The 2011 Jacques Villermaux Medal has been awarded to Professor Ryszard Pohorecki, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland. The award was presented by the European Federation of Chemical Engineering (EFCE) at the opening ceremony of the 8th European Congress of Chemical Engineering (ECCE-8) in Berlin, Germany, on 25 September 2011.
Pohorecki received the award in recognition of his outstanding achievements in the fields of kinetics of chemical processes, micro-mixing and (bio-)chemical reaction engineering, and for his commitment to the development of chemical engineering education and training in Europe and worldwide. Furthermore, the award acknowledges his contributions to the EFCE Working Parties on Fluid Separations and on Education, and his promotion of the scientific program of the EFCE as their Scientific Vice President 2003–2007.
Pohorecki studied chemistry at Warsaw University of Technology (WUT), Poland, where he received his M.Sc. in 1959 and Ph.D. in 1964. From 1965–66, he was a visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge, UK. In 1970, he received his D.Sc. (habilitation) at WUT. From 1988–89, he taught and carried out research in France (Toulouse and Nancy). For most of his scientific career he has been employed at WUT, where he is now Full Professor of Chemical Engineering, Head of the Chemical Reactor and Bioprocess Engineering Division, and Director of the Center of Biotechnology.
