Saying Good-bye to Prof. Ken Klabunde


Kenneth J. Klabunde was born on May 30, 1943 in Madison, WI. He earned his B.A. from Augustana College in 1965 and his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry with Don Burton at the University of Iowa in 1969. After a postdoctoral appointment with Phil Skell at Penn State, he joined the faculty of the Department of Chemistry at the University of North Dakota in 1970. In 1979, he accepted an appointment as Professor and Head of the Chemistry Department at Kansas State University.

He served as Department Head for nine years, and was named University Distinguished Professor in 1988. In 1995, he founded NanoScale, the first company to be launched as an outgrowth of K-State research.

Ken is recognized as one of world's experts and innovators in the field of nanotechnology. He has published well over 500 papers in the field, has authored and edited four influential books, and has been granted scores of patents. The 171 individuals who have been trained in his laboratory
include 46 students who received their Ph.D. degrees under his guidance. He has delivered 200 invited lectures all over the world, and he has received numerous awards including the American Chemical Society's Midwest Award, a "Breakthrough Award" from Popular Mechanics, the Iman Research Award, and the Olin Petefish Award in the Basic Sciences. He was named an Alumni Fellow by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences of the University of Iowa and is a Fellow of the American Chemical Society.

 

 

At K-State, Ken and his group have conducted research with colleagues in Physics, Chemical Engineering, Biology, and Grain Science. These joint studies have ranged from studying the synthesis and optical properties of nanoparticles, to developing new compounds for environmental remediation, to the discovery and investigation of nanoscale materials with anti-microbial activity, to the synthesis of "green" renewable bio derived polymers and products. Ken's work led to extensive collaborations internationally, and has included research with colleagues in Chile, Bulgaria, Israel, China, Russia, Denmark and India. Ken's admirable record of service includes advising Senator Pat Roberts' Committee on Science and Technology, serving as President of the KSU Faculty Senate, and holding elected office in the American Chemical Society's Division of Inorganic Chemistry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Left: A "Half-Scale SMAD (Solvated Metal Atom Dispersion) Reactor" created by James Hodgson and Ron Jackson and presented to Prof. Ken Klabunde as his retirement gift.