The College of Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) recently inducted The Dow Chemical Company's Dr. Alan Nelson into the UMD Academy of Science and Engineering.

Nelson serves as director of Research & Development for Dow's Performance Monomers business, which has the most robust monomer portfolio in the world and is one of the largest producers of acrylic and specialty monomers.

He is a 1997 Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering graduate from UMD.  He received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering in 2001 from Michigan Technological University and completed the Clean Energy Ventures Program from MIT Sloan School of Executive Education in 2011.

An induction to the academy is considered the highest honor of the Swenson College of Science and Engineering at UMD. The college launched the program in 2002 to give public recognition to distinguished alumni who have brought distinction to themselves through their participation, commitment, and leadership in their chosen profession.

While the academy honors those who work in various scientific disciplines, Nelson is inducted specifically for his achievements in the field of chemical engineering.

Prior to his current role leading R&D for Performance Monomers, Nelson was R&D director for Dow Energy Materials, launching Dow's lithium ion battery materials business. He was also R&D director for Engineering Sciences in Corporate Research and Development, responsible for Dow's global R&D capabilities in process engineering.  Prior to joining Dow, Nelson had a career in academia as an associate professor and associate department chair in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at University of Alberta.

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