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Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Richard Gross, Ph.D., Constellation Chair of Biocatalysis and Metabolic Engineering, has been selected as a member of the 2024 class of fellows of the American Chemical Society (ACS). The ACS Fellows Program honors members of the ACS “for their outstanding achievements in and contributions to the science and the profession and for their equally exemplary service to the Society.” Gross is one of 37 members this year with the distinction.

The American Chemical Society (ACS) has recognized biocatalysis expert Richard Gross with the 2019 ACS Award for Affordable Green Chemistry, bestowed for outstanding scientific discoveries or chemistries that lay the foundation for cost-competitive environmentally friendly products or manufacturing processes that are less expensive than existing alternatives.

Building on what nature has provided, researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have improved the efficiency of a leaf and branch compost cutinase that  breaks down polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the plastic used in clear and colored plastic water bottles and many other products.