Dr. James Katzer, an affiliate professor and longtime friend of the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, died of a heart attack in his sleep November 2 in Marshalltown, Iowa. He was 71.
Katzer began his Iowa State career as a chemical engineering undergraduate in fall 1961. He spent a year prior at Marshalltown Junior College (now called Marshalltown Community College). While an Iowa State student he held Tau Beta Pi and Pi Mu Epsilon honors as well as interned at a DuPont plastics plant in Parkersburg, W. Va. In May 1964 he graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA – the top cumulative mark for a 1964 Iowa State engineering graduate. He soon pursued a PhD in chemical engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which he earned in 1969.
In his professional life, Katzer accumulated a rich mix of academia and industry within his catalysis and reaction engineering repertoire. He began his academic life’s work as an assistant professor of chemical engineering in 1969 at the University of Delaware. By 1978 he progressed to full professor after a brief visiting professorship at Stanford University. During his promotion to professor he founded the university’s Center for Catalytic Science & Technology. There he attracted $800,000 in new research funding in its first year. By 1980 the Center had 23 industrial companies supporting it at $25,000 each and had a total research budget of $1.8 million. “In only nine years at (the University of) Delaware, Jim Katzer established himself as a strong teacher and scholar and realized the vision of the Center, which was one of the first of its kind,” said faculty colleague Bruce Gates in 2001. Gates is now a distinguished professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at University of California, Davis.
By 1981 Katzer established a career in industry, where he first became manager of the Catalyst Section at the Mobil Oil Corporation’s Central Research Laboratory in Princeton, N.J. Various research and administrative position led him to become vice president of technology in 1997.
Katzer’s diverse experience in catalysis and reaction engineering research and commercialization piqued national interest in 1998. In that year he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering – considered the highest achievement for an American engineer. With the merger of Exxon and Mobil Oil Corporation in late 1999, Katzer became manager of planning and performance analysis. He thrived in that role managing downstream research, development and engineering. He retired from ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company in 2003.
In 2001 several colleagues nominated Katzer for the Marston Medal, which he won. The Marston Medal is the highest honor given to an alumnus/alumna of Iowa State University engineering. In 1983 he earned a Professional Achievement Citation in Engineering from Iowa State, which honored his professional competence and creativity in engineering research, development, administration and education.
Although retirement may warrant rest for some, Katzer continued to stay heavily involved in the profession. At the time of his death he was a member of the Technical Advisory Council for Rive Technology, a member of the Technical Advisory Board for China National Institute for Clean and Low-Carbon Fuels, as well as affiliate professor and a member of the Industry Advisory Council for the Iowa State University Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. In addition, from 2006 to 2009 he was a panel member of the National Research Council of The National Academies. He also was, from 2004 to 2007, a visiting scientist for the Laboratory for Energy and The Environment at MIT.
In 2008 Katzer and his wife, Isabelle, established an endowed James Katzer Energy Graduate Fellowship, which recognizes the importance of chemical engineers and their development of solutions to national energy crises. So far, three CBE PhD candidates have been named James Katzer Energy Fellows – Yongsuck Choi in 2010, Catie Brewer in 2011, and Alex Liu in 2012. Choi and Liu continue to pursue their PhD. Brewer graduated in May 2012 and is now a postdoctoral researcher at Rice University, and starting a position in academia very soon.
Mike and Jean Steffenson Professor Brent Shanks notes Katzer’s commitment to the success of Iowa State chemical engineering. “The CBE department lost a great friend and colleague who worked diligently on its behalf,” said Shanks. “I will miss him on both a professional and personal level.”
Katzer had planned to visit Iowa State campus just two days after his unforeseen death. “Jim Katzer was a brilliant individual and a wonderful, caring person,” said Surya Mallapragada, professor, CBE chair and Stanley Chair in Interdisciplinary Engineering. “He worked tirelessly for the department and we will really miss him.”
He is survived by his wife of 32 years, Isabelle (McGregor) Katzer; his mother, Velma Sheller; son, Robert James, MD (Jenni) Katzer, and granddaughter, Autumn Elizabeth Katzer; daughter, Anne Louise Katzer; brothers, Wayne Katzer and Ken (Sharon) Katzer; and sister, JoAnn Katzer. The family held a viewing Sunday, November 4 at Mitchell Funeral Home in Marshalltown, Iowa. A funeral service was held at 1:30 p.m. Monday, November 5, in the same location. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be directed to the James Katzer Energy Fellowship at Iowa State University. Checks should be payable to the Iowa State University Foundation, 2505 University Boulevard, Ames, IA 50010.