Professor Krzysztof Matyjaszewski, Professor of Chemistry at CMU with a courtesy appointment in Materials Science & Engineering has been honored with the 2017 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Chemistry. Mitsuo Sawamoto, Ph.D. of Kyoto University in Japan, shares the honor with Professor Matyjaszewski. They were awarded for their seminal contributions to the development of a new polymerization process involving metal catalysts. This powerful process affords unprecedented control of polymer composition and architecture, making possible new materials including improved composites, coatings, dispersants, and biomedical polymers.

Since 1824, The Franklin Institute has provided public recognition and encouragement of excellence in science and technology through its Awards Program. The list of Franklin Institute laureates reads like a "Who's Who" in the history of 19th, 20th, and 21st century science. The eight pioneers in the Class of 2017 join the giants who came before them, including Dean Kamen, Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein, Orville Wright, Marie and Pierre Curie, and Nikola Tesla, in the Institute's unmatched history of honoring the greatest minds of the past 192 years. Recognizing outstanding achievements in science, technology, and industry from around the world is an important way the Institute preserves Benjamin Franklin's legacy. read more