2022 Winthrop Sears Medal Awardee
The Chemists’ Club’s 2022 Winthrop Sears Medal was awarded to Dr. Robert L. Zeller III, Vice President of Technology at Oxy Low Carbon Ventures, a subsidiary of Occidental (Oxy), at its Egg Nog Gala ceremony on Monday, December 12, 2022 at the historic Players Club, NY.
The prestigious honor recognizes exceptional innovation and entrepreneurship in the sciences field. To select the winner, the 124-year-old Chemists' Club seeks an innovative development that has far reaching commercial success.
Dr. Zeller and the team at Oxy Low Carbon Ventures are advancing cutting-edge, low carbon technologies and business solutions that reduce emissions. This includes Direct Air Capture, a technology that captures atmospheric carbon dioxide and safely and securely sequesters it in geologic formations deep underground or uses it to produce low carbon products. Dr. Zeller manages the organization’s ventures with early-stage clean energy companies to develop and commercialize technologies and approaches that help enable net-zero solutions.
Dr. Zeller’s 30 plus years of experience in research and development, project engineering, manufacturing and corporate leadership has advanced numerous innovations including a key intermediate for the production of next-generation climate-friendly HFO refrigerants. He holds nearly 20 U.S. patents and has been published in scientific journals.
I’m extremely honored and humbled to receive this recognition, which was made possible by the contributions of many, including the entire Oxy Low Carbon Ventures team,” said Dr. Robert Zeller, Vice President of Technology at Oxy Low Carbon Ventures. “Innovation in the energy industry is required to develop practical solutions that enable industrial scale decarbonization and make an impact on the climate challenge. I’m excited about how advances in chemical engineering and the sciences are transforming how carbon capture, utilization and storage technologies are accelerating our path to a lower carbon future.”
“His selection is extremely well deserved,” said Dr. Roland Stefandl, President of The Chemist’ Club. “Since becoming Vice President of Technology at Oxy Low Carbon Ventures in July 2018, Dr. Zeller has advanced a leading-edge technology platform and developed business solutions for an emerging industry that will reduce carbon emissions. These accomplishments highlight how chemistry and the sciences continually innovate to make a better planet.”
Rob Zeller joins a select group of distinguished great innovators and entrepreneurs: William Wulfsohn (Ashland Global Holdings), Heinz Haller (Dow Chemical), Gorge Corbin (Solvay), John Panichella (Solenis), Mario Nappa (Chemours), Scott Power (DuPont), and Jon M. Huntsman (Huntsman Chemical Corporation).
