NEWS FROM THE BERG GROUP...
(Last updated 12/27/18)
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- NEW PHD STUDENT JOINS GROUP Luke Khoury has joined the research group in Autumn, 2018. He will be working on problems involving reinforced polymeric composites.
- FOUR NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN THE GROUP for 2018-2019 Four new undergrads have signed on to the Berg Group to pursue independent research for 2017-2018. They are Andrey Antonchik, Blake Berry, Lane Bozman and Harrison Sarsito. They will be working, respectively, on problems including the synthesis of hollow silica nanospheres, the replacement of synthetic thickeners in personal care products with eco-friendly biodegradable materials, particle charging in leaky dielectric media using mixed suractants, and the characterization and mitigation of asphaltene adsorption/deposition in packed beds..
- PAPER PRESENTED AT ACS MEETING In August, 2018, Ben Ponto presented a paper entitled: "Colloidal Particle Charging in Leaky Dielectrics" at the 256th ACS National Meeting in Boston.
- KYLE CALDWELL COMPLETES PHD KYLE CALDWELL defended his PhD dissertation in Dec., 2017, entitled: "Adhesion and Interphase Properties of Reinforced Polymeric Composites." He has accepted a position with the Saint-Gobain Corporation in Boston, MA.
- NEW UNDERGRAD JOINS THE GROUP Amy Gallagher has just joined the Group, and will be working on adhesion testing in carbon-fiber reinforced polymeric composites. She will be working with Dr. Ben Rutz, of Toray Composite Materials America, Inc. Ben was recently named Affiliate Assistant Professor in the Department.
- JUD VIRDEN WINS 2018 DIAMOND AWARD Dr. Jud W. Virden, Jr., who received his PhD in 1991, has just been named the Diamond Award winner for Achievement in Industry. This is the highest award of its kind offered by the UW College of Engineering to its Alumni. Through Jud Virden's 26-year career at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), he has developed world-leading partnerships to drive successful innovations in energy technology, transportation and other markets. As the associate laboratory director of PNNL's Energy & Environment Directorate, Jud leads over 1,000 scientists, engineers and staff, and directs an annual budget of over $235 million. Jud's work bridges critical efforts by national laboratories, government, academia and industry to address the nation's complex energy and environmental challenges in public policy and in leading-edge research and development. This is a proud moment for both Jud and Prof. Berg.
- FOUR NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN THE GROUP Four new undergrads have signed on to the Berg Group to pursue independent research for 2017-2018. They are Vincent Facon, Jake Fredrickson, Luke Khoury and Shang-Min Li. They will be working on problems including single-fiber fragmentation for carbon-fiber reinforced composites, characterizing the detergency of new bio=degradable surfactants, the use of corona treatments to enhance fiber-matrix adhesion, and particle charging in leaky dielectric media using mixed suractants.
- PROF. BERG HONORED BY WPPF Prof. Berg was elected in May to the "Wall of Fame" of the Washington Pulp and Paper Foundation. It was an opportunity to re-connect with many of the students from past years.
- PROF. BERG GIVES SEMINAR AT OSU Prof. Berg presented a seminar entitled:"Can We Use Thermodynamics to Predict Adhesion?" at Oregon State University in May, 2017. He will be working with us on problems relating to asphaltene adsorption and deposition.
- STUDENTS RECEIVE MS DEGREES Vineet Venkatanarayan and Aditya Salunkhe received their MS degrees this Spring, 2017. Vineet's thesis was on Asphaltene Adsorption and Aditya's was on Boundary Lubricants for Abrasive Slurries. Vineet has accepted a position at the Intel Corp. in Portland, OR, and Aditya is working with the Membrion Corp. in Seattle, WA
- ANDREAS AVERKIOU WINS PRIZE AT AICHE CONFERENCE Andreas Averkiou took Third Place in the Research Paper Competition of the PNW Student Chapter Conference, held this year (2017) at Oregon State University in April.
- FOUR NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN THE GROUP Four new undergrads have signed on to the Berg Group to pursue independent research. They are Andreas Averkiou,who will study the preparation and properties of high internal phase emulsions (HIPE's), sponsored by Procter & Gamble, Trenton Mueller, who will study a new NMR-based technique for measuring interfacial area in colloidal dispersions, sponsored by Xigo Nanotools, Phuong Nguyen, whose project will release agents for epoxy-stell and epoxy-glass systems, sponsored by Toray Composites (America), and Anthony Shipley, who will study the adhesion of PVC coatings to a glass-fiber reinforced Teflon substrates, sponsored by Saint Gobain, Inc.
- PROF BERG GIVES SHAH LECTURE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA PROF Berg was elected to present the 2016 Shah Lecture on Surface Science, April 11, 2016, honoring Professor Dinesh O. Shah. Shown at left are Prof. Shah, center, Prof. Berg, and right, Prof. Rich Dickeson, chair of the Dept. of Chemical Engineering at the University of Florida. Prof. Berg spoke on the charging of colloidal particles in apolar media.
- UNDERGRADS WIN AT AICHE STUDENT CHAPTER CONFERENCE Members of the Berg undergrad research group took both First Place and Third Place prizes in the Research Paper Competition at the Pacific Northwest AIChE Student Chapter Conference hosted April 15-16 at the University of Washington. Jacob Hatzinger took First Place and a $200 prize, with his paper entitled: "Rheology Modification of Abrsive Slurries," and will advance to the National Competition at the Annual Meeting in San Francisco. Austin Habich took Third Place and a prize of $100, with his paper: "Surface Aging Effects of Primer Undercoats on Aluminum Surfaces."
- ALUMNI NEWS Prof. Phil Harding (PhD 1997 Berg Group), Linus Pauling Distingiushed Engineer at Oregon State University, has been awarded the Lloyd Carter Award for Excellence in Teaching in the College of Engineering at Oregon State University. Congratulations! Jill Seebergh (PhD 1995 Berg Group) has been named a Technical Fellow at the Boeing Company. This rank includes only approximately 1.5% of BoeingÕs workforce and represents Òsome of the best engineering and scientific minds at Boeing and in the industry.Ó
- ERIC ASTON ASSUMES CHAIRMANSHIP AT IDAHO Prof. Eric Aston (PhD 2001 Berg Group) assumed the Department of Chemical& Materials Engineering chairmanship at the University of Idaho as of June, 2015. Best of luck in this new endeavor!
- ED MICHOR FINISHES PHD Ed Michor defended his PhD dissertation in Dec., 2016, entitled: "The Effect of Reverse Micelles on Charging Behavior in Apolar Media." He has accepted a position with the Intel Corporation in Portland, OR.
- THREE NEW GRAD STUDENTS JOIN THE GROUP Three new students joined the Berg Group in the Autumn of 2015. These include Ben Ponto, who will be pursuing a PhD Degree studying colloidal particle charge in apolar media, Vineet Venkatanaratanan, who will be seeking an MS Degree studying the adsorption of asphaltenes in porous media, and Aditya Salunkhe, who is seeking an MS Degree studying interparticle friction in abrasive slurries. Aditya will be co-advised by Prof. Rene Overney.
- FIVE NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN THE GROUP Five new undergrads have signed on to the Berg Group to pursue independent research. They are Bennett Battistoni, who will study a new NMR-based technique for measuring interfacial area in colloidal dispersions, Austin Habich, who will study aging effects in undercoats on aluminum, Jacob Hatzinger, whose project will involve rheology modification in abrasive slurries, Thao Nguyen, whose project will concern a new formulation for skin care products, and Samira Shaar, who will study the effects of nanoparticle addition to epoxy composites.
- GUEST PROFESSOR JOINS GROUP Prof. Saad Alkafeef, Professor of Petroleum Engineering at the College of Technological Studies, Kuwait, will be with the group for the year 2015-2016. He will be working with us on problems relating to asphaltene adsorption and deposition.
- PROF BERG GIVES STUDENT-INVITED SEMINAR AT BERKELEY Each year, the graduate students at the University of California - Berkeley are able to select a speaker for their Graduate Seminar Series, and this year the honor went to Prof. Berg, who presented a seminar there on April 8th. It was a great opportunity to reconnect with old colleagues Clay Radke and John Newman, and his former teacher, John Prausnitz.
- LABORATORY DEDICATION On May 1, 2015, the "colloids lab" was formally dedicated as the "John C. Berg Laboratory for Surface and Colloid Science." Aside from the Department and college community, many alumni who had contributed to the success of the lab over the years since it was first launched in the '80's were in attendance. The dedication was followed by an informal dinner. Prior to the dedication, the lab itself had had some significant upgrades, including a reconfiguration of the lab benches, a new floor, new marking boards and a new paint job. The lab accommodates the Department's course on Surface and Colloid Science (Chem E 455), which has been required of all undergraduates since 2010.
- PROF BERG CELEBRATES 50 YEARS AT UW
Prof. Berg's 50th anniversary was celebrated on Sept. 15, 2014, with an enormous reunion attended by over 370 alums and friends representing every graduating class from 1966 through 2014, and was the largest event ever in the history of the College of Engineering at UW. The event involved an Open House at Benson Hall, followed by a social hour and dinner in the HUB Ballroom. In a program MC'd by Prof. Kevin Hodgson, a number of testimonials were given, recalling many stories and kind words. Some further testimonials can be viewed at:
Testimonials
and many of the pictures taken at the event can be viewed at:
Pictures at 50th Anniversary
- ANDY KIM JOINS FACULTY Andy Kim (PhD, '02 almus of the group) has joined the faculty of the Department of Chemical Engineering as its first Endowed Lecturer in Interfacial and Colloid Science. Besides teaching, he will be in charge of the Department's Shared Instrument Facility, and will be the coordinator for the Surface and Colloid Science, and Polymer Science laboratories
- RYAN AUBOL TAKES THIRD PLACE Ryan Aubol took Third Place in the Research Paper Competition at the Pacific Northwest Regional AIChE Student Chapter Conference held this year at the University of British Columbia,
- MATT GACEK COMPLETES PHD Matt Gacek defended his PhD dissertation in March, 2015, entitled: "Surfactant Mediated Acid-Base Particle Charging in Apolar Nedia." He has accepted a position with the Saint-Gobain Corporation in Boston, MA.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Six new seniors have signed on to do research in the group for 2014-2015 academic year. Ryan Aubol is using HPLC to study the adsorption of polymers (asphaltene mimics) on sandstone. Nick Sage is studying rheology modification of abrasive slurries used in jet cutting. Action Sun is investigating temperature effects in reverse micelle formation. Donovan Tran is examining moisture uptake, and strategies for its mitigation, in epoxy-based composites. Marilyn Giovanni and Yangao Xiong are investigating the production and properties of new foam-based personal care products.
- JILL SEEBERGH NAMED BOEING TECHNICAL FELLOW Dr. Jill Seebergh, PhD 1995, was selected as a Boeing Technical Fellow in 2014. Fellows are Boeing's top technical experts and leaders, accounting for less than 1% of the company's engineers and scientists. The rigorous selection process for advancement is held every two years and is highly competitive. In her current assignment, Jill leads the Coatings Advanced Research Team for Boeing Research & Technology, where she has responsibilities for developing the next generation of aerospace coatings materials and processes and supporting the implementation of these technologies onto Boeing products.
- ERIC ASTON WINS MID-CAREER AWARD AT IDAHO Prof. Eric Aston, PhD 2001, has been tapped for University of Idaho's 2014-2016 Presidential Mid-Career Award. Eric is currently Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Idaho, where he just this year graduated three PhD students and three MS students. In addition to his full teaching load and administrative responsibilities, he has developed an active research program in nanoscience. The Mid-Career Award not only recognizes his many accomplishments, but also adds a $5,000 bonus to his pay for each of the next two years.
- JUD VIRDEN NAMED DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS Dr. Jud W. Virden, Jr., PhD 1991, is the 2014 Distinguished Alumnus from the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington. Jud is currently Associate Laboratory Director of the Energy and Environment Directorate of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, WA. He leads a team of over 900 staff in delivering science and technology solutions for energy and environmental challenges. Jud is passionate about ensuring that the world-class science capabilities at the DOE National Laboratories accelerate the innovation cycle in support of competitiveness. This was a proud moment for both Jud and Prof. Berg.
- BEN RUTZ COMPLETES PHD Ben Rutz completed his PhD Degree January 9, 2014, and has accepted a position with the Toray Carbon Fibers America Company in Huntsville, AL.
- UNDERGRADS WIN AGAIN AT AICHE STUDENT CHAPTER CONFERENCE Members of the Berg undergrad research group took both First Place and Third Place prizes at the Pacific Northwest AIChE Student Chapter Conference hosted April 25-26 at Washington State University. Zach Girod (shown left below) took First Place and a $200 prize, with his paper entitled: "Skin Adhesion," and will advance to the National Competition at the Annual Meeting in Atlanta. Casey Hsu (shown right below) took Third Place and a prize of $100, with his paper: "The Marangoni Effect"
- POF. BERG PRESENTS CASSASSA LECTURE AT CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY Prof. Berg presented a lecture in honor of Prof. Ethel Cassassa at Carnegie Mellon University on March 25, 2014. The lecture concerned the use of thermodynamics for predicting adhesion.
- POF. BERG PRESENTS INVITED LECTURE AT GORDON CONFERENCE Prof. Berg presented a lecture on particle charging in apolar media at the Gordon Research Conference on Colloidal, Macromolecular & Polyelectrolyre Soulutions in Ventura, CA, Feb. 16-21, 2014.
- PAPER PRESENTED AT AICHE ANNUAL MEETING IN SAN FRANCISCO Matt Gacek presented a paper entitled: "Factors influencing particle charge in apolar media," authored by Matthew M. Gacek, Edward L. Michor and John C. Berg.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Three new seniors, Zach Girod, Casey Hsu, and Marty Johnson joined the group for 2013-2014 academic year.
- PROF. BERG GIVES GRADUATION SPEECH FOR CLASS OF 2013 Prof. Berg was honored as the faculty speaker at the Chemical Engineering graduation for the Class of 2013.
- PROF. BERG TEACHES COURSE IN JAPAN Prof. Berg taught an intensive short course on Interfacial Phenomena and Adhesion for the Toray Corporation in Japan, April 14-20, 2013. The course was given at the Toray site in Ehime, just outside Matsuyama. He also visited tourist sites, including the Matsyama Castle, and the memorial in Hiroshima.
- DAY BRIGHTENER FROM CLASS OF 2000 This card was just received from Miyoko (recognize the calligraphy?), Laurie, Amy and Erin, from the awesome class of 2000.
- KEVIN KRONVALL RECEIVES SCHOLARSHIP Kevin Kronvall was awarded a scholarship from the Roy G. Post Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to education for the safe management of nuclear materials.
- NEW GRAD STUDENT JOINS GROUP Kyle Caldwell joined the Group in January, 2013. He will be working on fiber reinforced polymeric composites.
- PRASAD BHOSALE COMPLETES PHD Prasad Bhosale defended his dissertation in December, 2012, entitled: "Rheology and interparticle interactions in complex media." The work was ssupported by the US Department of Energy, as a subcontract through the Pacific Northwest National Laboratories in Richland, WA. Prasad has accepted a position with the Intel Corporation in Beaverton, OR.
- JOHN GEIL TAKES SECOND PLACE IN NATIONAL COMPETITION John Geil placed Second in the National Research Paper Competition held at the Annual Meeting of AIChE in Pittsburgh in October, 2012 following his First Place win at the Northwest Regional Competition in April. John currently works with the Procter & Gamble Company in Cincinnati, Ohio.
- AARON JOHNSON RECEIVES AWARD Aaron Johnson received a coveted Mary Gates Research Scholarship in recognition of his achievements and future promise in undergraduate research.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Four new seniors, Danny Bauer, Max Kaganyuk, Ben Ponto and Zach Sayler joined returning students Aaron Johnson and Kevin Kronvall to make up the current contingent of undergrad researchers for 2012-2013 academic year.
- PAPERS PRESENTED AT ACS CONFERENCE AT JOHNS HOPKINS Prasad Bhosale, Matt Gacek and Prof. Berg attended the 86th ACS Colloid & Surface Science Symposium, June 10-13, 2012, hosted by Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Two papers were presented concerning recent research in the Group. Prasad Bhosale presented a paper entitled: "The effect of rheology modifiers on particle contact dynamics," and Matt Gacek presented: "Trace water effects on oxide particle charging in apolar media." Both were very well attended and received.
- UNDERGRADS WIN IT ALL AT AICHE STUDENT CHAPTER CONFERENCE Members of the Berg undergrad research group took all three prizes at the Pacific Northwest AIChE Student Chapter Conference hosted April 27-28 at the University of Idaho. John Geil (shown right below) took First Place and a $200 prize, with his paper entitled: "Titania-Stabilized Pickering Emulsions for Skin Care Products," and will advance to the National Competition at the Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh. David Bergsman (shown center below) took Second Place and a prize of $100, with his paper: "The Effect of Silane Treatments on the Surface Properties of Silica," and Joseph Crowell (shown left below) took Third Place and a $50 prize with his paper: "Adhesion in Fiber-Reinforced Composites."
- PROF BERG AWARDED MISSOURI S&T LECTURESHIP Prof. Berg was named Lectureship Speaker for the Missouri University of Science and Technology for 2012. His visit occurred April 18-20, during which he presented a research lecture: "Can We Use Thermodynamics to Predict Adhesion," and an education lecture: "The Magic of Interfaces and Colloids."
- NEW GRAD STUDENT JOINS GROUP Ed Michor, who received his BS degree from the University of Minnosota, just joined the Group. He will be working on the problem of colloidal particle charging in apolar media.
- THREE NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP IN WINTER 2012 Three new seniors, Caldoon Farrah, Aaron Johnson and Kevin Kronvall joined our contingent of undergrad researchers.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Two new seniors, Joseph Crowell and John Geil joined their fellow senior David Bergsman to make up the current contingent of undergrad researchers.
- PAPERS PRESENTED AT ACS CONFERENCE IN MONTREAL The entire graduate research group attended the ACS Colloid & Surface Science Symposium, June 19-22, 2011, hosted by McGill University in Montreal. Two papers were presented concerning recent research in the Group. Prasad Bhosale presented a paper entitled: "Acoustic electrophoresis of gel-trapped colloids," and Matt Gacek presented: "Particle Charging in Apolar Media." Both were very well attended and received.
- HARVEY PALMER NAMED DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS Harvey Palmer, PhD '71, and one of Prof. Berg's first PhD students was named a Distinguished Alumnus of the Chemical Engineering Department, and his picture now graces the "Wall of Fame" in Benson Hall. Upon completing his doctorate, Harvey joined the Faculty in Chemical Engineering at the University of Rochester, where he established an outstanding academic record, where he won two university-wide teaching awards and later became department chairman. In 2000 he moved to Rochester Institute of Technology as Dean of the Kate Gleason College of Engineering, which he greatly strengthened and expanded. The budget has quintupled during his tenure so far, and he has seen the addition of a new doctoral program in Microsystems Engineering and new undergraduate programs in Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. This was a proud moment for both Prof. Palmer and Prof. Berg.
- ERIC RAVET AWARDED FULBRIGHT SCHOLARSHIP It was announced in May, 2011, that Eric Ravet had been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship for the academic year of 2011-2012. Eric will be studying composite materials in the laboratory of Prof. Jan-Anders Manson at the Ecole Polytechnique in Lausanne, Switzerland. This will be a great chance for him to practice his French!
- MICHAEL MASTOR WINS AWARD Michael Mastor took Second Place in the Research Paper competition at the Pacific Northwest AIChE Regional conference, with his paper entitled: "Solid Foam Shampoo Pads - An Alternative to Liquid Shampoo." The conference was hosted by Oregon State University, April 15-16, 2011. Excellent entries were also presented by other members of the Group on their undergraduate research. Galen Brooks gave a paper entitled: "Acid-Base Chemistry: The Mechanism Behind Charging of Particles in Apolar Media," and Eric Ravet presented a paper entitled: "Utilizing Nanoparticles in Fiber-Reinforced Composites."
- PROF. BERG TEACHES COURSE IN JAPAN Prof. Berg taught an intensive short course on Interface and Colloid Science for the Toray Corporation in Japan, October, October 11-15. The course was given at the Toray Human Resources Development Center in Mishima. He also visited company laboratories in Ehime and the Toray Research Center in Ishiyama, as well as many tourist and other sights, especially in the Kyoto area.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Five new undergraduate (Chem E 499) research students joined the group in September, 2010. They are David Bergsman, who will work on surface energy analysis (by IGC) of silane-treated silicas; Galen Brooks, charging of colloid particle surfaces in apolar media; Michael Mastor, who will work on new solid-foam structures for personal care products; Eric Ravet, who will study nanoparticle coated fibers in polymeric composites, and Thomas Wilkinson, who will study rheology modifiers for dense colloidal dispersions.
- BOOK ADOPTED AT UNIVERSITY OF BERGEN Prof. Berg just learned in August that his new book has just been adopted by the Dept. of Chemistry at the Univesity of Bergen in Norway.
- BERG GROUP WINS RESEARCH AWARD The Berg Group was presented a $20,000 Gift Award on July 22, 2010 from the Xerox Corporation, Wilsonville, OR, for research into charging phenomena in apolar media. This strengthens the Group's thrust into this area.
- SARAN POOVARODOM COMPLETES HIS PHD Saran Poovarodom defended his dissertation July 22, 2010, entitled: "Manipulation of Colloidal Aggregation Phenomena." He has accepted a position with the Intel Corporation, Hillsboro, OR. He will be badly missed by everyone in the Group. but we plan to keep in touch.
- PAPERS PRESENTED AT ACS COLLOIDS CONFERENCE The Berg Group presented thee papers and one poster at the 84th ACS Colloid & Surface Science Symposium, held at the University of Akron, June 20-23, 2010. Saran Poovarodom presented a paper entitled: "The Effect of Particle and Surfactant Chemistry on Charging of Colloids in Apolar Media." Ben Rutz gave a paper entitled: "Debonding of an Elastic Matrix from Rigid Spherical Inclusions as a Function of Filler Concentration." Prasad Bhosale gave a paper entitled: "Poly(acrylic acid) as a Rheology Modifier for Dense Alumina Dispersions in High Ionic Strength Environments" and a poster entitled: "Acoustic Spectroscopy for Gel Trapped Colloids."
- PROF. BERG WINS FACULTY INNOVATOR AWARD On June 1, 2010, Prof. Berg was named the recipient of the 2010 Faculty Innovator: Teaching and Learning Award. The Award Announcement carried the following text: "John Berg. professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, is "truly a master educator" with an "unmatched commitment to building a comprehensive teaching and learning experience for students." Professor Berg is widely recognized for developing Chem E 455, a laboratory/lecture class on surface and colloid science, which, at the time, was one of the few course of its kind in the U.S. This course initiated the transformation of the Chemical Engineering undergraduate to a new curriculum that emphasizes molecular and nanoscale concepts in addition to the macroscopic continuum approach. Additionally, John used this course as a vehicle for graduate and undergraduate student internships and the writing of a textbook. Internships have been created, specifically for students who have taken this course, at well known companies such as Procter & Gamble, Lyondell Corp., Hewlett-Packard, etc. These internship opportunities have come about as a result of Professor Berg's thoughtful tailoring of the course material to address fundamental issues important to industry and his contacts in those industries. Although his textbook, "An Introduction to Interfaces and Colloids: the Bridge to Nanoscience," was just published in January, it has already been adopted by Washington State University, University of Pennsylvania, Duke University and Stanford University. Professor Berg has touched the lives of countless students and many chemical engineering alumni view him as the most influential person in their education at the UW."
The Award carried a prize of $2000
- UW HOSTS PNW REGIONAL CONFERENCE; JONATHAN CHENG TAKES SECOND PLACE The UW Dept. of Chemical Engineering hosted the Pacific Northwest Regional Student Chapter Conference this year, April 16-17, 2010, and three students from the group presented papers: Jonathan Cheng, Tom Poovarodom and James Kurniawan. All gave excellent presentations, and Jonathan walked off with Second Place (and a $100 prize) for his paper on "Determining Polymer Molecular Conformations with Photon Correlation Spectroscopy."
- MATT GACEK JOINS GROUP Matt Gacek joined the group April 1, 2010 as a lab assistant, and will join the graduate research program in Autumn, 2010.
- DEREK STONG JOINS UNDERGRAD RESEARCH GROUP Derek Stong joined the Chem E 499 group in January, 2010, to pursue a project on ultra-hydrophobic surfaces created using nanoparticle coatings.
- SARAN POOVARODOM WINS PRIZE Saran Poovarodom won the best-paper-presentation award (and a $50 prize!) at the Chem E Graduate Research Symposium in October, 2009, with his paper entitled: "Colloid Particle Charging in Apolar Media - Applications to Electronic Displays."
- THE BOOK IS DONE! Prof. Berg's text: "An Introduction to Interfaces and Colloids: The Bridge to Nanoscience" was completed in late October, 2009, and is scheduled to be printed by World Scientific Publishers on November 20, and available for purchase in the US by January, 2010.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Six new undergraduate (Chem E 499) research students joined the group in September, 2009. They are Jonathan Cheng, who will work on light scattering studies of polymer confirmations in solution; Brian Christin, who will work on deposition phenomena in a detergency environment; Melissa Dao, who will work on inverse micelles in apolar media, Kyle Flotlin, who will study wetting of virgin and damaged hair, James Kurniawan, who will study bubble nucleation phenomena in expoxy composites, and Tom Poovarodom, whose project concerns electical charging phenomena in apolar media.
- GEOFFREY LEONARD COMPLETES MS DEGREE Geoffrey Leonard defended his MS thesis entitled: "Modulus-Graded Interphase Modifiers in E-Glass Fiber and Thermoplastic Composites," on June 10, 2009. He has since moved back to Richmond, Virginia.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHER JOINS GROUP Jacob Wolf joined the undergraduate (Chem E 499) research students in September, 2009. His project involves the use of HPLC to investigate the adsorption and confirmation of prototype oligimers (stand-ins for asphaltenes) on porous sandstone.
- SHORT COURSE AT 3M COMPANY Prof. Berg delivered an intensive short course on Interfaces, Colloids and Nanoscience at the 3M Center in St. Paul, MN, in December, 2008. Approximately 120 of the company's scientific personnel took the course, which consisted of 21 hours of lecture delivered over a 3-day period.
- TWO NEW GRAD STUDENTS JOIN GROUP Prasade Bhosale and Ben Rutz joined the Group in November. Prasad received his BS degree from the University of Pune, India, and his MS degree from Tennessee Tech. He will be working on flow modification in dense colloids. Ben received his BS degree from the University of Rochester, and will working on strategies for the incorporation of nano-bubbles into resins for weight reduction of composites.
- VISITING PROFESSOR SAAD ALKAFEEF JOINS GROUP Professor Saad Alkafeef of the Dept. of Petroleum Engineering of the University of Kuwait has joined the Group for a period of one year starting in Autumn of 2008.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Five new undergraduate (Chem E 499) research students joined the group in September, 2008. They are Andy Aditya, who will work on inverse gas chromatography; John Bahng and Andrew Kinsman, who will work on fiber bundle fragmentation testing of reinforced composites; Matt Gacek, who will work on composites for military protective gear, and Patrick Riley, who will work on wetting and spreading phenomena under water.
- SURFACE AND COLLOID SCIENCE BECOMES A REQUIRED CLASS As part of the Department's undergraduate curriculum reform to embrace more of the concepts of molecular engineering, Dr. Berg's popular elective class: "Surface and Colloid Science Laboratory" (Chem E 455) has now been made a required course in the Chemical Engineering curriculum. It replaces the Physical Chemistry Laboratory course, and will be taught in both the Autumn Quarter (by Professor Danilo Pozzo) and in the Spring Quarter by Professor Berg. We expect that the course will continue to evolve with new experiments and instrumentation being added.
- RACHIT AGARWAL COMPLETES MS DEGREE Rachit Agarwal defended his MS thesis entitled: "Improvement of Adhesion of E-Glass Fiber/PVB Composites," on June 6, 2008. He has since moved back to India.
- UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS FROM GROUP TAKE PRIZES AT REGIONAL AICHE RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION The Pacific Northwest Regional AIChE Student Chapter Conference was hosted this April 25-27, 2008, by Washington State University. DANNY KRESS from our Group took First Place with his paper entitled: "Improvement of Fiber-Reeinforced Composites." He will present his paper in the National competition at the AIChE Annual Meeting in Philadelphia in November. MARC YAMAMOTO took Honorable Mention for his paper entitled: "Electrostatics in Nonaqueous Media."
Danny Kress (left), Marc Yamamoto (center) and Prof. Berg (right) after awards had been presented.
- PETE LAXTON COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Felix Nguyen defended his PhD dissertation entitled: "Linking the Macroscopic Rheological Properties of Gel to Micro- and Nano-scopic Colloidal Phenomena," on April 22, 2008. He has taken a position with the Applied Nanotech company, in Austin, TX.
- NEW GRAD STUDENT JOINS GROUP Geoffrey Leonard joined the Group in November. He received his BS degree from the University of Virginia. He will be working on adhesion and reinforcement strategies for filled polymeric composites.
- DR. BERG HOSTED IN KOREA Dr. Sung T. Chung (PhD, 1971; Distinguished Alumnus, 2002), together with his wife, Young Sook treated his former PhD advisor, John Berg, to a week-long grand tour of Korea this October. Sites visited included highlights in and around Seoul: the Seoul Tower (highest point in the city) and ancient ramparts, the South Gate, the Presidential Blue House, Insadong Street (the arts and crafts district), Cheonggyecheon Stream (a linear park running some four miles through the city), a look into the DMZ, and traditional dinner and entertainment at the Korea House, an early 15th century minister's residence of the Joseon Dynasty, the last monarch, 1392-1910. They also took the bullet train to Gyeongju, a national park and archeological site near the center of the country and the ancient capital of the Shilla Dynasty, 57 BC - 932 AD. Ancient burial sites, museums and a series of thousand-year-old Buddhist temples were visited. Gyeongju was also host to a World Culture Expo at the time, which they attended. The trip included a two-day visit to the lush resort island of Jeju, where they hiked among dormant volcanic craters, in a dense subtropical forest and along beaches. They visited the world-famous cliffs of basaltic stone columns, a magnificent Buddhist temple, and many other sights. The tour concluded with a moving visit to the site of the pivotal Incheon landing during the Korean War, with its Memorial Hall and Museum, and the adjacent Freedom Park, celebrating Korean-American friendship. "It was a wonderful experience: beyond my dreams," says Prof. Berg. Dr. Chung was one of Dr. Berg's first PhD students. He went on to become a leading industrialist in Korea, a faculty member of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science, and a Full Member of the National Academy of Engineering in Korea. He is presently Professor of Chemical Engineering at Inha University and is a member of the BOD of the S-Oil Corporation on the 2007 Fortune Global Top 500. He served for nine years as the President of the UW Korean Alumni Association, and more recently co-spearheaded an effort to raise $3M to rescue the Korea Studies Program at the University of Washington.
John Berg (center) with Young Sook (left) and Sung Chung (right) at the entrance to Gyeongju National Park and archeological site.
- SUSIE STENKAMP WINS RESEARCH AWARD Susie Stenkamp (Ph.D., 1999), a former member of the Group, together with Richard Zheng (Ph.D., 2000) have received a coveted 2007 R&D 100 Award, which is recognition from R&D Magazine as one of the 100 most technologically significant products introduced into the marketplace over the past year. The product selected is a microchannel gas-liquid processing device that is 5-10 times smaller than conventional devices. This advantage is achieved through the use of capillary forces. Multiple multiphase processes such as distillation, absorption, and phase separation have been targeted. The award will be was conferred in the Grand Ballroom of Chicago's Navy Pier on October 18, 2007.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Three new undergraduate (Chem E 499) students joined the group in September, 2007. They are Danny Kress, who will work on fiber bundle fragmentation testing; Aston Tennefoss, who will work on surface energy analysis of treated titanias by inverse gas chromatography, and Marc Yamamoto, who will work electrophoretic mobility of cerium oxide nano-colloids in solvent media.
- PHIL HARDING NAMED LINUS PAULING CHAIR AT OREGON STATE It was announced in September that Dr. Philip C. Harding (PhD, 1997), a former member of the Group, has been awarded the Linus Pauling Chair in the School of Chemical , Biological and Environmental Engineering of Oregon State University and will begin work there September 17, 2007. This endowed position is a 5-year appointment (non-tenure track) intended to bring an individual with broad industrial experience into the department with the objective of improving the workforce readiness of graduating seniors. He will be responsible for the capstone senior lab courses and preparing students for the annual Technology Fair that occurs in May. Phil received his PhD in work with Prof. John Berg and has been working with the Hewlett-Packard Corporation in Corvallis, OR, since completing his degree in 1997. He says his new position with Oregon State is "a dream come true."
- SHORT COURSE ON SURFACES, COLLOIDS & NANOSCIENCE GIVEN Our Continuing Education short course was offered in August, 2007, and was highly successful with an attendance of 33.
- PROF. BERG RECEIVES MORTAR BOARD EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD The Tolo Chapter of Mortar Board, Class of 2007 presented their university-wide "Excellence in Teaching" award to Prof. Berg in a ceremony in the Walker-Ames Room, May 6th. The award plaque reads: "For his outstanding contributions to the enhancement of student life and devoted service to chemical engineering at the University of Washington."
- STUDENTS PRESENT PAPERS AT 81st ACS COLLOID AND SURFACE SCIENCE SYMPOSIUM Three students from the Group presented papers at the ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium in June, 2007, hosted at the University of Delaware. Saran Poovarodom presented a paper entitled: "Effects of aggregate structure on gelation and mechanical properties of silane-based sol-gel coatings;" and Dariush Hosseinpour gave a paper entitled: "Effect of filler-polymer interfacial interactions on the mechanical and rheological of automotive topcoats." Jiong Liu presented a poster entitled: "Effect of surfactant on mechanical properties of a nanoparticulate gel."
- FELIX NGUYEN COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Felix Nguyen defended his PhD dissertation entitled: "Improvement of Mechanical Properties of Polymeric Composites: Experimental Methods and New Systems," in May, 2007. He has taken a position with the Toray Composites (America), Inc., in Tacoma, WA.
- AARON SAKS TAKES TOP PRIZE AT REGIONAL AICHE RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION The Pacific Northwest Regional AIChE Student Chapter Conference was hosted this April, 2007, by Montana State University. Aaron Saks from our Group took First Place with his paper entitled: "Nanoparticle Toughening of Epoxy Composites using Polyethylenimine Dendrimer Core-Shell Materials." He will present his paper in the National competition at the AIChE Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City in November Two other students from the Group also presented papers: Will Gibbons gave a paper on his research on "Mechanical Testing of Fiber Reinforced Composites," and Bryan McCulloch presented his research on "Defects Caused by Electrostatic Interactions between Silicon Wafers and Metal Oxide Slurries." All did excellent jobs!
- NEW POST-DOC JOINS GROUP Dr. Dariush Hosseinpour joined the group in November, 2006. He received his PhD degree in Polymer Engineering from Leeds University, Leeds, UK, where he worked on automotive coatings.
- JOHN FROSTAD TAKES SECOND PRIZE IN NATIONAL AICHE RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION John Frostad took Second Place in the National Student Paper Competition with his paper entitled: "Dynamic Surface Tension" at the AIChE Annual Meeting in San Francisco in November, 2006.
- SARAN POOVARODOM PRESENTS PAPER AT BOEING WORKSHOP Saran Poovarodom gave a paper on sol-gel nanocomposites at the Boeing Workshop on Quality and Characterization of Nanomaterials, Everett, WA, Oct. 3-4, 2006
- PETE LAXTON GOES TO GERMANY Pete Laxton is spending the Autumn Quarter, 2006, in the Institute for Physical Chemistry at the Technical University of Clausthal, Germany, working on light scattering and other optical techniques for the study of gel structure, under the direction of Prof. Wilhelm Oppermann.
- NEW UNDERGRAD RESEARCHERS JOIN GROUP Six new undergraduate (Chem E 499) students joined the group in September, 2006. They are Bryan McCulloch, who will work on particle adhesion from CMP slurries; Will Gibbons: Fiber Bundle Fragmentation Testing; Skye Mitchell: Multiple W/O/W and O/W/O emulsions; Aaron Saks: Nanoparticle reinforcements for composites; Raymond Leung: Tribolectric effects in jet beakup; and Brian Melvin: Surface energy analysis by inverse gas chromatography.
- NEW POST-DOC JOINS GROUP Dr. Jiong Liu joined the group in July, 2006, for a one-year appointment. He received his PhD degree in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University where he worked on adhesion fundamentals.
- COLLOIDS CLASS FEATURED IN 'CATALYST' Dr. BergÕs course in Surface and Colloids Science (Chem. E. 455) was the subject of the feature article of the Summer, 2006 Departmental Alumni Newsletter CATALYST.
- PETE LAXTON AND FELIX NGUYEN PRESENT PAPERS AT ACS COLLOIDS SYMPOSIUM Two papers were presented from the group at the 80th ACS Colloid & Surface Science Symposium in Boulder, CO, June 18-21, 2006. Pete Laxton gave a paper entitled: "Relating colloidal aggregate structure to rheological behavior," and Felix Nguyen gave a paper entitled: "Toughened Epoxy by Core-Shell Thermoplastic Nanoparticles."
- RYAN REED COMPLETES MS DEGREE Ryan Reed defended his MS thesis entitled: ÒCharacterization and Optimization of the Carbon Fiber/Resin Interace.Ó He has taken a position with the NovaStruxx Composite Materials Corp., in San Clemente, CA.
- UNDERGRADS TAKE PRIZES AT REGIONAL AICHE RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION The Pacific Northwest Regional AIChE Student Chapter Conference was hosted this April, 2006, by the University of Idaho. Undergrads from the group John Frostad and Aaron Saks presented papers in the research competition. JohnÕs paper was entitled: ÒDynamic Surface Tension,Ó and AaronÕs was: ÒIdentification of Failure Modes in Filled Polymeric Composites.Ó They won First and Second places, respectively, in the competition! Another UW student, Zudtky Wisecarver, took Third place, so the UW made a clean sweep.
- DANIEL RAMRUS COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Daniel Ramrus defended his PhD Dissertation entitled: ÒThe Creation and Adhesion Testing of Patterned Silane Surfaces,Ó in March 16, 2006.
- DR. BERG PRESENTS SHORT COURSE AT HEWLETT-PACKARD Dr. Berg presented a two-day course on colloid science, with a particular emphasis on pigments, at the Hewlett-Packard Company in San Diego, CA in January, 2006.
- DANIEL RAMRUS PRESENTS PAPER AT SAMPE CONFERENCE Daniel Ramrus presented a paper entitled: ÒEffect of Water Penetration into a Heterogeneously Patterned Adhesive SubstrateÓ at the SAMPE Conference in Seattle, WA, November 14, 2005
- DR. BERG PRESENTS SHORT COURSE AT BOSTON SCIENTIFIC Dr. Berg presented a one-day short course on coatings and adhesion to the Boston Scientific Corp., Nov. 11, 2005.
- NEW GRADUATE STUDENT JOINS GROUP Saran Poovarodom joined the group in the summer, 2005, and is working on research into nano-particle filled sol-gel coatings, a project in the group recently funded by the Boeing Company.
- NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Five new undergrad researchers joined the group in Sept., 2005. They are Michael Beck, Diana Chung, Steve Drangsholt, John Frostad and Aaron Saks. Their projects will be assigned shortly.
- RYAN REED TAKES INTERNSHIP AT TOYOTA Ryan Reed accepted a Fall Quarter, 2005, internship at the Toyota Aviation Business Development Office in Torrance, CA, to work on the development of carbon fiber reinforced composites.
- SHORT COURSE GIVEN Our annual industrial short course: Surfaces, Colloids and Nanoscience was given July 11-15, 2005.
- DANIEL RAMRUS PRESENTS PAPER Daniel Ramrus presented a paper entitled: ³The Creation and Adhesion Testing of Patterned Silane Surfaces² at the 79th ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium, Clarkson University, June 12-15, 2005.
- UNDERGRADS PRESENT PAPERS AT REGIONAL AICHE CONFERENCE Adam Oliver and Yo Yamazaki presented papers on their research at the Northwest Regional Student Chapter Conference held April 22-23, 2005, this year at Oregon State University in Corvallis, OR.
- COLLOIDS CLASS INCREASED TO THREE SECTIONS Dr. Berg¹s Laboratory Course in Surface and Colloid Science is one of the Department¹s most popular elective classes and has filled to capacity with a wait list every year since its first offering. This Spring Quarter it was increased to three sections and accommodated 33 students, again filled to capacity with a wait list.
- FELIX NGUYEN PRESENTS PAPER Felix Nguyen presented a paper entitled: ³Use of an Optical-Mechanical Test Combined with Acoustic Emission Techniques to Study Adhesion in Filled Polymeric Composites² at the Adhesion Society Conference, Mobile, AL, Feb. 13-15, 2005.
- POST-DOC SPENDS BRIEF STAY IN GROUP Dr. Bret Buchholz spent a 3-month stay with our group starting in February, 2005. He received his PhD in Chemical Engineering at Northwestern University, working with Prof. Annelise Barron, an alumna of this Department (BS, 1990). He accepted a permanent position with the Boeing Co., but we are still in touch.
- PATENT APPLICATION FILED Daniel Ramrus and Dr. Berg filed a patent application in January, 2005, on their recent research findings relevant to adhesion enhancement due to patterning of primer layers.
- RICHARD DANIEL COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Richard Daniel defended his PhD dissertation entitled: ³Ink-Media Interactions in Ink-Jet Printing² December 13, 2004. This work was sponsored in large part by the Hewlett Packard Corporation. Richard has accepted a position with Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratories in Richland, WA.
- VISITING GRADUATE STUDENT RETURNS TO ENGLAND Our visiting graduate student, Dariush Hosseinpour, returned to Leeds University in December, 2004, and expects to complete his PhD requirements their within the coming year. His stay with us was extraordinarily productive, and will lead to several publications in the area of particle filled polymeric materials for automotive coatings.
- NEW GRADUATE JOINS THE GROUP Ryan Reed joined the Group in November, 2004, and will work on carbon fiber reinforced composites, a project which is an outgrowth of work done by Felix Nguyen during his summer internship with Toyota. The Toyota Corp. will be funding the research.
- NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Four new undergrad researchers joined the group in Sept., 2004. Adam Oliver is working on temperature effects on the rheology of a new liquid toner, sponsored by Samsung; Eric Fong is working on adhesion of topical applications to skin, sponsored by Procter & Gamble and co-directed by Dr. Jorge Sunkel; Erick Lin is working on the mechanical properties of dental impression materials, sponsored by 3M ESPE, and Yo Yamazaki is working on the effect of solutes on the wettability of cellulose and the strength properties of paper.
- PROF. BERG RECEIVES HONOR AT CENTENNIAL REUNION 2004 marked the 100th anniversary of Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington, and a huge centennial reunion marked the occasion in mid-September. Prof. Berg presented a 45-minute talk on history of the Department in the opening program for that event, and that evening at the reunion dinner, he was presented with the Department¹s Teacher-Scholar Award. The award was presented, to a standing ovation, by Dr. Paul Emmert, the new President of the University of Washington.
- SHORT COURSE GIVEN Our annual industrial short course: Surfaces, Colloids and Nanoscience was given July 12-16, 2004.
- FELIX NGUYEN TAKES INTERNSHIP AT TOYOTA Felix Nguyen accepted a summer internship at the Toyota Aviation Business Development Office in Torrance, CA, to work on the development of carbon fiber reinforced composites.
- PETE LAXTON PRESENTS PAPER Pete Laxton presented a paper entitled: "Gel Trapping of Dense Colloids" at the 78th ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium, June 20-24, held this year at Yale University.
- NEW EQUIPMENT The Group has acquired a FTA200 Drop Shape Analysis system, a utility used for routine surface/interfacial tension and contact angle measurement, but is specifically aimed at out ink-jet printing studies in which the dynamic interaction of inks with various print media is under investigation. The instrument acquires images at rates up to 360 frames/s. Recently we have acquired a Brookhaven ZetaPALS system for measuring colloid particle size and electrophoretic mobility distributions. The PALS (= Phase Angle Light Scattering) is uniquely capable of measuring electrophoretic mobilities in high salt or apolar media. We have also placed an order for a new rheometer system: the Paar Physica MCR300, with capability for simultaneous optical image and data acquisition during the rheometric measurements.
- UNDERGRADS WIN PRIZES IN REGIONAL RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION Don Montrose took First Place and Jake Koerner took Third Place in the Pacific Nothwest Regional AIChE Student Chapter research paper competition held at UW April 23-24, 2004. Don's paper was entitled: "Polymer Conformation Changes in Coatings of Magnetic Data Storage Media," and Jake's paper was entitled: "Dynamic Wetting Properties of Dental Impression Materials."
- NEW RESEARCH GRANT The Group has just received a new 3-year research grant for $310K from the Department of Energy to study the colloidal properties of Transuranic Hanford Tank Wastes. We will be working in collaboration with researchers at the PNNL (Pacific Northwest National Labs) in Richland, WA, specifically Adam Poloski and Joel Tingey.
- NEW GRADUATE STUDENT JOINS THE GROUP Mindy Miller joined the Group in January, 2004. In research sponsored by the Boeing Company, she is pursuing research on factors affecting primer-to-primer paint adhesion.
- RICHARD DANIEL PRESENTS PAPER Richard Daniel presented a paper entitled entitled: "Ink-Media Interactions in Thermal Ink-Jet Printing: Effect of Surfactant Addition" at the 2003 AIChE Annual Meeting, held in San Francisco, November 16-21, 2003.
- NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Four new undergrads joined the group in September, 2003. Shin Muramoto is pursuing research on the behavior of pigments embedded in cosmetic gels, sponsored by Procter & Gamble and co-directed by Dr. Jorge Sunkel. Don Montrose is studying the conformation of binder polymers in mixed-solvent media media, sponsored by the Imation Corporation and co-directed by Dr. Neal Nelson and Dr. Alan Miller. Jake Koerner is studying the dynamic wettability of dental impression materials, sponsored by Coltene-Whaledent AG, Altstaetten, Switzerland. Kelvin Zin is studying the improvement of membranes for water purification.
- SHORT COURSE GIVEN Our annual industrial short course in Surface and Colloid Science was given again this year, July 14-18, 2003. Check our website at: for information on the coming year's offering. The focus of the new course has been somewhat changed, and its new title is: SURFACES, COLLOIDS AND NANOSCIENCE.
- ALVIN HUANG PRESENTS PAPER Alvin Huang presented a paper entitled entitled: "Gelation of Liquid Bridges in Spherical Agglomeration" at the 77th Colloid and Surface Science Symposium, held at Georgia Tech, Altlanta, GA, June 15-18, 2003.
- JANINE BUSEMAN-WILLIAMS COMPLETES MS DEGREE Janine Buseman-Williams defended her MS thesis entitled: "Formation and Characterization of Patterned Heterogeneous Silane Films" June 10, 2003. She has accepted a position with the DuPont Company.
- NEW GRADUATE STUDENTS JOIN THE GROUP Two new graduate students joined the Group in December. Peter Laxton, whose undergraduate degree was from the University of New Hampshire, will pursue research on Gel Trapping of Dense Colloids. Felix Nguyen, whose undergraduate degrees in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering came from the University of Washington, will pursue studies of Carbon-Resin Adhesion in Polymeric Composites.
- PROF. BERG HONOFRED BY AICHE Prof. Berg was named as a "Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineeers" in November in recognition of his career accomplishments and service to the organization.
- NEW UNDERGRADS JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Three new undergrads joined the group in October, 2002. Andreas Weisweaver will pursue research on the behavior of pigments embedded in cosmetic gels, sponsored by Procter & Gamble and co-directed by Dr. Jorge Sunkel. Kevin Beebe will study the adsorption of binder polymers in dispersions for magnetic data storage media, sponsored by the Imation Corporation and co-directed by Dr. Neal Nelson and Dr. Alan Miller. Men Nguyen will study the effect of surface treatments on the wettability of aluminum surfaces. This work is of direct interest to the Boeing Company.
- CHENHANG SUN COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Chenhang Sun defended his PhD dissertation entitled: "Surface Energetics and Acid-Base Properties of Modified and Unmodified Mineral Oxides" in August, 2002.
- PROF. BERG PRESENTS SEMINAR AT IMATION CORP. Prof. Berg presented a seminar on "The Surface Properties of Metal Oxides and their Relationship to Dispersion Stability in Cyclohexane" to the central research organization at Imation Corporation July 23, 2002. This work had been conducted by undergraduate researchers Josh Ross (who currently works with Imation at Camarillo, CA) and Kevin Carlin and was sponsored by Imation.
- ALAN MILLER COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Alan Miller defended his PhD dissertation entitled: "The Prediction of Adhesion in Filled Polymeric Composites" on July 19, 2002. He has taken a position with the Imation Corporation in Maplewood, MN.
- SHORT COURSE GIVEN Our annual industrial short course in Surface and Colloid Science was given again this year, July 8-12, 2002, with an attendance of 26. Check our website at: for information on the coming year's offering.
- CHENHANG SUN PRESENTS PAPER AT ACS MEETING Chenhang Sun presented a paper entitled: " The Effective Surface Free Energy of Solid Mixtures as Measured by Inverse Gas Chromatography" at the 76th ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium, June 23-26, 2002, held at the Universityof Michigan.
- MIKE VANCLEAVE COMPLETES MS DEGREE Mike VanCleave defended his MS thesis entitled: "Characterizing the Early-Time Surface Tension Behavior of Surfactant Solutions: Application to Ink-Jet Printing" on June 12, 2002. This work was sponsored by the Hewlett-Packard Company. He has taken a position with Kennedy/Jenks Consultants in Seattle.
- ANDY KIM COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Andy Kim defended his PhD dissertation entitled: "Heteroaggregation of Oppositely-Charged Colloids" on June 4, 2002. He has taken a position with the Intel Corporation in Beaverton, OR.
- DR. SUNG T. CHUNG HONORED AS DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS Dr Sung T. Chung, one of Dr. Berg's first doctoral students (Ph.D. 1971) was honored in ceremonies on May 17 as a "Distinguished Alumnus" of the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington. This coveted honor is in recognition of his many accomplishments since completing his degree at UW. He has been a Distinguished Professor at Inha University since 1994, (after an earlier period of teaching at the University: 1971-74) and served in the interim as managing director of Korea Heavy Industries and Construction Co., Ltd. and executive managing director of Daewoo Construction Co., Ltd., and executive vice president of Halla Engineering and Heavy Industries, Ltd. He is a full member of the National Academy of Engineering of Korea and vice president of the Korean Institute of Chemical Engineers. He has also distinguished himself with honors for excellence in teaching and has sered as president of the UW Alumni Association - Korea. Dr. Berg has many fond memories of Dr. Chung's graduate days and takes great pride in this recognition.
- JOSHUA ROSS WINS RESEARCH PAPER COMPETITION Josh Ross took First Place (and a prize of $1000!) in the AIChE Northwest Regional Student Chapter Paper Competition, April 26, 2002. His paper, entitled: "The Surface Energetics of Pigments for Data Storage Media," documented his research, which is sponsored by Imation Corporation, with technical liaison Dr. Neal K. Nelson, Jr. The conference was hosted this year by Washington State University. Josh is now eligible for the national competition, which will held at the Annual Meeting of AIChE in November in Indianapolis.
- NEW UNDERGRADUATES JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Tyson Poeckh and Brian Silverman joined the research group and will begin work this Winter Quarter.
- SERGIO ADAN-PLAZA COMPLETES MS DEGREE Sergio finished his MS degree in December. His project, sponsored by the 3M-ESPE Corporation, was entitled: "Time and Temperature Effects on the Rheology of Setting Dental Impression Materials." He has returned to Spain, where he will be seeking employment.
- PROF. BERG PRESENTS SEMINARS AT IMATION CORP. AND KIMBERLY-CLARK CORP. In December, 2001, Prof. Berg presented a seminar entitled: "Inverse Gas Chromatography and Its Use in Determining the Effect of Moisture on the Properties of Mineral Oxides," at the Imation Corporation, St, Paul, MN, and later he presented a seminar entitled: "The Use of Thermodynamics in Predicting Adhesion" at the Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Neenah, WI.
- NEW GRADUATE STUDENTS JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Two new graduate students joined the Group in November. Janine Buseman-Williams, who received her undergraduate degree from MIT, and Dan Ramrus, whose undergrad degree is from UC San Diego, will both be working on research problems related to adhesion.
- PAPERS AND POSTER PRESENTED AT AICHE ANNUAL MEETING Andy Kim presented a aper entitled: "The Effect of Polymer Adlayers on Heteroaggregation Kinetics," and Richard Daniel presented a paper entitled: "Dynamic Surface Tension Effects in Ink-Jet Printing" at the 2001 Annual Meeting of AIChE in Reno, NV, Nov. 4-9, 2001. Andy also presented a poster entitled: "Heteroaggregation Strategies for the Control of Floc Size and Internal Structure."
- NEW UNDERGRADUATES JOIN RESEARCH GROUP Felix Nguyen, Kevin Carlin and Josh Ross joined our research group this year. Felix is working on gel properties of topical ointments (sponsored by the Procter & Gamble Co., and co-diected by Dr. Jorge Sunkel). Kevin is working on the characterization of solvent-borne pigment dispersions, while Josh is using inverse gas chromatography to characterize the surface energetics of mineral oxides. Both projects are sponsored by the Imation Corporation and co-directed by Dr. Neal K. Nelson, Jr.
- PROF. BERG PRESENTS SEMINAR ON SURFACE ENERGETICS AT CABOT WORKSHOP Prof. Berg presented an invited seminar on The Thermodynamics of the Surface Energy of Solids at a workshop on Surface Energetics sponsored by the Cabot Corporation. The workshop was held at the OceanView resort in Gloucester, MA, Oct. 1-4, 2001.
- PRESENTATION AT FIRST ANNUAL IGC CONFERENCE CANCELLED Prof. Berg served on the Advisory Board for the First Annual Conference on Inverse Gas Chromatography in London and was scheduled to present a paper entitled: "The Effect of Moisture on the the Surface Energy and Acid-Base Properties of Mineral Oxides." His departure, which was set for Sept. 12, however, had to be cancelled due to the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.
- ANNUAL SHORT COURSE AGAIN A SUCCESS Our annual Short Course on Surface and Colloid Science was given July 9-13, 2001, and was again successful, attracting 39 participants.
- ANDY KIM GIVES PRESENTATIONS AT TECHNICAL MEETINGS Andy Kim presented a paper entitled: "Selective Heteroaggregation of Sterically-Stabilized, Oppositely-Charged Colloids" at the 75th ACS Colloid and Surface Science Symposium in Pittsburgh, June 12, 2001. He also presented a poster of the same title at the 56th Northwest Regional ACS Meeting in Seattle, June 14th.
- PROF. BERG RECEIVES RECOGNITION AS EDUCATOR Prof. Berg received honorable mention as Educator of the Year at the 2001 Dean's Recognition Awards of theCollege of Engineering in May.
- UNDERGRADS GIVE PRESENTATIONS AT LOCAL AICHE MEETING John Martens, Nathan Moore, Ryan Murray and Josh Stowell gave presentations on their undergraduate projects at the meeting of the Puget Sound Section of AIChE in April. All were very well received.
- ERIC ASTON ACCEPTS PROFESSORSHIP AT IDAHO Eric Aston finished up his PhD studies and accepted a position of Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Idaho, starting in September. As our top expert in AFM technology, and as a good friend, he will be much missed.
- RICHARD DANIEL HAS INTERNSHIP AT HP Richard Daniel spent the Winter Quarter, 2001 at the Hewlett Packard Corporation in Corvallis working on his project on his project concerning ink-jet printing. The research is sponsored by the company.
- PROF. BERG PRESENTS SEMINAR AT 3M COMPANY Prof. Berg presented a seminar on The Use of UNIFAC for the Prediction of Adhesion in Filled Polymeric Composites" at the Tech Forum of the 3M Company, St. Paul, MN, in December.
- THREE NEW GRADUATE STUDENTS JOIN GROUP Sergio Adan-Plaza, Alvin Huang and Mike Van Cleave joined the Group this Autumn, 2000. Sergio will be working on the wetting dynamics of dental impression materials, Alvin will work on oil-assisted agglomeration for the separation of mixed slurries, and Mike will be working on ink jet printing. Mike already had a 3-month internship with the Hewlett-Packard Company this past summer in preparation for his research.
- FIVE NEW UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHERS JOIN THE GROUP Tanya Erickson, John Martens, Nathan Moore, Ryan Murray and Josh Stowell joined the Group for undergraduate research projects this year. These are described in their individual home pages.
- PROF. BERG VISITS EPFL - LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND In August, Prof. Berg visited the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) to serve as external examiner for the PhD candidate Stephane Page in the Department of Materials Science. Dr. Page was a student in the laboratory of Prof. Jan-Anders Manson. Prof. Berg also presented a seminar on "Adhesion in Filled Polymeric Composites." Following his stay in Lausanne, Dr. Berg visited ESPE Dental AG in Seefeld, Germany. For the past several years some of Dr. Berg's undergratuate researchers have been doing work sponsored by this company, so it was a nice opportunity to visit some of their scientists and see their facilities firsthand. The collaboration is ongoing at the present time.
- ANNUAL SHORT COURSE IN SURFACE AND COLLOID SCIENCE Our annual Industrial Short Course in Surface and Colloid Science was given July 10-14, 2000, and was once again successful, with 41 participants. Please check our page on the Short Course if you are interested in the offering for 2001.
- ANDY KIM VISITS SANDIA NATIONAL LABORATORIES Andy Kim spent two weeks in July, 2000 working with Dr. Jim Martin at Sandia National Laboratories learning techniques of molecular dynamic simulation. He is applying his new know knowledge to problems in floc structure evolution in hetero-colloids.
- FOUR GRADUATE STUDENTS IN GROUP TO PRESENT PAPERS AT ACS COLLOIDS CONFERENCE Eric Aston, Alan Miller, Andy Kim and Chenhang Sun will all be giving presentations on their research at the upcoming 74th Colloid and Surface Science Symposium "Colloid 2000" of the American Chemical Society, June 18-21, 2000.
- PROF. BERG TO SPEAKS AT GRADUATION 2000 Prof. Berg was elected by the Undergraduate Class of 2000 (a.k.a., "The Pinatas") to speak at their graduation ceremony, June 10, 2000. He was very honored, and enjoyed very much sharing his thoughts with them on that happy occasion.
- ANDY KIM WINS INTEL FELLOWSHIP Andy Kim has won the competitive Intel Fellowship at UW for the Year 2000-2001. This prestigious award will pay his full tuition and stipend expenses, and will provide him with a high-end computer for himself.
- UNDERGRADUATES WIN FIRST AND SECOND PLACES AT NORTHWEST REGIONAL CONFERENCE Two of Dr. Berg's undergraduate research students, JONATHAN FORESTER and MIKE VAN CLEAVE took First and Second Place prizes, resp., for their research presentations at the Pacific Northwest Regional Student Paper Contest Apr. 28-29, 2000, hosted this year by the University of Idaho. Jonathan's talk was entitled: "Spreading Dynamics of Dense Emulsions," and Mike's was: "Dynamic Surface Tension Measurement Using Bubble Tensiometry." Jonathan will present his paper in the National Competition at the Annual Meeting of AIChE in Los Angeles, November, 2000. Two of Dr. Berg's also made excellent presentations in the competition. LAURIE BACHRACH spoke on: "The Rheology of Alumina Slurries," and SERGIO ADAN-PLAZA spoke on: "The Rheology of Dental Impression Materials."
- PROF. BERG SPEAKS AT U. OF FLORIDA AS GUEST OF THE GRADUATE STUDENTS Prof. Berg was honored by the graduate students at the University of Florida by being selected as "the seminar speaker they would most like to meet and listen to speak on ...their contributions to the advancement of chemical engineering." On April 10, 2000 Dr. Berg visited and present a seminar entitled: "The Use of Thermodynamics for Predicting Adhesion in Filled Polymeric Composites."
- MARK KNOWLTON COMPLETES MS DEGREE Mark Knowlton completed and defended her MS thesis, entitled: "UNIFAC Calculations for Predicting Wetting and Adhesion" in March, 2000. He has taken a position with the Intel Corporation.
- HERN KIM VISITING FROM MYONGJI UNIVERSITY IN KOREA Dr. Hern Kim arrived with his family in Seattle this January, and will be working in our group through January, 2001. We are very excited about his visit and look forward to many useful collaborations
- MARIA JOSE NUEVO RETURNS TO SPAIN Dr. Maria Jose Nuevo, who visited our group during November and December, has returned to the Applied Physics Department of the University of Extremadura in Badajoz, Spain. We enjoyed having her here and trust that she had a productive stay performing research on atomic force microscopy.
- NEW GRAD STUDENT JOINS GROUP Richard Daniel is joining our research group to work on Ink Jet Printing. Richard got his BS degree from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, FL. Welcome aboard!
- HEWLETT-PACKARD SPONSERS NEW RESEARCH The Hewlett-Packard Company is sponsoring new research in our group dealing with Ink Jet Printing. This will involve the work of one new graduate student beginning in November, 1999, and a second graduate student beginning in summer, 2000.
- SUSIE STENKAMP COMPLETES PHD DEGREE Susie Stenkamp completed and defended her PhD disertation, entitled: "Steric and Electrosteric Stabilization of Colloids in Aqueous Slat Solutions" in October, 1999. She has taken a research position with Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratories (PNNL) in Richland, WA.
- PROF. BERG SERVES AS EXTERNAL EXAMINER Prof. Berg served as External Examiner for the Ph.D. Dissertation of Bjorn Johansson at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, in October, 1999. The thesis title was "Surface Chemistry of Flotation Deinking," and was supervised by Prof. Goran Strom. The External Examiner is titled the "Opponent" in Sweden, but the experience was very rewarding and cordial. It was also a chance to catch up with old friends in Sweden.
- INDUSTRIAL SHORT COURSE. The 13th annual offering of the Short Course on Surface and Colloid Science was given this year: July 12-16, 1999, and had a total of 43 participants. The course, which is also planned for 2000 (July 10-14, 2000; check this site for further details) consists of lectures in the morning covering the basics of colloid and interface science, and laboratory demonstrations in the afternoons, illustrating up-to-date laboratory techniques for property measurement and system characterization. The course is designed for industrial researchers, engineers and technicians dealing with surfactants, thin films, coatings, natural and synthetic fibers, adhesives, lubricants, wetting agents, foams, pigments, powders, aerosols and other materials for which surface properties play an important role. The course fee for 2000 is $1375, and university housing is available for modest rates. Interested persons should contact Engineering Professional Programs; University of Washington; Box 358851; 10303 Meridian Ave. N.; Suite 301; Seattle, WA 98133. FAX: (206) 543-2352
- LILY WOO COMPLETES MS DEGREE Lily Woo completed and defended her MS thesis, entitled: "Adsorption of Polyelectrolytes on Colloidal Particles" in June, 1999. She has taken a research position with Praxair Surface Technologies in Indianapolis, IN.
- UNDERGRADUATE WINS AWARD AT NORTHWEST REGIONAL CONFERENCE One of Dr. Berg's undergraduate research students took the Third Place prize for his research presentation at the Pacific Northwest Regional Student Paper Contest Apr. 30-May 1, 1999, hosted this year by the Oregon State University. KERRY PERSON WON $300 in the Paper Competition for his paper entitled: "Measurement of Surface Tension in the Millisecond Range."
- INVITED PAPER AT MRS MEETING Prof. Berg presented an invited paper at the Materials Research Society Spring Meeting in San Francisco, Apr. 5-9, 1999. It was entitled: "The Acid-Base Energetics of Adhesion in Composite Materials."
- LECTURE AT 3M COMPANY Prof. Berg presented a lecture on adhesion to the Technical Forum at the 3M Company in St. Paul on March 19, 1999.
- MILLER SPENDS WINTER QUARTER IN ULM, GERMANY Alan Miller spent the Winter Quarter, 1999, working with the Experimental Physics Group at the Tech. University in Ulm. He worked specifically on the acoustic analysis of adhesive failure in filled polymer composites (with Dr. S. Minko) and on Pulsed-Force Mode Atomic Force Microscopy (with Prof. Dr. O. Marti).
- DICKSON COMPLETES MS DEGREE Lynne Dickson defended her MS thesis in January, 1999.
- PAPER AT EUROPEAN ADHESION SOCIETY AND LECTURE AT TU ULM Prof. Berg presented a poster or the group's recent adhesion work at EURADH '98 - the 4th European Conference on Adhesion, in Garmisch-Partenkirken, Sept. 6-11, 1998. The following week he presented a lecture to the Experimental Physics Group at the Technical University of Ulm, Germany.
- PROF. BERG GIVES INVITED LECTURE AT GORDON CONFEENCE ON ADHESION Professor Berg gave an invited lecture entitled: "The Importance of Acid-Base Effects in Adhesion Control using Amphiphilic Agents," at the invitiation of conference organizer, Dr. Alphonsus Pocius. The conference was held at Tilton, NH, the first week of August, 1998.
- JOURNAL EDITORSHIPS Prof. Berg is currently an Editor for Advances in Colloid and Interface Science, a journal of Elsevier Publishers for review articles covering the latest developments in the field. Anyone interested in submitting such a review should contact Prof. Berg directly. He also is currently on the Editorial Advisory Boards for: Langmuir; Colloids and Surfaces; and Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology.