Division/Committee: [COLL] Division of Colloid & Surface Chemistry

This is a special symposium to recognize Prof. em. Dr. Nicholas D. Spencer, one of the leading scientists worldwide in surface science, tribology, and polymer interfaces. Prof. Nicholas D. Spencer was born in the UK, and studied at Cambridge University, obtaining his PhD in 1980 from the Department of Physical Chemistry in the area of gold and silver surface chemistry. Subsequently, he spent two years at the University of California, Berkeley, where he investigated the catalysis of ammonia synthesis by iron single crystals. From 1982 until 1993, Prof. Spencer worked for W.R. Grace & Co., USA, in the areas of catalysis, high-temperature superconductors, surface analysis, and vibrational spectroscopy. He was also active as an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland during this time. Nicholas D. Spencer was elected Full Professor of Surface Science and Technology at the ETH Zurich in 1993. The principal areas of his research are tribology, and surface functionalization and analysis. Important surface-analytical approaches used in his group include x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the surface-forces apparatus, atomic force microscopy, vibrational spectroscopy and different methods to characterize the liquid-solid interface. He is editor-in-chief of the journal "Tribology Letters", editor of an encyclopedia of physical chemistry and chemical physics, and a member of the editorial board of the journals "Tribology", "Tribology International", and "Lubrication Science". He has been awarded numerous awards including the 2018 Gold Medal for Tribology and the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) International Award in 2022. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), STLE, and member of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences.

Dr. Marina Ruths

Professor, Univ of Massachusetts Lowell

Appearances