C. Y. Wen

Deceased May 8, 1982

Chin-Yung Wen was born on the island of Taiwan in 1928. He was granted a BSChE degree in 1951 from the National Taiwan University. To learn more advanced coal technology, Wen always claimed that he “took the slow boat from China” as evidenced by the 28 day trip from Taiwan to San Francisco. He enrolled as a graduate student in the WVU Department of Chemical Engineering in 1951. He received a MSChE in 1953 and his doctorate in 1956. Wen was appointed assistant professor in chemical engineering in 1956, and served as chair of the Department from 1969 to 1981.

Wen had a great desire to do research and teach and believed it could be best done in a university environment. He dedicated more than 30 years of his life and became an internationally recognized leader in the area of fossil energy research, coal conversion technology and computer process simulation. His specific research interests were in fluidization, pneumatic transport, solid-gas reactions and reactor design. His interest in national energy issues gave students the opportunity to conduct fundamental research in environmental, material and energy systems. Wen published more than150 articles in chemical engineering, 80 of which dealt directly with energy and energy-related areas. Works receiving international acclaim are: the Wen and Yu equation for minimum fluidization velocity, the bubble assemblage model and the zone-reaction model.

Wen presented numerous seminars, workshops and symposia throughout the U.S. With his international reputation, he was often asked to give keynote addresses, workshops or opening presentations at conferences in such countries as England, Germany, China, Australia and Japan. West Virginia University acknowledged his research and teaching efforts in 1989 by naming him Claude Worthington Benedum Professor. The C.Y. Wen Memorial Library and Laboratory in the Fluidization Center commemorates his memory and research achievements. Wen was not all business; he enjoyed participating in a round of golf, a basketball game or a party. As a teacher, he was demanding of his students, tolerant of their faults and always listened to their ideas. He encouraged them, recognized their achievements, and maintained contact with them long after they had graduated. Today, Wen’s students are scattered all over the world and continue to carry on his work.