Sibani Lisa Biswal, chair of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the William M. McCardell Professor in Chemical Engineering at Rice University’s George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing, has been named a Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), the leading professional society of chemical engineers with more than 60,000 members from over 110 countries.
Established in 1969, this is the highest grade of membership awarded to a select few in recognition of their significant professional accomplishments and contributions to the engineering profession. Biswal was conferred this honor at the AIChE Annual Meeting in Boston in November.
“I’m thrilled to welcome Lisa as an AIChE Fellow,” said Patsy Chappelear, the first female to be elected as an AIChE Fellow in the 1980s, the first woman to receive the Outstanding Engineering Alumni Award from the Rice Engineering Alumni, and the first woman to be honored by the Natural Gas Supply Men's Association for her service to the industry. “I’m glad AIChE continues its legacy of recognizing and honoring exceptional women like Lisa whose scientific contributions and leadership are actively shaping the field of chemical engineering and will have a lasting positive impact.”
An internationally recognized leader in the chemical and physical behaviors of complex fluids, including colloids, polymers, surfactants, and foams, Biswal has made pioneering contributions to soft matter engineering. Her research on magnetic colloidal assemblies—superparamagnetic particles that organize into various structures under external magnetic fields—has deepened fundamental understanding of field-driven assembly, mechanics, and transport at the microscale.
Beyond fundamental discoveries, Biswal’s research bridges soft matter with energy and sustainability challenges. Her group has developed soft matter-based sensors, composite silicon electrodes for lithium-ion batteries, and microfluidic platforms that elucidate the mechanisms governing multiphase flow in porous media, informing cleaner and more efficient oil and gas recovery strategies. She has authored over 130 peer-reviewed scientific publications and advised more than 30 doctoral students.
Biswal has received several prestigious national awards for her scientific achievements, including the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award, a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, and election as a Fellow of the American Physical Society. She has also received several teaching awards at Rice, including the Provost’s Award for Outstanding Doctoral Advising, George R. Brown Award for Superior Teaching, Graduate Student Association Faculty Teaching and Mentoring Award, and the Chemical Engineering Alumni Professional Progress Award—a testament to her deep commitment to teaching and mentoring the next generation of chemical engineers.
In the past four years, Biswal also contributed broadly to the advancement of the engineering profession with her leadership as Senior Associate Dean of Rice University’s George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing.
“I’m humbled to be elected an AIChE Fellow,” said Biswal. “It is especially meaningful to receive this honor full circle at Rice, where Patsy—our first female AIChE Fellow—helped pave the way. I am grateful to be recognized by remarkable peers from around the globe and by pioneers on whose shoulders we stand. I’m thankful to my colleagues and collaborators for their support and shared curiosity. I am also deeply grateful to the students and trainees whose hard work, dedication, and creativity have and continue to propel my research forward.”