August 18, 2020
Staff Accomplishment

American Chemical Society National Meeting Honors Two PNNL Scientists

Devanathan appointed an ACS fellow, Heldebrant invited to give a keynote

Ram_Dave

PNNL scientists, Ram Devanathan (left) and Dave Heldebrant (right), were spotlighted at the ACS national meeting in August 2020. Devanathan was appointed an ACS fellow and Heldebrant was invited to give a keynote address.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) scientists Ram Devanathan and Dave Heldebrant were in the spotlight at the Fall 2020 meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of the world’s largest scientific organizations.

Devanathan was selected for an ACS fellowship and Heldebrant delivered a keynote speech for the national meeting held in mid-August. The theme was “Moving Chemistry from Bench to Market.”

One of 53 fellows awarded this year, Devanathan was selected for outstanding achievements in and contributions to science and to ACS. A computational materials scientist at PNNL for 17 years, Devanathan was honored for his outstanding fundamental contributions to chemical separation membranes, computational materials science, and nuclear chemistry research. Additionally, Devanathan was honored for his mentoring and managerial excellence as the leader of a group of innovative energy researchers. He was also recognized for impactful service to the Richland (Washington) Section of the ACS and the Northwest Region Board of Directors, his work in regional and national meeting programming, and his long-standing commitment as a technical reviewer in eight ACS journals. Devanathan holds a PhD in materials science and engineering from Northwestern University.

Heldebrant, a chemist and PNNL chief scientist in separation materials, was invited to give a keynote address during the August 17 live opening session. His talk, “Moving Chemistry from Bench to Market…a National Laboratory Perspective,” highlighted Heldebrant’s work on carbon capture technology, the process of moving technology to market, and lessons learned along the way. Heldebrant joined PNNL as a postdoctoral research scientist in 2005 and holds a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of California at Davis.

ACS has more than 150,000 members in over 140 countries with a mission to advance the broader chemistry enterprise and its practitioners for the benefit of Earth and its people. By attracting thousands of chemical professionals—virtually this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic—the ACS fall meeting provides opportunities to share insights about chemistry and connect with other prominent members of the scientific community.