MAE Mourns Loss of Professor Walter Lempert

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The department was deeply saddened by the passing of Walter Lempert on April 11, 2015. 

Lempert was a faculty member in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and co-director of the Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics Laboratory (NETL), a major research laboratory containing state-of-the-art computational and experimental facilities among the most advanced at any U.S. university.

The NETL thrust area is energy, fluid and thermal systems, studying effective fuel use, reduced emissions, improved performance and cost effectiveness – critically important industrial and societal goals. Lempert and his colleagues led research and education focused on analytical, computational and experimental techniques for achieving these goals.

Lempert’s primary research was on the application of atomic and molecular spectroscopy to problems of engineering interest, inherently interdisciplinary, combining such diverse subjects as nonlinear optics, fluid mechanics, plasma physics and energy transfer. He is a notable author of numerous publications, papers and presentations helping to enhance the department’s reputation in energy, fluid and thermal systems.

Lempert left an indelible mark at Ohio State and a legacy of dedicated excellence in education and research.  His cheerful personality, friendliness and warmth among faculty, staff and students will be greatly missed.

Category: Faculty