Chemistry alumnus presents department and college lectures

Chemistry alumnus Patrick Gruber, Ph.D., will present a Bayer Lecture in Sustainability and Special Gassman Lectureship in Chemistry seminar, Wednesday, September 28, and a College of Science & Engineering Public Lecture, Thursday, September 29.

His Department of Chemistry lecture, The Optimal Approach to Renewable Chemicals and Fuels: Combining Chemistry and Synthetic Biology, is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Wednesday, September 28, in 331 Smith Hall. A reception follows in 117/119 Smith Hall.

Gruber also will present a College of Science & Engineering Public Lecture: Cleaner, Greener, and Cheaper. Getting Off that Barrel of Oil: A Hopeful World View at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 29, at the Tate Laboratory of Physics. The lecture is free and open to the public; however, you must register. Go to http://z.umn.edu/4dl.

Gruber earned his doctorate in chemistry from the University of Minnesota. He is chief executive officer of Gevo, a leading renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels company. He is an award-winning scientist and a leader in the field of industrial biotechnology, including its applications to biological engineering, environmental science, biorefining, and biobased products. He is credited with inventing a commercially viable process for producing polylactic acid—a biodegradable plastic made from corn.