Richard Schrock, a chemist renowned for his pioneering work in organometallic chemistry, has been named the recipient of the 2017–2018 James R. Killian Jr. Faculty Achievement Award.
Schrock’s accomplishments include the development of a reaction known as olefin metathesis, now used for the efficient and more environmentally friendly production of important pharmaceuticals, fuels, and other products. For that work, he was awarded the 2005 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Full coverage at MIT News; also, see the MIT Infinite History Project for a 2011 oral history video interview with Professor Schrock.