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John Prausnitz Oral History Center University of California The Bancroft Library Berkeley, California John Prausnitz John Prausnitz: Chemical Engineering at UC Berkeley, 1955–2020 University History Interviews conducted by Paul Burnett in 2018 and 2019 Copyright © 2020 by The Regents of the University of California Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley ii Since 1954 the Oral History Center of The Bancroft Library, formerly the Regional Oral History Office, has been interviewing leading participants in or well-placed witnesses to major events in the development of Northern California, the West, and the nation. Oral History is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. The recording is transcribed, lightly edited for continuity and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewee. The corrected manuscript is bound with photographs and illustrative materials and placed in The Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley, and in other research collections for scholarly use. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account, offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is reflective, partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ********************************* All uses of this manuscript are covered by a legal agreement between The Regents of the University of California and John Prausnitz dated May 27, 2020. The manuscript is thereby made available for research purposes. All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to The Bancroft Library of the University of California, Berkeley. Excerpts up to 1,000 words from this interview may be quoted for publication without seeking permission as long as the use is non-commercial and properly cited. Requests for permission to quote for publication should be addressed to The Bancroft Library, Head of Public Services, Mail Code 6000, University of California, Berkeley, 94720-6000, and should follow instructions available online at http://ucblib.link/OHC-rights. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: John Prausnitz, "John Prausnitz: Chemical Engineering at UC Berkeley, 1955–2020" conducted by Paul Burnett in 2018–19, Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 2020. Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley iii John M. Prausnitz Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley iv Abstract John M. Prausnitz is Professor of the Graduate School in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. A graduate of Princeton University, he is best known for his pioneering work in the field of molecular thermodynamics: the application of thermodynamics to the behavior and interactions of compounds of solids, fluids, and gases. He began research on applications to the petroleum industry, but he has contributed to improvements in many manufacturing processes, including in the field of biotechnology and renewable energy. He has been on the faculty since 1955. Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley v Table of Contents Foreword by C. Judson King X Interview 1: October 29, 2018 Hour 1 1 Born in Berlin, Germany, 1928 — Childhood illness, ruptured appendix — Memories of school and childhood, facing anti-Semitism — Immigration to Long Island, New York at nine years old — Transition to American school and life — Moral values imparted by father — Relatives' escape from Nazi Germany to settlement in the United States prior to World War II — Strong encouragement of education — Emphasis on physical exercise — Growing up in the United States during World War II — Love for museums, music, and opera — Enjoyment of science and study of chemical engineering at Cornell University — Relationship with family members — Experience at Cornell — Interest in history of science at Cornell Hour 2 19 Attempts to inject humanities approaches into science curriculum at the University of California, Berkeley — Veterans returning from war — Mixed experiences with courses at Princeton University — University of Rochester — Interest in music at Princeton and listening to Paul Tillich and other theologians — Graduate research at Princeton — Initial intellectual pursuits at UC Berkeley — Objectives of a chemical engineer — Chemical engineering students entering industry or training more — Preference for working in academia rather than at a chemical company — Summers at boys' camp as horseback-riding counselor Interview 2: November 14, 2018 Hour 1 29 University of Rochester — Thesis work with professor Hu-Xian Su — Work as a teaching assistant and getting a car — Experience of learning thermodynamics in physical chemistry at Rochester — Penchant for teaching and educating — One- on-one teaching, mass education, and student reticence and self-doubt — Mentorship of students — Work with Richard Wilhelm at Princeton — First time in California for an interview with Shell — Chemical engineering's focus on mostly the petroleum industry in the mid-1950s — Key texts that changed chemical engineering education — Decision to work for Princeton, UC Berkeley, or Stanford University — Relations with the colleges of chemistry and engineering at UC Berkeley — Clark Kerr's placement of chemical engineering in the College of Chemistry — Encounter with Joel Hildebrand's work while at Princeton — Disagreement with current methodology for theses at UC Berkeley — Differences in company philosophies between Shell and Chevron — Goals of Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley vi chemical engineers in the 1920s — Chemical engineers developing biological products — Thermodynamics and experimental data — Effects of financial pressures of chemistry at UC Berkeley — Emphasis on applications — Time as an assistant professor at UC Berkeley and work with Bernard Alder — Influence of Hildebrand and other postdocs on his research Hour 2 47 G.N. Lewis' spirit in Gilman Hall — Admiration for Charles Wilke, previous department chair of chemical engineering — Service in petroleum and petrochemical field — Recognition of preference in an academic career while working at Chevron in 1956 — Reluctance of petrochemical industry to use newer methods — Social relations with professors in the College of Chemistry — Meeting wife Susie — Enjoyment of chamber music — Challenge of teaching students effective communication skills — Influence of journal article on chemical engineering — UC Berkeley chemical engineering approach to molecular research Interview 3: November 28, 2018 Hour 1 60 Chemical separations and the essentiality of fluid stream separation — Generation of thermodynamic properties to design separation operations — Making estimation of vapor-liquid equilibria of a mixture more efficient — Example of liquid-liquid equilibrium with an azeotrope — Work on the adsorption separation process of mixtures with former student Alan Myers — Research funding support by the American Chemical Society and the National Science Foundation — Help from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and Glenn Seaborg — Position at LBNL — Internal debate in the chemical engineering department between Charles Wilke and Andy Ochrivoltz — Criticism from chemists, physicists, and industry leaders — Conservative nature of the petroleum industry — Translating jargon for chemists, physicists, and people in industry — Earning tenure in 1960 — Waiting several years to get a laboratory — Importance of presence in lab and seminars to boost student morale and participation — Recognizing gap between humanities and science — Translating jargon for chemical engineers with computer program in the 1970s — Writing monograph titled "Computer Calculations of Multicomponent Vapor-Liquid Equilibria" — Describing statistical mechanics — Complexity of molecules in statistical mechanics — Chuck Eckert — Pioneering book on statistical mechanics by Keith Gubbins and John Rowlandson Hour 2 78 Early work on virial coefficients — Work in the 1970s on NRTL and UNIQUAC models — Marriage and waiting to have children — Wife Susie giving birth in Switzerland during first sabbatical in Zurich — Environmental and political Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley vii protests on the UC Berkeley campus in the 1960s — Books on thermodynamics — Work with the theorem on corresponding states — Extensive use of chromatography — Consulting with Air Products and Chemicals in Allentown, Pennsylvania — Visiting professor from DuPont emphasizing safety in industry — Student safety in the laboratory — Students John O'Connell and Albert Sherwood — Efforts in modernizing thermodynamics — Annual meeting of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers — Work on polymer thermodynamics in the 1970s Interview 4: December 12, 2018 Hour 1 93 Gibbs' chemical potential and free energy — Molecular thermodynamics: using physical chemistry to make Gibbs' insights correspond to actual behavior of molecules — G.N. Lewis and fugacity — Research in phase equilibria and its importance for industry — Safety and environmental concerns — Prausnitz the "reluctant environmentalist" — Efficiency
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