Dr. Enrique Lavernia receives TMS 2024 Bruce Chalmers Award

Congratulations to Dr. Enrique Lavernia on his recent selection to receive The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society 2024 Bruce Chalmers Award in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the science and/or technology of materials processing!

The Bruce Chalmers Award (TMS) recognizes an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the science and/or technology of materials processing and includes a life-membership to TMS.

Dr. Enrque Lavernia very recently joined the J. Mike Walker '66 Department of Mechanical Engineering, along with his wife, Dr. Julie Schoenung. They have joinged Texas A&M Univeristy as joint faculty of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the J. Mike Walker ’66 Department of Mechanical Engineering. Both recognized as National Academy of Engineering members, Lavernia and Schoenung come to Texas A&M from the University of California, Irvine.

Lavernia earned master's and doctoral degrees in materials engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a bachelor’s degree in solid mechanics from Brown University. While at the University of California (UC), Lavernia served in several impactful positions, including dean of the College of Engineering at UC Davis and provost and executive vice chancellor at UC Irvine.

His research interests include:

• Synthesis and behavior of nanostructured and multi-scale materials with a particular emphasis on processing fundamentals and mechanical/physical behavior

• Novel deformation phenomena in face-centered cubic and hexagonal close-packed metals

• Powder synthesis and processing of materials

• Synthesis and behavior of structural materials, including high entropy metals

• High temperature-high pressure atomization processes

• Mathematical modeling of advanced materials and processes

• Additive manufacturing of metallic structures using laser-based systems

Although he has only been in College Station for a short while, Lavernia said he has been overwhelmed by the kindness and support of his new colleagues — an experience that has only enhanced his enthusiasm for joining the university.

“When I first learned about the opportunity to join Texas A&M, I was excited to see the top-notch faculty members and programs already part of the university,” Lavernia said. “I was also amazed by the engineering program's sheer size, strength and depth, and the significant global impact they are making through their academic work.”

Lavernia said he looks forward to the wide-ranging, cross-disciplinary collaborations his research group will have with existing researchers. He hopes to help extend both departments' already outstanding reputation in research and education.

“I'm thrilled about the countless opportunities to collaborate with faculty colleagues from various fields,” Lavernia said. “Interacting with exceptional engineering students and being supported by a team of dedicated and top-notch staff is also something I look forward to.”