The Materials Research Society (MRS), which gives out the annual award, said it's honoring Dr. Sossina Haile for her "fundamental contributions to the electrochemical and thermochemical materials science that advance sustainable energy, for her commitment to the broader international materials community, and for being an inspiring colleague and passionate mentor." (Photo: ETHIOPIA 2050 - Keynote Address/YouTube)
Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff
Updated: December 2nd, 2020
New York (TADIAS) — Sossina M. Haile, a Professor of materials science and engineering at Northwestern University, has been awarded the 2020 David Turnbull Lectureship, a prestigious accolade that recognizes the career contributions of scientists in her field.
The Materials Research Society (MRS), which gives out the annual award, said it’s honoring Dr. Sossina for her “fundamental contributions to the electrochemical and thermochemical materials science that advance sustainable energy, for her commitment to the broader international materials community, and for being an inspiring colleague and passionate mentor.”
Dr. Sossina will receive the award on Thursday, December 3rd during the 2020 Virtual MRS Spring/Fall Meeting, where she is also scheduled to present her lecture, Superprotonic Solid Acids for Sustainable Energy Technologies.
Most recently Dr. Sossina and her team were behind a new discovery that converts ammonia to green hydrogen that’s being hailed as “a major step forward for enabling a zero-pollution, hydrogen-fueled economy.”
Dr. Sossina, one of the leading researchers in the world in the area of renewable energy, envisions that her new finding will particularly be useful in reshaping the transportation industry. Northwestern University cites the Environmental Protection Agency noting that “in 2018, the movement of people and goods by cars, trucks, trains, ships, airplanes and other vehicles accounted for 28% of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.–more than any other economic sector.”
“Battery-powered vehicles are great, but there’s certainly a question of range and material supply,” Dr. Sossina said. “Converting ammonia to hydrogen on-site and in a distributed way would allow you to drive into a fueling station and get pressurized hydrogen for your car. There’s also a growing interest for hydrogen fuel cells for the aviation industry because batteries are so heavy.”
Sossina Haile is a fellow of the Materials Research Society, the American Ceramics Society, the African Academy of Sciences, and the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences, and serves on the editorial boards of Materials Horizons, Annual Review of Materials Research and Joule. (Photo: Courtesy of Northwestern University)
According to MRS:
Sossina Haile assumed her role as Walter P. Murphy Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Northwestern University in 2015, after serving 18 years on the faculty of the California Institute of Technology. She earned her PhD degree in materials science and engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992, and spent two years, 1991-1993, at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in Stuttgart, Germany, first as a Fulbright Fellow then as a Humboldt Fellow.
Haile’s research broadly encompasses materials, especially oxides, for sustainable electrochemical energy technologies. Her work in fuel cell science and technology has pushed the field to new insights and record performance metrics. In parallel, she has created new avenues for harnessing sunlight to meet rising energy demands. Haile has published approximately 200 articles and holds 14 patents on these and other topics.
Among her many awards, in 2008 Haile received an American Competitiveness and Innovation Fellowship from the U.S. National Science Foundation in recognition of “her timely and transformative research in the energy field and her dedication to inclusive mentoring, education and outreach across many levels.” In 2010, she was the recipient of the Chemical Pioneer Award (American Institute of Chemists), and in 2012, the International Ceramics Prize (World Academy of Ceramics). Haile is a fellow of the Materials Research Society, the American Ceramics Society, the African Academy of Sciences, and the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences, and serves on the editorial boards of Materials Horizons, Annual Review of Materials Research and Joule. Her professional service includes past membership on the board of the Materials Research Society, and current membership on the board of Ethiopia Education Initiatives.
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Related:
Outstanding Women in Science: Interview with Professor Sossina Haile
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