TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Dr. Richard C. Bradt, professor emeritus at The University of Alabama, was recognized for his lifetime achievements in ceramic science and engineering.
The American Ceramic Society selected Bradt for the W. David Kingery Award, which recognizes distinguished, lifelong achievements involving multidisciplinary and global contributions to ceramic technology, science, education and art. The award is open to all people worldwide. It is the highest award of recognition by the American Ceramic Society.
Bradt began his career on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University, and he moved on to the universities of Washington and Nevada. He joined the faculty at The University of Alabama College of Engineering in 1994 as head of the department of metallurgical and materials engineering. In 2003, he was named the Alton N. Scott Professor of Materials Engineering. He retired in 2009, but he has remained an active researcher, speaker and educator.
His research remains focused on the various areas of ceramics and mechanical properties of materials. His specialty is the fracture mechanics of brittle materials, and he is especially known for his work on the fracture of glass. He is an internationally recognized researcher and has received numerous honors and awards for his teaching and research.
Through his research, he has published more than 400 journal papers in the technical areas of ceramics, glass and materials and edited more than 20 proceedings of international meetings. He has advised or co-advised the research of more than 100 graduate students and directed 50 doctoral theses.
In 1998, the University awarded him the John P. Burnum Outstanding Faculty Award, and, in 2000, he received the international Academic Achievement Award from the Ceramic Society of Japan. Bradt was recognized with the Fellow designation from two professional societies, the ASM International and the American Ceramic Society. He is also a Distinguished Life Member of the Unified International Technical Conference on Refractories.
In 1837, The University of Alabama became one of the first five universities in the nation to offer engineering classes. Today, UA’s fully accredited College of Engineering has more than 4,100 students and about 120 faculty. Students in the College have been named USA Today All-USA College Academic Team members, Goldwater, Hollings, Portz and Truman scholars.
Contact
Adam Jones, engineering public relations, 205/348-6444, acjones12@eng.ua.edu