Biotechnology

Biography

Lawrence E. Murr is Mr. & Mrs. MacIntosh Murchison Professor and Chairman of the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and Ph.D. Program Director in the Materials Research & Technology Institute at The University of Texas at El Paso. Dr. Murr received his B.Sc. in physical science from Albright College, and his B.S.E.E. in electronics, his M.S. in engineering mechanics, and his Ph.D. in solid-state science, all from the Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Murr has taught at the Pennsylvania State University, the University of Southern California, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, and the Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology. He was Director of the John D. Sullivan Center for In-Situ Mining Research, President of the New Mexico Tech Research Foundation, and Professor and Head of the Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Department at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. He was a past Chairman of the New Mexico Joint Center for Materials Science and served as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Research and Director of the Office of Academic and Research Programs at the Oregon Graduate Institute, where he was also Professor of Materials Science and Engineering. Dr. Murr has published 20 books, over 700 scientific and technical articles in a wide range of research areas in materials science and engineering, environmental science and engineering, manufacturing science and engineering (especially rapid prototype/layered manufacturing), and biological sciences and engineering roughly half with undergraduate and graduate student researchers. During more than 45 years of university teaching, Professor Murr has also directed 64 M.S. theses and 32 Ph.D. dissertations. Recent honors include the 2001 Buehler Technical Paper Merit Award for Excellence (IMS), the TMS 2007 Educator Award, the 2007 John S. Rinehart Award (a TMS Symposium Award for global leadership in shock and high-strain-rate phenomena), and the 2008 Henry Clifton Sorby Award presented by the International Metallographic Society (IMS) for recognition of lifetime achievement in the field of metallurgy. Dr. Murr has more than 40 years of experience in ballistic and high-strain/high-strain-rate research and research involving imaging technologies, especially electron microscopy. In 2009, Professor Murr received the Albert Easton White Distinguished Teacher Award from ASM International. Dr. Murr was also awarded a Lee Hsun Research Award by the Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMR-CAS) “in recognition of past accomplishments in materials science and technology” (2009-2010). In 2010, Professor Murr was honored as a Visiting Professor for Senior International Scientists by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) for the Institute of Metal Research (IMR) of the Shenyang National Laboratory (SYNL) for Materials Science. Also in 2010, Professor Murr was appointed as the Guest Professor of Harbin Engineering University. Professor Murr was chosen for a Piper Professor of 2010 Award for “Outstanding scholarly achievements and superior teaching at the college level”, a Texas higher education program of the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation. Professor Murr is also a Fellow of ASM International and a licensed professional engineer. He holds 3 patents and has 1 pending.

Research Interest

Nanoparticulate materials, Friction-stir welding and processing,3D Printing/Additive manufacturing of advanced materials, Laser & electron beam melting technologies, 3D materials science, Nanoparticle health effects; especially soots, fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, Materials aspects of ballistic and hypervelocity impact & penetration phenomena.