel sustainable polymers. 

Cathleen Crudden, Queen’s University, Canada

Award Citation: For pioneering advances in stereoselective cross-couplings and innovative applications of organic chemistry to materials science.

Matthew B. Francis, University of California, Berkeley

Award Citation: For the development of new protein modification reactions for the creation of hybrid materials for diagnostic imaging, solar energy conversion, and environmental remediation.

Tehshik Yoon, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Award Citation: For pioneering work in the field of photoredox catalysis.

Addresses to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry at the Arthur C. Cope & Arthur C. Cope Scholar Symposium at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Arthur C. Cope Early Career Scholars Award

Sponsored by the Arthur C. Cope Fund

Jeremiah Johnson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Award Citation: For the development of methods for precision polymer synthesis that have generated macromolecules with novel functions and new insights into polymer network structure and mechanics.

Thomas Maimone, University of California-Berkeley

Award Citation: For his strikingly concise and innovative total syntheses of complex terpenes.

Addresses to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry at the Arthur C. Cope & Arthur C. Cope Scholar Symposium at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Elias J. Corey Award for Outstanding Original Contribution in Organic Synthesis by a Young Investigator

Sponsored by the Pfizer Endowment Fund

Vy Dong, University of California, Irvine

Award Citation: For the development of new catalytic reactions, in particular enantioselective hydroacylations and transfer hydroformylation.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry. 

F. Albert Cotton Award in Synthetic Inorganic Chemistry

Sponsored by the F. Albert Cotton Endowment Fund

Jeffrey R. Long, University of California, Berkeley

Award Citation: For his development of synthetic inorganic platforms designed for the study of single-molecule magnetism and small-molecule separation chemistry using metal-organic frameworks.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry. 

Peter Debye Award in Physical Chemistry

Sponsored by DuPont

Daniel M. Neumark, University of California, Berkeley

Award Citation: For his pioneering work in transition state spectroscopy, the dynamics of electron solvation in clusters and liquid jets, and ultrafast X-ray science.

Address to be presented before the Division of Physical Chemistry.

Frank H. Field and Joe L. Franklin Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mass Spectrometry

Sponsored by Waters Corporation

Jennifer S. Brodbelt, The University of Texas at Austin

Award Citation: For the development and application of ultraviolet photodissociation mass spectrometry for identification and characterization of biological molecules and complexes.

Address to be presented before the Division of Analytical Chemistry.

Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal

Sponsored by the Francis P. Garvan–John M. Olin Medal Endowment

Lisa McElwee-White, University of Florida

Award Citation: For leading the field of inorganic/organic nanotechnology, serving as a mentor and teacher among a diversity of students, and elevating the public image of chemistry.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

James T. Grady–James H. Stack Award for Interpreting Chemistry for the Public

Sponsored by the American Chemical Society

Sir Martyn Poliakoff, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom.

Award Citation: For his work over the past 10 years on the single most popular web presence of chemistry, the Periodic Table of Videos.

Address to be presented before the ACS Office of External Affairs and Communications at the fall national meeting in San Diego, CA.

Harry Gray Award for Creative Work in Inorganic Chemistry by a Young Investigator

Sponsored by the Gray Award Endowment

Jillian Lee Dempsey, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Award Citation: For elucidating the proton-coupled electron-transfer pathways by which molecular catalysts mediate electrochemical fuel production.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry. 

Ernest Guenther Award in the Chemistry of Natural Products

Sponsored by Givaudan

Iwao Ojima, Stony Brook University - State University of New York

Award Citation: For his outstanding work on taxol and taxane-class diterpenes at the interface of natural product chemistry, synthetic methodology, medicinal chemistry, chemical biology, and medicine.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry. 

 

Kathryn C. Hach Award for Entrepreneurial Success

Sponsored by the Kathryn C. Hach Award Fund

 John (Jack) N. Driscoll, PID Analyzers, LLC

Award Citation: For pioneering the development and commercialization of the first portable photoionization detector (PID) for industrial hygiene and gas chromatography uses, analysis of volatile organic compounds, and deployment worldwide.

Address to be presented before the Division of Small Chemical Businesses.

 

E. B. Hershberg Award for Important Discoveries in Medicinally Active Substances

Sponsored by Merck Research Laboratories

Jeffery W. Kelly, The Scripps Research Institute

Award Citation: For his understanding of transthyretin aggregation and discovering tafamidis, the first regulatory agency-approved drug to slow the progression of a neurodegenerative disease by inhibiting protein aggregation.

Address to be presented before the Division of Medicinal Chemistry. 

Joel Henry Hildebrand Award in the Theoretical and Experimental Chemistry of Liquids

Sponsored by the ExxonMobil Research & Engineering Company

Gregory A. Voth, The University of Chicago

Award Citation: For his pioneering research on the properties of complex liquid systems, including hydrated protons in water and ionic liquids, using powerful new computational methods.

Address to be presented before the Division of Physical Chemistry.

Ipatieff Prize

Sponsored by the Ipatieff Trust Fund

Ive Hermans, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Award Citation: For innovative contributions and industrial impact in catalytic oxidations and other chemical transformations.

Address to be presented before the Division of Catalysis Science & Technology.

E. V. Murphree Award in Industrial and Engineering Chemistry

Sponsored by the ExxonMobil Research & Engineering Company

Hariklia “Lili” Deligianni, IBM Research (Retired)

Award Citation: For pioneering electrochemical processes that revolutionized the capability of microelectronic devices, now used by all major chip producers worldwide.

Address to be presented before the Division of Biochemical Technology.

Nakanishi Award

Sponsored by the Nakanishi Prize Endowment

Lewis E. Kay, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

Award Citation: For the development of modern NMR spectroscopy for studies of biomolecular structure, dynamics, and function, including applications to supramolecular machines and excited protein conformations.

Address to be presented before the Division of Biological Chemistry. 

Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education in Chemistry

Sponsored by Avantor™ Performance Materials Inc.

Bryan Michael Hunter (Student), Rowland Institute at Harvard, Harvard University

Harry B. Gray (Preceptor), California Institute of Technology

Award Citation: For his outstanding doctoral thesis on the mechanism of iron-nickel catalysis of water oxidation.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

James Flack Norris Award in Physical Organic Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Northeastern Section

Eric V. Anslyn, The University of Texas at Austin

Award Citation: For pioneering applications of physical organic chemistry to the development of new chemical sensors.

Address to be presented before the Division of Organic Chemistry.

George A. Olah Award in Hydrocarbon or Petroleum Chemistry

Sponsored by the George A. Olah Award Endowment

Chunshan Song, Pennsylvania State University

Award Citation: For groundbreaking contributions to adsorptive desulfurization of hydrocarbon fuels, adsorptive CO2 separation, and catalytic CO2 conversion to fuels and chemicals.

Address to be presented before the Division of Energy & Fuels.

Charles Lathrop Parsons Award

Sponsored by ACS

Attila E. Pavlath, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Western Regional Research Center

Award Citation: For his outstanding service to the ACS locally, regionally, and nationally to advance the impact of chemistry on society.

Address to be presented before the ACS Board Committee on Professional & Member Relations and the ACS Office of the Secretary. 

George C. Pimentel Award in Chemical Education

Sponsored by Cengage Learning and the ACS Division of Chemical Education

Catherine H. Middlecamp, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Award Citation: For engaging faculty and students in teaching and learning college chemistry in contexts that reflect the issues of people, their communities, and the planet.

Address to be presented before the Division of Chemical Education. 

Glenn T. Seaborg Award for Nuclear Chemistry

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Nuclear Chemistry & Technology

Thomas E. Albrecht-Schmitt, Florida State University

Award Citation: For his work showing the first strong links between d-transition-metal and 5f-element chemistry.

Address to be presented before the Division of Nuclear Chemistry & Technology.

Gabor A. Somorjai Award for Creative Research in Catalysis

Sponsored by the Gabor A. & Judith K. Somorjai Endowment Fund

Manos Mavrikakis, University of Wisconsin–Madison

Award Citation: For creatively combining molecular modeling, microkinetics, and experiments to elucidate the nature of the active site during heterogeneous catalytic reactions and to identify improved catalysts.

Address to be presented before the Division of Catalysis Science & Technology.

E. Bright Wilson Award in Spectroscopy

Sponsored by the ACS Division of Physical Chemistry

Martin Moskovits, University of California, Santa Barbara

Award Citation: For pioneering original contributions to the development and understanding of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

Address to be presented before the Division of Physical Chemistry.

Ahmed Zewail Award in Ultrafast Science & Technology

Sponsored by the Ahmed Zewail Endowment Fund established by the Newport Corp.

Hrvoje Petek, The University of Pittsburgh

Award Citation: For pioneering ultrafast surface science and surface femtochemistry, including the development of interferometric time-resolved two-photon photoemission spectroscopy and elucidation of fundamental light-matter interactions at surfaces.

Address to be presented before the Division of Physical Chemistry.

National Fresenius Award

Sponsored by Phi Lambda Upsilon, The National Chemistry Honor Society

Brandi Cossairt, University of Washington

Award Citation: For her progress in the design, synthesis, and characterization of nanoparticles as electronic materials and the development of catalysts for energy storage applications.

Address to be presented before the Division of Inorganic Chemistry.