Academics

Kim named Norris B. McFarlane Professor in materials science and engineering

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Hojong Kim, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, has been named the Norris B. McFarlane Career Development Professor in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, effective July 1. An endowed professorship is among the highest honors that can be bestowed on a faculty member.

“I was very excited when I was selected to receive this professorship,” Kim said. “It will enable my research group to continue to investigate the degradation mechanisms of materials under aggressive environments with an ultimate goal to design corrosion-resistant materials by providing the support for graduate students and their research activities.”

Kim’s current research focuses on high temperature corrosion-resistant materials and separation science for energy-critical materials, based on electrochemical techniques. High temperature corrosion is an important area of research for multiple industries, including glass manufacturing, nuclear power plants, gas turbines and renewable technologies, such as concentrated solar power. By understanding the degradation pathways of materials, Kim’s group aims to identify effective methodologies to control these degradation reactions.

“The McFarlane Professorship will provide Hojong and his researcher group the support they need to advance the field of materials science and engineering,” said Susan Sinnott, head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

Kim received a bachelor of science in materials science and engineering from Seoul National University in 2000 and a doctorate in materials science and engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2004. He worked as a research scientist at Samsung Corning Precision Materials and MIT before joining Penn State’s faculty in 2014.

The professorship was endowed through a $1 million commitment from the estate of Cathleen McFarlane-Ross, longtime friend of Penn State. McFarlane-Ross’s gift honors her late husband, industrialist Norris “Mac” McFarlane, who graduated from Penn State in 1934 with a bachelor’s degree in metallurgy.

Hojong Kim, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, has been named the Norris B. McFarlane Career Development Professor in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, effective July 1, 2016. Credit: Penn State / Penn StateCreative Commons

Last Updated June 20, 2016

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