IIT Madras Prof. T. Pradeep elected international member of US National Academy of Engineering

iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-

An Indian-origin professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, has been elected as an international member of the prestigious United States National Academy of Engineering (NAE).

Thalappil Pradeep, chair and professor of chemistry at the Deepak Parekh Institute at IIT Madras was elected for his contributions to cluster chemistry and the discovery and implementation of affordable drinking water solutions.

Prof. Pradeep is the 23rd foreign member from India to be elected to the US NAE. He will be formally inducted during the NAE’s annual meeting on September 29 this year. His election to the NAE comes a year after the induction of Professor Aniruddha Bhalachandra Pandit, vice chancellor, and UGC Professor, Chemical Engineering, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, and Professor Raman Sujith, Chair professor, Department of Aerospace Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.

Founded in 1964, the NAE is an independent institution that provides engineering leadership. The academy is organized into twelve engineering categories and it has 2310 peer-elected members from the US and 332 international members, senior professionals in business, academia, and government who are among the world’s most accomplished engineers. They provide the leadership and expertise for numerous projects focused on the relationships between engineering, technology, and the quality of life.

Election to the NAE is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”

Prof Pradeep works on diverse aspects of materials and has won many national recognitions including the Padma Shri and the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize. He has won coveted international recognitions such as the Eni Award, VinFuture Prize, and Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Price for Water. He has also built advanced scientific instruments for his work. Besides being a co-founder of half a dozen companies, he has 550 papers and over 100 patents.

A pioneer in nanotechnology applications for clear water, his work on pesticide removal has benefitted millions of people. Prof Pradeep and his team have developed ‘water-positive’ materials to remove arsenic, uranium and several other toxic contaminants from water and the technology has been approved for national implementation. He is now expanding the reach of these technologies to other countries.

“I am humbled by this recognition, which is a result of the hard work of my team. I could reach this far only because of the tremendous support of my institution and my nation. This fellowship once again reaffirms my belief in the interdisciplinary nature of science,” said Prof. Pradeep.

 

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