Maria Flytzani-Stephanopoulos (Miretta), a graduate of NTUA (Chemical Engineering 1973), passed away on October 29, 2019.
A member of the National Academy of Engineering, she was also Distinguished Professor and the Robert and Marcy Haber Endowed Professor in Energy Sustainability in the Tufts University School of Engineering.
She was admitted to the School of Chemical Engineering of the NTUA (ranked second at the panhellenic entrance exams) and after graduation she continued her graduate studies in the US receiving her M.S. degree from the University of Florida (1975) and Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota (1978).
She worked at the Caltech Jet Propulsion Laboratory as Senior Engineer and MIT as Principal Research Associate and Visiting Professor between 1985-1994.
She joined the faculty of Chemical and Biological Engineering of Tufts University as Associate Professor in 1994 and Full Professor in 1996.
In 2009 she was appointed to the Robert and Marcy Haber Professorship.
Miretta was also Visiting Professor at ETH Zurich (2006-07), Politecnico di Milano (2013-14) and Pierre et Marie Curie University (2014) and Honorary Professor of Tianjin University (2016) and Beijing University of Chemical Technology (2017).
She was named Tufts Distinguished Professor in 2015. She served on the editorial boards of several journals, Associate Editor of Science Advances and editor of Applied Catalysis B.
Awards & Honors
2017
Honorary Professor, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, PRC
2017
Director-at-Large, North American Catalysis Society (2017-21)
2016
Honorary Professor, Tianjin University, PRC
2016
Carol Tyler Award, IPMI
2015
Distinguished Professor, Tufts University
2015
Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award, Tufts University
2014
Associate Editor, Science Advances, AAAS
2014
Member, National Academy of Engineering
2014
Advisory Board member, EFRC/CCEI, U. Delaware
2014
Chair, AIChE/CRE Division (elected 2nd vice chair in 2012)
2013
Director-at-Large, North American Catalysis Society (2013-17)
2013
Giuseppe Parravano Memorial Award for Excellence in Catalysis Research, Michigan Catalysis Society
2009
Fellow, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, 2009
2009
Inaugural Robert and Marcy Haber Endowed Professor in Energy Sustainability, Tufts University
2008
Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science
2008
Most Cited Author (2003-2008), Applied Catalysis B, Elsevier
2008
Henry J. Albert Award, International Precious Metals Institute
2007
Distinguished Scholar Award, Tufts University
2006
Mellon Senior Faculty Research Fellowship
2004
Director, AIChE/CRE Division (2001- 2004)
2002
Editor, Applied Catalysis B: Environmental
Other Awards and Distinctions
National Scholarship Foundation Grant (1968-1973)
Thomaidion Award, National Technical University of Athens (1973)
Technical Chamber of Greece Award for highest GPA in graduating engineering class (1973)
Bush Foundation Fellowship, Graduate School, University of Minnesota (1975-1978)
NASA - New Technology Award #NPO-14826, "Hydrogen Production from Heavy Fuels” (1983)
NASA - New Technology Award #NPO-14827 on "Three-Zone Catalyst Resists Sulfur Poisoning" (1983)
NASA - New Technology Award #NPO-15758, "Removing Sulfur Dioxide from Flue Gases" (1984)
NASA - Space Act Award and Certificate of Recognition (1987)
NSF - Career Advancement Award (1987)
Tufts University - Raytheon Professorship in Pollution Prevention (1994-1999)
UNIDO - Lectureship at Beijing Research Institute of Coal Chemistry, Beijing, PRC (1994)
President, Catalysis Society of New England (1995-97)
