(77i) Douglas E. Leng — An Outstanding Contributor to Dow and to Our Profession

Doug Leng was internationally known for his expertise in the field of mixing as it relates to the behavior of chemical processes. This included multi-phase flow (gas-liquid, liquid-liquid and solid-liquid systems), chemical reactors, fluid dynamics, equipment design, problem diagnosis and remedial action, scale-up and related technical topics. Assisted by a strong background in physical fundamentals, he solved a broad variety of technical problems for The Dow Chemical Company on a world-wide basis. Doug was an outstanding mentor and he and his associates made a large economic contribution to Dow and scientific contributions to chemical engineering, He worked for Dow for 40 year(1956–1996). Although known today primarily for his expertise in mixing, over the course of his career he contributed to a number of different technical areas and businesses including, ion exchange products, hollow fiber membranes, renewable resources, chlorinated polyolefins, scale-up, aqueous dispersions, thermodynamic measurements and polymer products. He championed the use of supercomputers in chemical engineering and effectively combined laboratory measurements with fluid mechanics modeling to solve difficult mixing challenges. In 1993 he was awarded the Herbert H. Dow Medal, the highest honor Dow awards to the company’s scientists and researchers. Fewer than 30 of these have been given in the history of Dow. This talk will explore Doug’s contributions to Dow and his successful career.