Heat Mass Transfer (2011) 47:867–868
DOI 10.1007/s00231-011-0842-4

LAUDATIO

Professor em. Dr.-Ing. Dr.-Ing. E. h. mult. Franz Mayinger
on his 80th birthday
Andrea Luke • Dieter Mewes

Received: 20 June 2011 / Accepted: 20 June 2011 / Published online: 1 July 2011
Ó Springer-Verlag 2011

Professor Mayinger will celebrate his 80th birthday on 2ndSeptember. He is the former Editor in Chief of this journaland since 1999 he still serves as Honorary Editor giving
advices to the editorial staff and to many authors. He is oneof the leading authorities in the fields of thermodynamics,
heat and mass transfer, multiphase flow, combustion as
well as in energy engineering and in particular in nuclear
reactor engineering. With his outstanding contributions tothis broad field of basic engineering subjects which he first
named thermo-fluid dynamics, he still gains much respect
and admiration from colleagues all over the world. His
outstanding contributions are innovative developments of
new optical and many different nonintrusive measurement
methods for single and multi-phase flows. WithA. Luke
Institut für Technische Thermodynamik,
Universität Kassel, Kassel, Germany
D. Mewes (&)
Leibniz Universität Hannover,Verfahrenstechnik, Hannover, Germany
e-mail: mewes@imp.uni-hannover.deapplications of real time and two-wave interferometry, hecontributed to heat and mass transfer for boiling as well as
combustion phenomena. His experimental results fromapplying optical tomography and Raman-spectrographic
methods for the analysis of ignition and turbulent burning
processes in flames and diesel engines mark the basic
knowledge for the design of a new generation of automobiles.
Professor Mayinger was born in Augsburg. He graduated from the Technical University of Munich as DiplomIngenieur in Mechanical Engineering in 1955. Afterwards
he became a scientific assistant to the Institute of Thermodynamics which was chaired at that time by Prof. Ernst
Schmidt. In 1961 he received his degree as DoktorIngenieur and left the University in order to take amanagement position in the research department of theMaschinenfabrik Augsburg Nurnberg MAN. There he got
first involved into the rapidly expanding nuclear industry.
In 1969 he took the call for the full professorship at theLeibniz University of Hannover. There partly in successionof Prof. Hausen, he built up the Institute of Process
Engineering (Verfahrenstechnik). In 1981 after declining
several calls to highly ranked management positions inindustry and to the Universities of Stuttgart and Karlsruhe,
he returned to the TU Munich. There he worked until 1999
as full professor and director of the Institute of Thermodynamics, which was previously held by W. Nusselt,
E. Schmidt and U. Grigull.
Although officially retired, since 1999 he still runs abusy schedule filled with many activities ranging from theadvice to government in educational issues as well as inconceptual planning for energy consumption and energy
resources. He is also active in evaluating national andinternational research strategies and programs. At theUniversity of Bayreuth he served as Dean establishing the123868

newly founded Faculty of Applied Natural Sciences andlater on as the Chairman of the Advisory Board (Hochschulrat). In 2009 he became Honorary Member of the Senateof the University of Bayreuth.
While he was still active he contributed his knowledge
and scientific experience to many national and international
academic and governmental associations and committees.
Only a few activities can be mentioned here: he served as amember of the Nuclear Reactor Safety Commission at theFederal Department of Environment in 1971/1992 which
he chaired in 1983/1984 and 1990, later he chaired theCommission of Accidents and Failures at the same Federal
Department 1992/1996. He also served as a member of theSenate of the German Science Foundation (DFG) in
1977/1981 and the Advisory Board for Science of theFederal Government of Germany in 1991/1997. He was thefounder of the Bavarian Elite Academy and served as its
first Scientific Chairman in 1998/2002. In recognition ofthese outstanding efforts prestigious awards were grantedto him: he holds the first class ranked Order of Merit of theFederal Republic of Germany and the Bavarian ServiceCross.
Professor Mayinger has given scientific and educational
guidance to more than 120 young researchers who worked
with him on their PhD-thesis in Hannover and Munich. He
is author or co-author of more than 350 papers in journals,
as monographs and conference proceedings; among themseven books on thermodynamics, multiphase flow andoptical measurement techniques. In recognition of his123

Heat Mass Transfer (2011) 47:867–868

outstanding contributions to the field of thermal sciences
and thermofluiddynamics many prestigious awards weregranted to him. In 1991 the Max Jacob Award wasbestowed on him, Honorary Doctorates he received in 1994
from the University of Hannover and in 2006 from theUniversity of Bayreuth. The ‘‘Pro Meritis’’ Medal of theBavarian Government was awarded to him in 1998 and2 years later in 2000 the Ernest-Solvay Price honoured his
outstanding contributions to the field of process engineering. He is an elected member of the Bavarian Academy ofSciences and he holds the Maximilian Medal which is thehighest acknowledgement from the state of Bavaria.
It is far beyond this laudation to mention all the facets
and highlights of Prof. Mayinger‘s life in science andindustrial related research and developments. All whoknow him well are impressed by his competent advices, hisleadership and compromising suggestions for complicatedstrategic decisions. All friends and colleagues the international community of this journal and especially his scholars
and friends would like to congratulate him on the occasionof his 80th birthday. They all wish many more active years
in good health and happiness with his wife Franziska, hischildren and grandchildren. They all know him not only as
an outstanding creative scientist and political advisor
whose roots based in experimental thermo-fluid dynamics
have grown within more than 50 years of active experience
into all kinds of industrial and technology but also as a
sympathetic, humorous and helpful expert, teacher andcolleague who many of us know as a very good friend.