At the American Society of Civil Engineers’ (ASCE) World Environmental & Water Resources Congress held in Atlanta, University of Miami College of Engineering Dean Pratim Biswas, Ph.D., F.AAAR, F.AEESP, N.A.E., 2022 recipient of the prestigious Simon W. Freese Environmental Engineering award, was honored to deliver the Simon W. Freese Environmental Engineering Lecture.
The conference draws about 900 leading engineers and scientists from around the world to learn and discuss the latest research, case studies and evolving “best practices” in water resources and the environment. In addition to receiving the recognition, Dean Biswas delivered a presentation titled “Latest Advances in Water Quality Modeling in Drinking Water Distribution Systems” to his peers.
Dean Biswas is one of the top aerosol research scientists in the world, with his work mainly applied in the energy and environmental technology arena. In 2021, he was selected by his peers to be a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest scientific society, for his pioneering contributions to aerosol science and engineering. In 2019 he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering "for advancing the science of aerosol dynamics and particle removal technologies,” and in 2018 he received the Fuchs Award, the premier international aerosol award for outstanding contributions in aerosol science and technology.
The Simon W. Freese award is named after Simon Wilke Freese, FASCE, a civil engineer who designed 100 municipal water and sewer systems as well as more than 200 dam and reservoir projects in his home state of Texas. Endowed by his engineering firm of Freese & Nichols to honor him, the award was established in 1975 is given annually. Freese was made a partner in the 128-year-old firm in 1927.
The Governing Board of the Environmental & Water Resources Institute selects the distinguished individual each year based on review of the individual’s work as well as letters of recommendation from peers. The Board sends its selected award recipient to the Executive Director of the Society, who will invite the honoree to deliver the Simon W. Freese lecture.
Dean Biswas has served as Dean of the University of Miami College of Engineering since January 2021. Prior to this appointment, he was the Lucy and Stanley Lopata Professor of Environmental Engineering Science, Asst. Vice Chancellor for International Programs, and Chair of the Department of Energy, Environmental, and Chemical Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition, he is the Director of the McDonnell Academy Global Energy and Environmental Partnership. He received his doctoral degree from the California Institute of Technology and his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.
