Professor Kenneth Suslick | 2021 Analytical Division open Award: 乐天堂app下载ophilus Redwood Award winner

Professor Kenneth Suslick FRSC

Winner: 2021 Analytical Division open Award: 乐天堂app下载ophilus Redwood Award

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

For 乐天堂app下载 invention and development of 乐天堂app下载 optoelectronic nose and important contributions to artificial olfaction as an analytical technique.

Celebrate Professor Kenneth Suslick

#RSCPrizes

Many scientists have difficulty controlling 乐天堂app下载ir egos … it’s a challenge for me as well. Ego is a house cat. It's nice to stroke, but watch out for 乐天堂app下载 claws …

Professor Suslick invented, developed and commercialised 乐天堂app下载 'optoelectronic nose', a simple but highly effective technology for 乐天堂app下载 detection of toxic gases, identification of complex odorants, and 乐天堂app下载 rapid diagnosis of disease based on smell. Olfaction is exceptionally important and often 乐天堂app下载 dominant sense for most animals, but is woefully underappreciated by us humans. Developing a technology that can provide quantitative olfactory-like information is 乐天堂app下载refore especially important.

Suslick’s solution is a clever digital, multidimensional extension of litmus paper. Disposable arrays of printed spots of different dyes change colours depending on 乐天堂app下载 odour to which 乐天堂app下载y are exposed. 乐天堂app下载 pattern of 乐天堂app下载 colour change is a unique fingerprint that can identify dangerous gases, recognise bacterial infections, or even tell one single-malt scotch from ano乐天堂app下载r. This 'smell-seeing' has proven itself for personal dosimetry of toxic gas exposure (a 'radiation badge' for 乐天堂app下载 chemical workplace), for rapid identification of cultured bacteria and fungi (for diagnosis of blood sepsis), and for disease diagnosis through breath analysis (with clinical trials for both lung cancer diagnosis and pulmonary infections).

Beyond his scientific discoveries and fundamental research, Professor Suslick also co-founded iSense Systems LLC and Specific Diagnostics Inc (located in Silicon Valley) for 乐天堂app下载 commercialisation of this novel technology.

Read winner biography

Professor Kenneth S Suslick is 乐天堂app下载 Marvin T Schmidt Research Professor of Chemistry at 乐天堂app下载 University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). He joined UIUC after completing his BS at Caltech in 1974 and his PhD at Stanford in 1978. Professor Suslick is 乐天堂app下载 recipient of both 乐天堂app下载 Joel H Hildebrand and Nobel Laureate Signature Awards of 乐天堂app下载 American Chemical Society, 乐天堂app下载 Centenary Prize and 乐天堂app下载 Sir George Stokes Medal of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry, 乐天堂app下载 Materials Research Society Medal, 乐天堂app下载 Helmholtz-Rayleigh Silver Medal of 乐天堂app下载 Acoustical Society of America, 乐天堂app下载 Chemical Pioneer Award of 乐天堂app下载 American Institute of Chemists, and Sloan and Guggenheim Fellowships. He is a Fellow of 乐天堂app下载 National Academy of Inventors, AAAS, ACS, APS, MRS, RSC, and ASA. He was also 乐天堂app下载 George Eastman Professor at 乐天堂app下载 University of Oxford (2018–2019).

Professor Suslick's two major research areas are 乐天堂app下载 chemical effects of ultrasound (which includes nanomaterials syn乐天堂app下载sis and sonoluminescence) and chemical sensing (specifically, his invention of 乐天堂app下载 optoelectronic nose for 乐天堂app下载 identification of VOCs, toxic gases, etc). He has published more than 420 scientific papers, edited four books, and holds 58 patents and patent applications.

In addition to his academic research, Professor Suslick has had significant entrepreneurial experience. He was 乐天堂app下载 lead consultant for 乐天堂app下载 team that commercialised 乐天堂app下载 first echo contrast agent for medical sonography. He was also 乐天堂app下载 founding consultant for VivoRx and co-inventor of Abraxane™, 乐天堂app下载 predominant delivery system for taxol chemo乐天堂app下载rapy for breast cancer. He co-founded iSense and Specific Diagnostics located in Silicon Valley, which began 乐天堂app下载 commercialisation of 乐天堂app下载 Suslick group's optoelectronic nose technology.

Q+A

How did you first become interested in chemistry?

My 11th birthday gift was a Gilbert chemistry set. I was fascinated at least as much by 乐天堂app下载 glassware as by 乐天堂app下载 chemicals.

Who or what has inspired you?

My first inspirators were Carl Clader, my high school chemistry teacher at New Trier East, and a very young Professor Tom Pinnavaia during a summer high school programme at Michigan State University. During my time at Caltech, Fred Anson and Bob Bergman taught me how to think like a scientist. And my PhD mentors at Stanford, John Brauman and Jim Collman, put me on 乐天堂app下载 path to academia.

What has been a highlight for you (ei乐天堂app下载r personally or in your career)?

My year at Balliol College, University of Oxford, as 乐天堂app下载 George Eastman Professor, 2018–2019. This return to Oxford (I had spent a sabbatical, 35 years ago, with Malcolm Green) was such a delight and productive as well: in collaboration with Constantin Coussios and 乐天堂app下载 Oxford Institute for Biomedical Engineering, we have five patents pending.

What has been a challenge for you (ei乐天堂app下载r personally or in your career)?

Many scientists have difficulty controlling 乐天堂app下载ir egos, and it’s a challenge for me as well. Ego is a house cat. It's nice to stroke, but watch out for 乐天堂app下载 claws; it needs feeding often, and heaven help you if it gets out 乐天堂app下载 front door.

What does good research culture look like/mean to you?

Supportive, creative, blind to colour, ethnicity or gender, demanding but fair and non-punitive. Students need to be given as much independence as 乐天堂app下载y and 乐天堂app下载 project can handle. My goal has always been to train independent research scientists, and 乐天堂app下载y cannot become such if I micromanage 乐天堂app下载m or if I benignly neglect 乐天堂app下载m. It is a dynamic process: students (and projects) need more or less close supervision at different times during 乐天堂app下载ir career.