Page 15 - CEMS Newsletter Fall 2023

ALUMNI NEWS
CEMS alumni win awards
Carba wins 2023 MN Cup Grand Prize
Carba co-founders, CEMS alumnus Andrew Jones (left) and Professor Paul Dauenhauer at the MN Cup finale event. Photo credit: Linda Hofflander, Carba.
A Minnesota-based startup company, Carba, co-founded by Dr. Andrew Jones (ChE, Chem ’09) and CEMS Professor Paul Dauenhauer (PhD ChE ’08), was recently awarded the $50,000 Grand Prize at the 2023 MN Cup. The MN Cup is a statewide startup competition that allows entrepreneurs to creatively address a wide range of societal challenges - including mobility, environment, public safety, education, health care and robotics. The annual competition connects emerging entrepreneurs with education, mentorship and support to launch and accelerate the development of their new ventures.
The pool of applicants in the 2023 MN Cup was the largest and most diverse in the 19-year history of the competition. Carba was competing against eight other MN Cup Division winners for the top prize. Carba reached the finale by winning the “energy, cleantech, and water” division. As a Division winner, Carba claimed a $25,000 prize.
Using the power of photosynthesis, evolution, and reactor engineering, Carba’s scientists and engineers have discovered and developed a process that can seamlessly scale to reach climate goals, permanently. They use plants to pull carbon dioxide out of the air and convert their waste to a recalcitrant solid carbon. Then, they sequester the carbon underground to stabilize it for thousands (possibly millions) of years.
CEMS alumni inducted to 3M Carlton Society
CEMS alumni Brad Craig (left) and Mark Ellis (center) were recently inducted to the 3M Carlton Society. Peggy Sheridan (right) was also an inducted this year. Photo credit: John McLean, McLean Photography.
Brad Craig (PhD MSE ’97), Mark Ellis (ChE, Math ’82, PhD ChE ’90) and Peggy Sheridan were recently honored as the 2023 inductees to the 3M Carlton Society for their exemplary innovation, customer-focused mindsets, and generous mentorship.
The Carlton Society was founded 60 years ago as 3M’s highest recognition of lifetime achievement for 3M scientists and engineers. Inductees demonstrate the highest standards of originality, dedication and integrity in technical fields and encourage younger workers in technical efforts. These 2023 inductees bring the total Carlton Society membership to just 203 in 3M’s 120-year history. Today, Carlton Society members are known for creating technologies or products that have changed the world, such as pressure-sensitive tapes, repositionable notes, and retroreflective sign materials.
The 3M Carlton Society is named for Richard P. Carlton, 3M’s fifth president, who became the company’s first technical employee with a degree from an accredited college in 1921.
More about the 3M Carlton Society and its history can be found here: https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/ about-3m/research-development/carlton-society/
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