Milestone Celebration

The Milestone Celebration in April 2026 launched a year-long celebration marking 100 years of the University of Iowa’s Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering (CBE). The event included the Carmichael Symposium, Milestone Banquet, and other commemorative activities.

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Alt text: Attendees seated at long tables in a classroom-style lecture room, listening to a presentation; notebooks, cups, and laptops are visible.

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Milestone Celebration agenda

Milestone Events: Wednesday, April 8

Time	Activity	Location
10:30 a.m.	Historical display opens in the Lichtenberger Engineering Library	Seamans Center
4:00 p.m.	Happy hour with CBE Advisory Board	Speakeasy, ReUnion Brewery

Carmichael Symposium: Thursday, April 9

CBE has a long and distinguished history of outstanding research and graduate student training. This is best exemplified by the pioneering work of Karl Kammermeyer (department head 1949-1972) on membrane separations initiated in late 1940s. Greg Carmichael, the Karl Kammermeyer Professor, has been part of CBE for nearly 50 years and served as department chair for 14 years and associate dean for research and graduate studies in the college for another dozen years. The research conducted by his students and colleagues on air quality and climate change has greatly advanced our fundamental understanding of key atmospheric processes and our ability to reduce air pollution worldwide. The symposium was an opportunity to celebrate and share the research accomplishments of alumni and collaborators.

Time	Activity
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.	Registration and continental breakfast
9:00 – 9:15 a.m.	Opening remarks Ann McKenna, Dick and Judy Smith Dean of the College of Engineering, University of Iowa Jun Wang, Departmental Executive Officer, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Iowa Greg Carmichael, Karl Kammermeyer Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Iowa
9:15 – 10:30 a.m.	Session 1 Chair: Chip Levy, Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton University (retired) Charlie Stanier, CLEAResult Energy Consulting Midwestern U.S. Air Quality and the University of Iowa's Role Giuseppe Calori, Deputy Director, Arianet, Italy FARM: Life and Adventures of a STEM Offspring Itsushi Uno, Professor, Kyushu University (retired) The Path to the Global Dust Paper: The Importance of Synchronicities Kevin Christ, Director and Professor of Chemical Engineering, Ohio University Ohio University Air Quality Center: Research Overview Beiming Tang, Postdoctoral Fellow, NOAA ARL Development of DAFCOM, a Machine Learning Based Downstream Application for NOAA UFS-AQM System Hyerim Kim, PhD Candidate, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, University of Iowa Influence of Biomass Burning Emissions in Southeast Asia
10:30 a.m.	Group photo
10:40 – 11:00 a.m.	Break
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.	Session 2 Yang Zhang, CoE Distinguished Professor and Associate Chair for Research, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northeastern University Meng Gao, Professor, Department of Geography, Baptist University, Hong Kong From Graduate Student to Colleague: The Enduring Mentorship of Greg Carmichael Jerry Schnoor, Professor Emeritus, Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Iowa 35 Years of CGRER Rao Kotomarthi, Chief Scientist, Environmental Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory Modeling Atmosphere: From Parallel Computing to Coding Agents Jackie (Qingyan) Fu, Deputy Director of Shanghai Academy of Environmental Sciences Sarath Guttikunda, Founder/Director, UrbanEmissions.Info, Pune, India Action on AQ to Awareness -- Bridging the Gaps from Public Officials to High Schoolers Hongliang Zhang, Dean and Professor, School of Environment and Architecture, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai From Models to Meaning: My Journey with Greg Carmichael and a Bridge Between China and the U.S.
12:45 – 2:00 p.m.	Lunch
2:00 – 3:30 p.m.	Session 3 Chair: Young Sunwoo, Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea, & Director General of IUAPPA, the International Union of Air Pollution Prevention and Environmental Protection Associations Sarika Kulkarni, Scientific Computing Liaison, California Air Resources Board An Incredible Surreal Career Journey – Atmospheric Scientist to Scientific Computing Liaison Kuruvilla John, Professor & Chair of Mechanical Engineering, University of North Texas Multi-decadal Changes in Air Pollution, Sources, and Chemical Characteristics in North Texas Bhupesh Adhikary, Climate Action Lead, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Nepal Climate Change, Air Pollution in the IGP-HF, and My Journey to Move Mountains Behrooz Roozitalab, Scientist IV, NSF NCAR Atmospheric Chemistry Observations and Modeling Laboratory Everything Everywhere All at Once; Air Quality Edition Scott Spak, Associate Professor, School of Planning and Public Affairs, University of Iowa Good, Good: Learning from Greg Carmichael’s Approach to Science, Mentoring, and Working with Policymakers Meng Zhou, Assistant Research Scientist, University of Iowa Technology Institute Lighting the Night: Application of VIIRS DNB for Monitoring Wildfire and Smoke Transport at Night Xuemei Wang, Dean of the School of Environmental Sciences, Jinan University, Guanghua, China Youhua Tang, Principal Investigator, National Air Quality Forecast Guidance, NRL NOAA Evaluating the Chemical Transport Models with Aircraft Observations: Challenges and Issues from Recent Field Experiments Short videos
3:30 p.m.	Greg Carmichael, Karl Kammermeyer Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Odyssey of a Chemical Engineer
4:00 p.m.	End of symposium

Milestone Banquet: Thursday, April 9

Time	Activity
6:00 p.m.	Check-in and social time
6:45 p.m.	Dinner service
7:45 p.m.	Remarks, with dancing to follow!
10:00 p.m.	Banquet ends

Milestone Events: Friday, April 10

Time	Activity	Location
8:00 a.m.	Information table opens	Seamans Center Lobby
9:00 – 10:20 a.m.	Alumni Panel: Global Impact of Iowa CBE Engineers Kevin Crist, Director and Professor of Chemical Engineering, Ohio University Sarath Guttikunda, Founder, Urban Emissions Kuruvilla John, Chair of Mechanical Engineering, University of North Texas John Kessler, DuPont (retired) Rhett Livengood, Keyfactor Gary Machetta, Vice President, Intellectual Property - KBR	2229 SC
10:20 – 10:30 a.m.	Break
10:30 – 11:20 a.m.	Student Showcase Panelists: Carson Baldes, Jackson Belgolka, Weizhi Deng, Prasoon Kumar, Saeideh Mohammadi, and Hossein Zare	3630 SC
11:45 – 1:30 p.m.	Lunch on your own Stop by the historic display in the Lichtenberger Engineering Library or walk around our Engineering Research Open House!
1:30 – 1:45 p.m.	All-CBE group photo and banner signing	4133 SC
1:45 – 2:45 p.m.	CBE lab tours	Seamans Center Lobby
2:45 – 3:15 p.m.	Break
3:30 – 4:30 p.m.	Mixer with snacks and drinks Informal networking among faculty, students, and alumni	1505 SC

Other events

History of CBE Exhibition

The Lichtenberger Engineering Library hosted a CBE History Display that showcased our history, teaching and lab spaces, research and patents, and student life.

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CBE Advisory Board Meeting

The CBE advisory board is a group of external experts, alumni, and community members who provide guidance, advice, and support to the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, helping to shape our strategic direction, programs, fundraising, and external relations. If you would like to nominate yourself for an invitation to serve on the CBE advisory board, please email the Lichtenberger Family Chair in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Jun Wang.

2026 AIChE Annual Student Conference

The 2026 AIChE Annual Student Conference was held on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City, Iowa, on April 10 and 11, 2026.

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STEM Skate Off

STEM Night at Xtream Arena brought science, technology, engineering, and math to life with interactive exhibits and hands-on activities on the concourse. The CBE I-Canopy Project was on display.