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 Princeton,
NJ (May
27, 2004) --
Dr. Ludwig Rebenfeld passed away on May 26, 2004 at the age
of 76; he was a world-renowned leader and expert in fiber
structure and properties who had earned a B.S. in Chemistry
from the University of Lowell in 1951 and a Ph.D, also in
Chemistry, from Princeton University in 1955.
It was
during his time as a graduate student at Princeton University
that Dr. Rebenfeld began his more than 50 year career at TRI,
first as a Research Fellow (1951-1954), and later moving up
to Senior Scientist (1955-1959), Associate Research Director
(1960-1965), Vice President of Education and Research (1966-1970),
and then President and Director (1971-1993) Dr. Rebenfeld
was also Editor of Textile Research Journal, a position he
continued up to his death.
Dr. Rebenfeld
also held academic positions as Assistant Instructor in the
Department of Chemistry at the University of Lowell (1949-1951)
and as a Visiting Lecturer with rank of Professor in the Department
of Chemical Engineering at Princeton University (1964-2002).
It was through this position that Dr. Rebenfeld served as
an academic advisor to dozens of Ph.D. candidates.
He was
active as a leader in a number of professional organizations,
including as Secretary-Treasurer of the Fiber Society (1962-1984),
President of the National Council of Textile Education (1969-1971),
Life Trustee and Chairman of the Board (1974-1979) of the
Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science (now Philadelphia
University), Chairman of the Advisory Board on Military Personnel
Supplies and member of the Board on Army Science and Technology
of the National Research Council (1980-1982), President of
the Association of Princeton Graduate Alumni (1981-1983),
and Vice President of the Textile Institute in England.
Dr. Rebenfeld
was also a member of a many professional societies such as
the American Chemical Society, the Fiber Society, the American
Association of Textile Chemists & Colorists, the Association
of Research Directors, the American Association for the Advancement
of Science, the Society of the Sigma Xi, the Society of Plastics
Engineers, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and
the Directors of Industrial Research.
For his
work, Dr. Rebenfeld won many awards and honors during his
career. In 1968 he won the Fiber Society Award for Distinguished
Achievement in Basic or Applied Fiber Science, followed by
the Harold DeWitt Smith Medal from ASTM (1974), the Institute
Medal from the Textile Institute in England (1978), the K.L.
Hertel Award from the University of Tennessee (1984), the
Olney Medal Award from AATCC (1987), and the University of
Lowell Distinguished Alumni Award (1990). He also received
an honorary Doctorate of Textile Science from Philadelphia
College of Textiles & Sciences in 1980.
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