HISTORY

| Department History | Peck Lecture | 2001 Centennial Celebration | 

More than 100 Years of Chemical Engineering Education

Among the very oldest programs in the country, IIT's program has closely tracked the origin and evolution of the chemical engineering discipline itself. The history of the department reflects a unique combination of visionary administrators and talented faculty who piloted a once fledgling program through more than 100 years of rapid scientific and technological change while maintaining its continuous excellence and relevance to the needs of society and industry.
 

Charles W. Pierce received the first B.S. in chemical engineering awarded by Armour Institute. Pierce was one of the first — if not the first — African-American chemical engineers in the nation.

The very earliest record of chemical engineering studies at the then Armour Institute surfaced in the year 1894 in the joint department of chemistry and chemical engineering. Under the directorship of Dr. James C. Foye, professor of chemistry, a four-year curriculum leading to the B.S. degree in chemical engineering was developed and implemented. This educational initiative came only six years after George Davis provided the blueprint for a new profession in a series of 12 lectures on chemical engineering in England and, simultaneously, MIT began "Course X" (10), the first four-year chemical engineering program in the United States. Regrettably, the chemical engineering momentum begun at Armour by Dr. Foye ended with his sudden death in 1896.

The program would resurface in September 1901, when a separate degree-granting department of chemical engineering was established with Professor William McClement serving as director. On June 19, 1901, the department awarded its first B.S. degree in chemical engineering to Charles W. Pierce. Based on preliminary research, it would appear that Mr. Pierce was one of the first — if not the first — African-American chemical engineers in the nation. Professor Oscar Rochlitz assumed the department’s directorship in 1906 and, by May 1907, Armour Institute had conferred 25 B.S. degrees in chemical engineering.

Since 1908, seven chairmen have served the department: Harry McCormack (1908-1946), J.H. Rushton (1946-1953), Ralph.E. Peck (1953-1967), B.S. Swanson (1967-1971), D.T. Wasan (1971-1987), Hamid Arastoopour (1989-2003), Fouad Teymour (2003 to present).

In 1950, the department reached a critical milestone when Miss Lois Bey became the first co-ed

 to receive a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering at IIT.

In 1950, Lois Bey became the first co-ed to receive a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from IIT.

During the last two and half decades, the department has

 undergone extensive reorganization and program revision. In 1985, the gas engineering educational and research activities moved from the Institute of Gas Technology to the department of chemical engineering, under the name of the Energy Technology Program. This program continued to grow, eventually expanding beyond the department to become the IIT Energy + Power Center. Today, this activity is the focal point of the newly initiated interprofessional Energy and Sustainability Institute at IIT. The gas engineering program was revived as an online masters program in 2003, through a partnership with the Gas Technology Institute.

In 1995, the Pritzker Department of Environmental Engineering merged with the department of chemical engineering, marking the origin of the department of chemical and environmental engineering (ChEE). The environmental degree and research programs were continued under the auspices of the new department. Today the department is conducting significant research activities through its four interdisciplinary research centers: The Center for Electrochemical Science and Engineering; The Center of Excellence in Polymer Science and Engineering; the Energy + Power Center and the Particle Technology and Crystallization Center.

As part of the department's commitment to responding to changes in the industry, it recently expanded its curriculum to address the "biologification" of the chemical engineering program through the introduction of biology modules in course and laboratory instruction.  In Spring 2007, the department awarded its first Masters of Biological Engineering.  To reflect the increased focus on biological engineering, the department was officially renamed the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering in Fall 2007 under the direction of Chairman Fouad Teymour.