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{{short description|Indian-American chemical engineer, author and academic (1927–2012)}}
{{Infobox person
| name = L. K. Doraiswamy
| image =
| imagesize =
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1927|05|13}}
| birth_place = [[Bengaluru]], India
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2012|06|02|1927|05|13}}
| death_place = [[Danville, Pennsylvania]], USA
| restingplace =
| restingplacecoordinates =
| othername =
| occupation = Chemical engineer<br>Scientist<br>Writer
| yearsactive = 1948–2012
| known for = Organic synthesis engineering
| spouse = Rajalakshmi
| domesticpartner =
| children =
| parents = Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy<br>Kamala
| website =
| awards = {{ublist|1983 [[Indian National Science Academy|INSA]] Syed Hussain Zaheer Medal | 1986 [[Om Prakash Bhasin Award]] | 1987 Jawaharlal Nehru Lifetime Achievement Award | 1988 CE Personal Achievement Award | 1990 [[Padma Bhushan]] | 1990 [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers|AICE]] [[Richard H. Wilhelm]] Award | 2001 [[Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers|IIChE]] Padma Vibhushan Prof. M. M. Sharma Medal | 2003 [[Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers|IIChE]] Dr. B. P. Godrej Life Time Achievement Award | 2004 [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers|AICE]] [[William Hultz Walker#AIChE William H. Walker Award|William H. Walker Award]] | Homi Bhabha Medal }}
}}
'''Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy Doraiswamy''' (1927–2012) was an Indian-American<ref name="Padma Awards"/> chemical engineer, author and academic, known for his contributions in developing ''Organic synthesis engineering'' as a modern science discipline.<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science">{{cite web | url=http://www.neglectedscience.com/alphabetical-list/d/laxmangudi-krishnamurthy-doraiswamy | title=Doraiswamy on Neglected Science | publisher=Neglected Science | date=2016 | accessdate=May 12, 2016}}</ref> ''Chemical Engineering'' journal of [[McGraw Hill]] listed him among the ''10 most distinguished chemical engineers in the world'' in 1988.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy">{{cite journal | title=Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy | author=Terry S. King | journal=Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. | year=1998 | volume=37 |issue = 6| pages=2069–2071| doi=10.1021/ie980023a | doi-access=free }}</ref> He was the author of nine texts in chemical engineering, including ''Organic Synthesis Engineering'', a 2001 publication which is known to have introduced the topic as a definitive scientific stream<ref name="Organic Synthesis Engineering">{{cite book | title=Organic Synthesis Engineering | publisher=Oxford University Press | author=L. K. Doraiswamy | year=2001 | pages=936 | isbn=978-0195096897}}</ref> and ''Heterogeneous reactions: Analysis, Examples, and Reactor Design'',<ref name="DoraiswamySharma1984">{{cite book|author1=Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy Doraiswamy|author2=Man Mohan Sharma|title=Heterogeneous reactions: analysis, examples, and reactor design|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UzhHAQAAIAAJ|year=1984|publisher=Wiley|isbn=978-0-471-05368-2}}</ref> reportedly the first comprehensive text in chemical engineering.<ref name="Deceased Fellow">{{cite web | url=http://www.insaindia.org.in/deceaseddetail.php?id=N770222 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815211324/http://www.insaindia.org.in/deceaseddetail.php?id=N770222 | url-status=usurped | archive-date=August 15, 2016 | title=Deceased Fellow | publisher=Indian National Science Academy | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref>

He was a recipient of honorary doctorate degrees from [[University of Salford]], and [[University of Wisconsin]], besides several other awards and honors which included [[Om Prakash Bhasin Award]], [[Richard H. Wilhelm]] Award, [[William Hultz Walker#AIChE William H. Walker Award|William H. Walker Award]] and Homi Bhabha Medal. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the [[Padma Bhushan]], in 1990, for his contributions to science.<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web|url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |title=Padma Awards |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India |date=2016 |accessdate=January 3, 2016 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |archivedate=October 15, 2015 }}</ref>

==Early life==
Laxmangudi Doraiswamy, born in [[Karnataka]], did his schooling at [[Centenary Methodist Church, Hyderabad#Institutions|Methodist Boys High School]], [[Hyderabad]] before graduating in chemistry (BSc) from [[Nizam College]], then under the [[University of Madras]].<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> Doraiswamy's English skills had prompted his school principal to advise him to take up literature as a career.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> He also wrote poetry but none of his poems were published.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy (1927–2012) on Current Science" /> Choosing chemical engineering for his further education, he secured the degree of BS, in 1946,<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy (1927–2012) on Current Science">{{cite web | url=http://www.currentscience.ac.in/Volumes/103/05/0571.pdf | title=L. K. Doraiswamy (1927–2012) on Current Science | publisher=Current Science | date=10 September 2012 | accessdate=May 12, 2016 | author=B. D. Kulkarni | pages=571–572}}</ref> from [[Alagappa College of Technology]], one of the only two Indian institutions offering chemical engineering for advanced studies at that time.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University">{{cite journal | url=http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/AA/00/00/03/83/00155/AA00000383_00155_178.pdf | title=L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University | author1=Thomas D. Wheelrock | author2=Peter J. Reilly | journal=CHE Educator | year=2002 | volume=Summer | pages=178–181 | access-date=2016-05-15 | archive-date=2016-06-11 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611132557/http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/AA/00/00/03/83/00155/AA00000383_00155_178.pdf | url-status=dead }}</ref> His performance in the engineering examinations earned him a scholarship from the Government of Andhra Pradesh which helped him to pursue further studies at the [[University of Wisconsin]] and the twenty one-year old reached Wisconsin when the winter of 1948 was its peak in December.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> It was during his stay at the University of Wisconsin, he had the opportunity to meet Olaf Andreas Hougen, a known academic in chemistry and a later-day professor emeritus of Wisconsin University,<ref name="In memory of Olaf Hougen">{{cite journal | title=In memory of Olaf Hougen | author=Joseph O. Hirschfelder | journal=Ind. Eng. Chem. Fundamen. | year=1986 | volume=25 | issue=4 | pages=461 | doi=10.1021/i100024a002}}</ref> After completing his master's degree in 1950, he continued at the university to secure his doctoral degree in chemical engineering in 1952 for which Hougen reportedly assisted him in getting permission from the [[Nizam of Hyderabad|Nizam government of Hyderabad]], who wanted Doraiswamy to return to India to start serving the government.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> His doctoral thesis was on ''semichemical pulping'', prepared under the supervision of Hougen and John McGovern of the [[Forest Products Laboratory]], [[US Department of Agriculture]].<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" />

== Academic and professional career ==
[[File:Ncl-pune.jpg|thumb|235px|[[National Chemical Laboratory]], Pune]]

Doraiswamy's career started at R. L. Carlisle Chemical and Manufacturing Company of [[Brooklyn]] for a short stint of two years and he left US for India in 1954 to take up the position of a scientist at the [[National Chemical Laboratory]] (NCL), Pune where he continued his researches in chemical engineering.<ref name="NCL Previous Directors">{{cite web | url=http://www.ncl-india.org/files/AboutNCL/Organization/PreviousDirectors.aspx?menuid=ql8&childmenustripid=divSubQL8 | title=NCL Previous Directors | publisher=National Chemical Laboratory | date=2016 | accessdate=May 12, 2016}}</ref> His tenure at NCL lasted a quarter of a century, rising in ranks as a senior scientist, assistant director (1961), deputy director (1966) and superannuating in 1989, as the first non-chemist to head the organization, after holding the post of the director since 1978.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> In between, he was reportedly offered the post of the director general of the [[Council of Scientific and Industrial Research]], the largest research and development (R&D) organisation in India, controlling 38 national laboratories, 39 outreach centres, 3 Innovation Complexes and 5 units,<ref name="Welcome to the World of CSIR">{{cite web | url=http://www.csir.res.in/Home.aspx?MenuId=2 | title=Welcome to the World of CSIR | publisher=Council of Scientific and Industrial Research | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702134459/http://www.csir.res.in/Home.aspx?MenuId=2 | archivedate=July 2, 2016 }}</ref> but he declined the offer to stay with NCL.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> It was at this time, NCL entered into a bilateral co-operation agreement with the department of chemical and biological engineering of the [[Iowa State University]] and this led to his visit to Iowa, where he met Peter Reilly, the then ''Anson Marston Distinguished Professor'' of the university.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy, famed Anson Marston distinguished professor emeritus, passes away">{{cite web | url=https://news.engineering.iastate.edu/2012/06/14/l-k-doraiswamy-famed-anson-marston-distinguished-professor-emeritus-passes-away/ | title=L. K. Doraiswamy, famed Anson Marston distinguished professor emeritus, passes away | publisher=Iowa State University | date=14 June 2012 | accessdate=May 12, 2016}}</ref> It is reported that Reilly persuaded Doraiswamy to join the university as the ''Glenn Murphy Visiting Professor of Engineering'' which he agreed to and, later, joined the institution as a permanent faculty in 1992 as the ''Herbert Stiles Professor''. During his stay in Iowa, he was involved in various visiting lectures and symposia and became the ''Anson Marston Distinguished Professor'', the highest academic honour for engineering academics at the university. He continued his association with the university even after his retirement in 2001 till his death 2012.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy, famed Anson Marston distinguished professor emeritus, passes away" />

== Legacy ==

=== Academic contributions ===
In 2001, Doraiswamy published a seminal work, ''Organic Synthesis Engineering'', which defined the subject and introduced it as an independent science discipline.<ref name="Organic Synthesis Engineering - Review">{{cite web | url=https://app.knovel.com/web/toc.v/cid:kpOSE00001/viewerType:toc/root_slug:organic-synthesis-engineering | title=Organic Synthesis Engineering - Review | publisher=Knovel | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref> The book emphasized on ''catalysis and the role of process intensification in enhancing overall productivity'' and explained the ''applications of catalysis in organic synthesis''.<ref name="Organic Synthesis Engineering - Review" /> This is reported to be a pioneering attempt in chemical reactions engineering<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science" /> and assisted in conjoining the disciplines of chemical and chemical engineering processes.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> Another of his work, ''Heterogeneous Reactions: Analysis, Examples, and Reactor Design'', co-authored by M. M. Sharma,<ref name="DoraiswamySharma1984" /> is considered as the first comprehensive text on chemical engineering.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" /> At NCL as well as at Iowa State University, he mentored 45 research scholars in their post graduate and doctoral studies.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> He was a visiting professor at six universities and sat at the editorial boards of many refereed journals<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> like ''Indian Chemical Engineer'', the official journal of the Journal of the [[Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers]] (IIChE).<ref name="Indian Chemical Engineer">{{cite web | url=http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=editorialBoard&journalCode=tice20#.Vzck-JF97IU | title=Indian Chemical Engineer | publisher=Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref> It was during his tenure as the head of NCL, a Centre of Excellence in Catalysis was established which eventually returned several scientific contributions.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" /> He headed the working group on Catalysis of the ''Indo-Russian Science and Technology Cooperation'' and was instrumental in NCL starting collaborative ventures with [[Salford University]], UK and with the [[University of Erlangen]], Germany.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" />

=== Scientific contributions ===
Doraiswamy was known to have introduced several innovations in chemical reaction engineering. Gas-solid catalytic and non-catalytic reactions, solid-solid reactions, [[phase-transfer catalysis]] mediated reactions, [[stochastic modelling]], [[fluidization]], adsorption and catalysis and catalytic reactor analysis are some of the areas where his researches reportedly made improvements.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> He launched radical changes in the processing of dimethylaniline, chloromethanes, methylchlorosilanes, ethylenediamine and vitamin B6.<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science" /><ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> He introduced a complete process for methyl, ethyl, butyl and 2-ethylhexylacrylates while the process initiated by him, jointly with G. D. Rihani in 1965 for calculating enthalpy, entropy and the Cp for an ideal gas is known as ''Rihani-Doraiswamy method''.<ref name="HicksChopey2012">{{cite book|author1=Tyler Hicks|author2=Nicholas Chopey|title=Handbook of Chemical Engineering Calculations, Fourth Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PEaYbdg8jnMC|date=10 July 2012|publisher=McGraw Hill Professional|isbn=978-0-07-176804-7}}</ref> ''Verma-Doraiswamy method''<ref name="Estimation of Heats of Formation of Organic Compounds">{{cite journal | title=Estimation of Heats of Formation of Organic Compounds |author1=K. K. Verma |author2=L. K. Doraiswamy | journal=Ind. Eng. Chem. Fundamen. | year=1965 | volume=4 | issue=4 | pages=389–396 | doi=10.1021/i160016a006}}</ref> for the estimation of [[Standard enthalpy of formation]] is another process that bears his name.<ref name="Reaction Equilibrium in the Isomerization of 2,4,4-Trimethyl Pentenes">{{cite journal | url=http://lib.tkk.fi/Diss/2002/isbn9512259052/article5.pdf | title=Reaction Equilibrium in the Isomerization of 2,4,4-Trimethyl Pentenes |author1=Reetta S. Karinen |author2=Mikko S. Lylykangas |author3=A. Outi I. Krause | journal=Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. | year=2001 | volume=40 | issue=4 | pages=1011–1015 | doi=10.1021/ie000526s}}</ref> The invention jointly made with Thomas Wheelock of a calcium based [[sorbent]] for [[coal gas]] [[desulphurization]], introduction of zeolite catalysts, the development of a [[xylene]] [[isomerization]] process and a new methodology for the [[alkylation]] of benzene with alcohols are some of his other contributions.<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science" /> It was at the tissue culture pilot plant established by him where a method of propagation of bamboo by tissue culture was identified for the first time.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" />

=== Publications ===
Doraiswamy, who reportedly had good English language skills,<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> published nine books, five of them original works and four edited books,<ref name="Deceased Fellow" /> as well as over 180 scientific papers published in peer-reviewed national and international journals.<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science" /> These writings are known to have assisted in expanding the canvass of chemical engineering beyond its conventional boundaries by introducing themes such as [[phase transfer catalysis]] and [[Sonochemistry|sonochemical reactions]].<ref name="Deceased Fellow" /><ref name="Sonochemistry: Science and Engineering">{{cite journal | title=Sonochemistry: Science and Engineering |author1=L. H. Thompson |author2=L. K. Doraiswamy | journal=Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. | year=1999 | volume=38 | issue=4 | pages=1215–1249 | doi=10.1021/ie9804172}}</ref> Apart from ''Organic Synthesis Engineering''<ref name="Organic Synthesis Engineering" /> and ''Heterogeneous Reactions: Analysis, Examples, and Reactor Design'',<ref name="DoraiswamySharma1984" /> the other three books published by him are ''The Analysis of Chemically Reacting Systems : A Stochastic Approach'' (1987),<ref name="The analysis of chemically reacting systems : a stochastic approach">{{cite book | title=The analysis of chemically reacting systems : a stochastic approach | publisher=Gordon and Breach Science Publishers |author1=L. K. Doraiswamy |author2=B. D. Kulkarni | year=1987 | pages=462 | isbn=9780677216706|oclc = 15284545}}</ref> ''Excellence in an Overlapping Culture: The Big History of India’s [[National Chemical Laboratory]]'' (2011)<ref name="Excellence in an Overlapping Culture: The Big History of India’s National Chemical Laboratory">{{cite book | title=Excellence in an Overlapping Culture: The Big History of India's National Chemical Laboratory | publisher=Council of Scientific and Industrial Research | author=L. K. Doraiswamy | year=2011 | pages=607 | isbn=9788189643003|oclc = 713835087}}</ref> and ''Chemical Reaction Engineering : Beyond the Fundamentals'' (2014).<ref name="Chemical reaction engineering : beyond the fundamentals">{{cite book | title=Chemical reaction engineering : beyond the fundamentals | publisher=Taylor & Francis |author1=L.K. Doraiswamy |author2=Deniz Uner | year=2014 | pages=522 | isbn=9781439831229|oclc = 457164719}}</ref> The lectures delivered by Doraiswamy in the ''Hougen Lecture Series'' were compiled by the University of Wisconsin and published in 1988 under the title, ''Across Millennia : Some Thoughts on Ancient and Contemporary Science and Engineering''.<ref name="Across millennia : some thoughts on ancient and contemporary science and engineering">{{cite book | title=Across millennia : some thoughts on ancient and contemporary science and engineering | publisher=University of Wisconsin | author=L. K. Doraiswamy | year=1988 | pages=215 | oclc=36545054}}</ref> ''Frontiers in Chemical Reaction Engineering'' (1984),<ref name="Frontiers in chemical reaction engineering">{{cite book | title=Frontiers in chemical reaction engineering (Proceedings of the International Chemical Reaction Engineering Conference, Pune, Jan 1984) | publisher=Wiley | author=L. K. Doraiswamy, R. A. Mashelkar (editors) | year=1984 | isbn=9780852265925|oclc = 10402559}}</ref> ''Transport processes in Fluidized Bed Reactors'' (1987),<ref name="Transport processes in fluidized bed reactors">{{cite book | title=Transport processes in fluidized bed reactors | publisher=Wiley Eastern | author=L. K. Doraiswamy; B. D. Kulkarni (Editors) | year=1987 | pages=347 | isbn=9780852261712|oclc = 35511756}}</ref> ''Recent Advances in the Engineering Analysis of Chemically Reacting Systems'' (1987),<ref name="Recent advances in the engineering analysis of chemically reacting systems">{{cite book | title=Recent advances in the engineering analysis of chemically reacting systems | publisher=J. Wiley | editor=L. K. Doraiswamy | year=1987 | pages=611 | oclc=11972071}}</ref> and ''Transport in Fluidized Particle Systems'' (1989) are the four books edited by him.<ref name="Transport in fluidized particle systems">{{cite book | title=Transport in fluidized particle systems | publisher=Elsevier | author=L.K. Doraiswamy, A.S. Mujumdar (Editors) | year=1989 | pages=546 | isbn=9780444871381|oclc = 18834703}}</ref>

=== Social contributions ===
Doraiswamy was reported to have contributed in bringing order to various departments at NCL and in recruiting talents. As the head of the organization, he introduced the scheme of preferential recruitment of widows of the former NCL employees and established a local school and shopping centre in NCL campus.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" />

== Awards and honors ==
Doraiswamy, an Anson Marston Distinguished Professor of the [[Iowa State University]], was elected as the fellow of the [[Indian Academy of Sciences]] in 1974,<ref name="Fellow Profile">{{cite web | url=http://www.ias.ac.in/describe/fellow/Doraiswamy,_Dr_Lakshmangudi_Krishnamurthy | title=Fellow Profile | publisher=Indian Academy of Sciences | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref> and the [[Indian National Science Academy]] followed suit in 1977.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" /> He was also a fellow of [[The World Academy of Sciences]] (TWAS) (1997) and the [[National Academy of Sciences, India]].<ref name="Deceased Honorary Fellows, Foreign Fellows and Fellows">{{cite web|url=http://www.nasi.org.in/deceased.htm |title=Deceased Honorary Fellows, Foreign Fellows and Fellows |publisher=National Academy of Sciences, India |date=2016 |accessdate=May 14, 2016 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528102550/http://www.nasi.org.in/deceased.htm |archivedate=May 28, 2015 }}</ref> The ''Chemical Engineering'' magazine of [[McGraw-Hill Publishers|McGraw-Hill]] listed him among the ''10 most distinguished chemical engineers in the world'' in 1988.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> He received the degree of Doctor of Science ([[honoris causa]]) from the University of Salford in 1982<ref name="Dr Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy Doraiswamy, recipient of honorary degree">{{cite web | url=http://usir.salford.ac.uk/34479/ | title=Dr Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy Doraiswamy, recipient of honorary degree | publisher=University of Salford | date=2016 | doi=10.1080/10618562.2021.1980212 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref> and the [[University of Wisconsin Madison]] in 1991.<ref name="Doraiswamy on Neglected Science" /> In 2010, the [[National Academy of Engineering]] inducted him as a member.<ref name="NAE Members">{{cite web | url=http://www.nae.edu/MembersSection/Directory20412/31143.aspx?layoutChange=Print,LowGraphics | title=NAE Members | publisher=National Academy of Engineering | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}</ref>

The [[Indian National Science Academy]] awarded him the ''Syed Hussain Zaheer Medal'' in 1983<ref name="The Syed Husain Zaheer Medal">{{cite web | url=http://insaindia.org.in/recipients.php#78 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815141043/http://insaindia.org.in/recipients.php#78 | url-status=usurped | archive-date=August 15, 2016 | title=The Syed Husain Zaheer Medal | publisher=INSA | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016}}</ref> and he was awarded the [[Om Prakash Bhasin Award]] for Science and Technology of the Om Prakash Bhasin Foundation in 1986.<ref name="Engineering Including Energy and Aero Space">{{cite web | url=http://www.opbfawards.com/engineering.html | title=Engineering Including Energy and Aero Space | publisher=Om Praksh Bhasin Foundation | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016}}</ref> He received the Jawaharlal Nehru Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, followed by the Personal Achievement Award of Chemical Engineering magazine in 1988.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> The Government of India included him in the [[Indian honours system|Republic Day Honours]] list for the civilian award of the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 1990,<ref name="Padma Awards" /> the same year as he received the [[Richard H. Wilhelm]] Award of the [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers]].<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> In 2001, he received the Padma Vibhushan Prof. M. M. Sharma Medal of the [[Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers]] (IIChE) <ref name="Padma Vibhushan Prof M M Sharma Medal">{{cite web | url=http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/chemcomspeakers | title=Padma Vibhushan Prof M M Sharma Medal | publisher=Chemcon | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611025542/http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/chemcomspeakers | archivedate=June 11, 2016 }}</ref> and IIChE repeated the honor with Dr. B. P. Godrej Life Time Achievement Award in 2003.<ref name="Dr B P Godrej Life Time Achievement Award">{{cite web | url=http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/lifetimeawards | title=Dr B P Godrej Life Time Achievement Award | publisher=Indian Institute of Chemical Engineering | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611031644/http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/lifetimeawards | archivedate=June 11, 2016 }}</ref> He received another award, the [[William Hultz Walker#AIChE William H. Walker Award|William H. Walker Award]], for Excellence in Contributions to Chemical Engineering Literature from the [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers]] in 2004.<ref name="William H. Walker Award winners">{{cite web | url=http://www.aiche.org/community/awards/william-h-walker-award-excellence-contributions-chemical-engineering-literature | title=William H. Walker Award winners | publisher=American Institute of Chemical Engineers | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016}}</ref> He was also a recipient of the Homi Bhabha Medal.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" />

On his 60th birthday, the [[Indian Academy of Sciences]] published one of their books, re-titled as ''Reactions and Reaction Engineering''<ref name="Sciences1987">{{cite book|author=Indian Academy of Sciences|title=Reactions and reaction engineering|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3sRTAAAAMAAJ|year=1987|publisher=Indian Academy of Sciences}}</ref> in Doraiswamy's honor.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> The [[American Institute of Chemical Engineers]] honored him on his 70th birthday by bringing out a collection of research papers under the name''L.K. Doraiswamy Festschrift''.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /><ref name="L.K. Doraiswamy Festschrift">{{cite journal | url=http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/1097510/l-k-doraiswamy-festschrift | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610060453/http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/articles/1097510/l-k-doraiswamy-festschrift | url-status=dead | archive-date=2016-06-10 | title=L.K. Doraiswamy Festschrift | author=Terry S. King | journal=Chemical Business | date=September 1998 | volume=12 | issue=9 | pages=53}}</ref> The [[Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers]] have instituted an annual oration, ''Padma Bhushan Prof. L. K. Doraiswamy Chemcon Distinguished Speaker Award'', in his honor, running since 2001.<ref name="Padma Bhushan Prof L K Doraiswamy Chemcon Distinguished Speaker Award">{{cite web | url=http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/chemcomspeakers#34 | title=Padma Bhushan Prof L K Doraiswamy Chemcon Distinguished Speaker Award | publisher=Indian Institute of Chemical Engineerng | date=2016 | accessdate=May 15, 2016 | url-status=dead | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611025542/http://www.iiche.org.in/Home/chemcomspeakers#34 | archivedate=June 11, 2016 }}</ref> Two of the institutions he was closely associated with, viz. [[Iowa State University]] and the [[National Chemical Laboratory]], honor Doraiswamy by jointly organizing a US-India lectureship every year.<ref name="Deceased Fellow" />

== Personal life ==
Doraiswamy was born in a [[Brahmin|Brahmin family]] as the only brother of three sisters born to Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy and Kamala in Bengaluru on 13 May 1927.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> Krishnamurthy was the head of [[Geological Survey of India]] at their Hyderabad branch and the young Doraiswamy was brought up in [[Lingasugur]], a small hamlet near [[Hatti Gold Mines]] and home to many archaeological sites, in the south Indian state of [[Karnataka]].<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> He was married to Rajalakshmi, the marriage taking up place in 1952 after his return to India from Wisconsin, and the couple had a son, Deepak, a doctor in chemical engineering and a daughter, Sandhya, an MPhil and CPA holder. Both continue to live in Pennsylvania, Deepak at Landenberg and Sandhya at Danville. Doraiswamy, towards the later days of his life, suffered from heart ailments and underwent a bypass surgery. However, he could not survive for long and died on 2 June 2012, while recuperating from the surgical trauma, survived by his children; his wife had preceded him in death.<ref name="L. K. Doraiswamy of Iowa State University" /> Though the latter part of his life was spent mostly in US, he retained his Indian citizenship till the end.<ref name="Dr. L. K. Doraiswamy" /> [[Kallam Anji Reddy|Dr Kallam Anji Reddy]] the founder of [[Dr. Reddy's Laboratories|Dr Reddy's Laboratories]] obtained his Phd in [[Chemical engineering|Chemical Engineering]] from [[National Chemical Laboratory]] under supervision of Doraiswamy.

== See also ==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[National Chemical Laboratory]]
* [[Nizam College]]
* [[List of Iowa State University people]]
* [[List of University of Wisconsin–Madison people]]
{{div col end}}
{{portal|India|Chemistry}}

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==
* {{cite web | url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00000383/00155/3j | title=L. K. Doraiswamy | publisher=University of Florida - George A. Smathers Libraries | work=Biography | accessdate=May 12, 2016 |author1=Thomas Wheelock |author2=Peter Reilly }}
* {{cite web | url=http://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n82-134686/ | title=Doraiswamy, Laxmangudi Krishnamurthy | publisher=WorldCat Identities | date=2016 | accessdate=May 14, 2016}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book|title=Excellence in an Overlapping Culture: The Big History of India's National Chemical Laboratory|year=2011|publisher=Council of Scientific and Industrial Research|isbn=978-81-89643-00-3}}

{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 1990–99}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doraiswamy, L. K.}}
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in science & engineering]]
[[Category:1927 births]]
[[Category:2012 deaths]]
[[Category:University of Madras alumni]]
[[Category:University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Engineering alumni]]
[[Category:Indian chemical engineers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian inventors]]
[[Category:Iowa State University faculty]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Indian Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy]]
[[Category:Fellows of The World Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:Fellows of the National Academy of Sciences, India]]
[[Category:Scientists from Bengaluru]]
[[Category:Indian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian chemists]]
[[Category:American chemical engineers]]
[[Category:20th-century American science writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American inventors]]
[[Category:20th-century American chemists]]
[[Category:Om Prakash Bhasin Award recipients]]

L. K. Doraiswamy - Revision history

Curi Hospital at 17:46, 7 November 2025