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About David C. Van Aken

Dr. David Van Aken has 30 years’ experience teaching metallurgical engineering students and held the title of Curators’ Teaching Professor, which is the highest title that the University of Missouri System bestows upon a faculty member. Dr. Van Aken has been the recipient of 14 awards for teaching excellence, 11 departmental faculty excellence awards, and 4 Missouri S&T faculty excellence awards.

After graduating with a B.S. in metallurgical engineering from University of Illinois, he began an engineering career in 1978 at Caterpillar, Inc., as a materials engineer.  He returned to the University of Illinois for his Ph.D. studies in 1982 and began his academic career at the University of Michigan. He joined the Missouri S&T faculty in 1993. Dr. Van Aken is a licensed Professional Engineer in the states of Missouri and Illinois and he serves on the International Metallographic Education Committee.

Dr. Van Aken has authored or co-authored more than 170 technical articles, received 3 patents, and is co-author with Professor Bill Hosford of the book Reporting Results: a practical guide for engineers and scientists.  His research interests include the physical metallurgy of ferrous alloys, experimental and theoretical aspects of phase transformations, and the mechanical behavior of structural materials.

Dr. Van Aken’s work on 3rd generation advanced high strength steel began with the first NSF/DOE sponsored program on the subject. His students’ work in new advanced high strength steel has been recognized with the 2015 AIST Gilbert R. Speich award and the 2016 AIST Hunt-Kelly Outstanding Paper Award for the 2014 AIST conference paper Developing a 3rd Generation Advanced High Strength Steel with Two-Stage TRIP Behavior. In addition, his research team has received the 2016 AIME Champion H. Mathewson Medal Award for the paper “An Atom Probe Study of κ-carbide Precipitation and the Effect of Silicon Addition.” In addition, his students’ work in the cast metals field have been recognized with 8 AFS best paper awards.

Positions

Present Professor Emeritus, Missouri University of Science and Technology ‐ Materials Science and Engineering
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January 2009 Curators' Distinguished Teaching Professor, Missouri University of Science and Technology ‐ Materials Science and Engineering
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August 2001 - December 2008 Professor of Metallurgical Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology ‐ Materials Science and Engineering
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August 1993 - July 2001 Associate Professor of Metallurgical Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology ‐ Materials Science and Engineering
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September 1986 - July 1993 Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor ‐ Materials Science and Engineering
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July 1978 - June 1982 Materials/Research Engineer, Caterpillar Tractor Co.
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Advisory/Research Board member, Missouri University of Science and Technology ‐ Kent D. Peaslee Steel Manufacturing Research Center
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Disciplines

Research Interests

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Honors and Awards

  • Missouri S&T awards for teaching excellence (14)
  • Materials Science and Engineering departmental faculty excellence awards (11)
  • Missouri S&T faculty excellence awards (4)

Education

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1986 Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering, University of Illinois
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1978 B.S. in Metallurgical Engineering, University of Illinois
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Links

Contact Information

Materials Science and Engineering
Missouri University of Science and Technology
272 McNutt Hall
Rolla, MO 65409-0340

Phone:(573) 341-4717
Fax:(573) 341-6934

Email:

Research Works (118)