Dr. Donald R. Paul is a preeminent scholar and leader in the field of polymer science and engineering with over five decades of distinguished academic service. He currently holds the prestigious Ernest Cockrell Senior Chair in Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, where he also serves as Professor of Chemical Engineering and Director of the Texas Materials Institute. His academic journey began with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University in 1961, followed by both Master of Science and Doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1963 and 1965, respectively. After early career positions at Chemstrand Research Center and E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, he joined the University of Texas faculty in 1967, rapidly ascending through academic ranks to assume leadership roles including department chair from 1977 to 1985.
Dr. Paul has pioneered groundbreaking research in polymer science that has fundamentally shaped modern understanding of polymeric materials and their applications. His extensive scholarly output comprises over 700 peer-reviewed publications with more than 50,000 citations, establishing him as one of the most influential scientists in materials research worldwide. His seminal work on polymer blends, membranes for separations, drug delivery systems, and packaging materials has provided essential theoretical frameworks for understanding polymer-polymer interactions, phase morphology, and structure-property relationships. Dr. Paul's research on diffusion in polymers has yielded critical insights for designing advanced membranes that enable precise control of molecular transport across diverse applications from industrial separations to medical therapies.
Beyond his direct research contributions, Dr. Paul has profoundly shaped the global polymer science community through extensive editorial leadership and institutional development. He founded the Texas Materials Institute at UT Austin and served as its Director while establishing the institution as a premier center for materials research and education. As Editor of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research for over three decades and through service on thirteen editorial boards, he has guided the publication standards for the chemical engineering literature. Dr. Paul's enduring influence continues through his mentorship of generations of scientists and engineers, his ongoing research in polymer nanocomposites and multilayered systems, and his commitment to advancing the science of polymeric materials for next-generation technological applications.
