hf. 1. Hear Mass Transfer.
Printed in Great Britain

Vol. 29, No. 8, pp. 10594061,

1986

0017-9310/86$3.00+0.00
Pergamon Journals Ltd.

Professor Warren M. Rohsenow
On the occasion of his 65th birthday

WARRENMax Rohsenow celebrated his 65th birthday
this year. He was born on February 12, 1921 inChicago, the son of Fred and Selma (Gorss)
Rohsenow. His Gemran grandparents had emigrated
to the United States in the second half of the 19thcentury.
He attended Northwestern University where hereceived his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineeringin 1941. He then entered Yale University where hereceived his M.Eng. degree in 1943 and D.Eng. degreein 1944. At Yale, as Teaching Assistant in MechanicalEngineering, he taught laboratory courses in SteamPower and Automotive En&neering. From 1943 to1944, as Instructor in Mechanical Engineering, hegave classes in The~odynamics
and Heat Power.
From 1944 to 1946 he served as a LTJG in the U.S.
Navy and was assigned to the Gas Turbine Division,U.S. Navy Engineering
Experiment
Station inAnnapolis, Maryland. He was also consultant tothe National Defense Research Council/Columbia
University group on aircraft component design from1943 to 1945. This early work involved gas turbine

1059

1060

PROFESSORWARREN M. ROHSENOW

performance, heat transfer measurements, and conduction heat transfer. He currently holds the rank ofLCDR USNR (Ret.).
In July 1946 he joined the Massachusetts Instituteof Technology as Assistant Professor of MechanicalEngineering, where his appointment
marked thebeginning of a new era for that department in thefield of heat transfer. The previous emphasis under
Professor Gordon Wilkes was on thermal insulation.
Professor Rohsenow quickly became involved withconvection problems, beginning his association withboiling heat transfer in 1947 under sponsorship of
the Office of Naval Research. MIT Heat Transfer
Laboratory Report No. I, ‘A Study of the Mechanismof Boiling Heat Transfer’, co-authored with J. A.
Clark, was issued in February 1950. Over 100 reports
have documented subsequent studies in the laboratory. The laboratory’s work on two-phase flow andheat transfer has been at the forefront of this held,
and many of the results have found widespread application in industry. Doctor Rohsenow was named Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director of theHeat Transfer Laboratory in 1956. He has always
emphasized the partnership of students and faculty as
the basis of the international reputation of the MIT
Heat Transfer Laboratory.
Over the years Professor Rohsenow’s courses haveplaced great stress on fundamentals and practiceoriented problems. The pioneer text by Professor
William McAdams was used initially, supplemented
by extensive notes and problems. Most of this supplemental material was published in the book Heat,
Muss and ~~o~zenturn Tramfer, co-authored with H.
Y. Choi (Prentice-Hall, 1961). The book is still one of
the texts used Bt MIT for the popular undergraduate
heat transfer course.
Professor Rohsenow has authored or co-authoredover 100 journal papers as well as hundreds of conference papers and technical reports. He is senior editor of the Ha~~dbook of Heat Transfer (McGraw-Hill,1973) and its successor, Handbook of Heat Transfer
Fundamentals and Handbook of Heat Transfer Applicrrtiotzs (McGraw-Hill. 1985). He also edited Devefopments in Heat Transfer (MIT Press, 1964), and has
contributed chapters to many other handbooks andbooks on heat transfer.
His most important contributions to heat transfer
have been in boiling. The analysis and correlations
presented in his two early papers ‘A method of correlating heat transfer data for surface boiling ofliquids’, Trans. Am. Sot. me&. Engrs 74 (1952) and‘Heat transfer with boiling under natural and forced
convection’, Heat Transfer, A Symposium (Universityof Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 1952) are landmarksin the study of nucleate boiling. Additionally, he has
made outstanding contributions to the understandingof dispersed flow film boiling, condensation, metalto-metal contact resistance and nuclear reactor heattransfer.
Beyond being an outstanding leader in heat transfer

research, Professor Rohsenow is a mechanical engineer with deep insight into all types of engineering
problems and matters involving technology development. He has been a consultant to many major
corporations and is a co-founder of Dynatech Corporation (1957), currently serving as Chairman of theBoard of Directors. He has served on a number ofU.S. government committees and has lectured all over
the world on various aspects of heat transfer. His
long-running summer short course on Modern Developments in Heat Transfer set a high standard forinformation transfer.
All of Professor Rohsenow’s work at MIT has been
intimately connected with education. Most of his
research was organized to involve graduate students
working towards their degrees. He has supervised over
150 graduate theses, including many in Nuclear
Engineering and Ocean Engineering. He is known as
an outstanding educator capable of developing theindividual talents of his students while at the sametime instilling in them the self-confidence necessary
for professional success. This is reflected in the list ofstudents who completed their doctorates under his
direction over the past 30 years: J. A. Clark, E. L.
Foster, D. B. Harper, P. Griffith, R. J. Nickerson, V.
S. Arpaci, W. E. Stewart, J. C. Chato, M, M. Chen,
R. A. Kruger, H. Y. Choi, A. E. Bergles, H. Fenech,
R. S. Dougall, S. P. Sukhatme, J. J. Henry, W. F.
Laverty, P. J. Marto, N. E. Todreas, R. P. Forslund,
D. G. Kroger, B. B. MikiC, I. Shai, L. Katz, M. M.
Yovanovich, S. J. Hynek, S. J. Wilcox, C. W. Deane
IV, S. Bae, C. R. Bell, R. K. Sakhuja, J. J. Lorenz, D.
P. Traviss, 13. N. Plummer, 0. C. Iloeje, E. U. Khan,W. M. Mack, E. N. Ganic. C. Chiu, G. E. Kendall,M. Corradini, G. L. Yoder, A. W. Reed, L. M. Hull,W. S. Hill, P. D. Symolon, R. W. Bjorge, and T. J.
Jasinski. Nearly half of these former students havegone on to professorships at leading institutions, notonly in the U.S., but around the globe. Others have
moved into leadership positions in industry andgovernment.
Professor Rohsenow served as Graduate Registration Officer for 25 years. With skill andcompassion, he provided general guidance to several
thousand graduate students in mechanical engineering. His kindness is particularly remembered by students from other countries.
Professor Rohsenow has been a very active memberof the ASME since 1943. He was Chairman of theBoston Section (1955-56) and Chairman of the Heat
Transfer Division (1961-62). He was one of the earlyadvocates of the Assembly for International Heat
Transfer Conferences, founded in 1966, whichorganizes the International Heat Transfer Conference
held every four years. It is, therefore, fitting that a
special dinner to honor Professor Rohsenow is partof the Eighth International Heat Transfer Conference.
Also, he was one of the founders of the International
Centre for Heat and Mass Transfer in Yugoslavia,
now serving as Vice President of the Centre. He is a

PROPESORWARRENM. ROHSENOW

founding member of the Editorial Advisory Board ofthe International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer
and serves on the advisory boards of several otherjournals. He has been a member of U.S. delegations
involvedwith cooperative
programs
with othercountries.
His outstandingcontributions
to the field of heattransfer have not gone unnoticed. His major awards
arePi Tau Sigma Gold Medal Award(1951)
Yale Engineering

Association Awardforof Basic and Applied Science(1952)

Advancement

Junior Award of ASM E(1952)
Alumni Merit Award,

Northwestern(1955)

University

FellowAcademy of Arts and Sciences(1956)

AmericanHeat Transfer

Division Memorialof ASME
(1967)

Award

Fellow, ASME
(1968)Max Jakob Memorial Award of AIChEand ASME
(1970)
Member,National

CentennialAcademy(1975)

Medallionof Engineeringof ASME (1980)

Although occupied with MIT and many other proProfessor
Rohsenowhas
fessional responsibilities,1061been a devoted husband, father and grandfather.
Heand his wife, Towneley, raised five children: John.
Brian, Damaris, Sandra and Anne. The Rohsenows
will celebrate
their 40th wedding anniversaryin
September of this year.
Professor
Rohsenow
displays
a truly unique
warmth to everyone he meets, but especially to young
children. His house is always open for visits from hisformer graduate students and their families. Perhaps
the most striking characteristic about him is that. evenwith his international
stature, he can still be so humanas to romp and play with tiny tots in his living room.
This is done not because it is expected of him or to
impress anyone, but simply because he loves children
and their laughter.
Professor
Rohsenowis also well-known
for hismusical talents. He and Towneley have always loved
jazz and he has displayed a rare combinationof rhythm and creativity on the piano, the drums and, mostrecently, the vibes. With Towneley’s vocal accompaniment, they have delighted many audiences throughout
the years.
By his example, he has given us more than technicalknowledge; he has taught us about human values andtheir importance in our technological society, and forthis we are deeply indebted.
Professor Rohsenow retired from full-time duties
at MIT on July 1, 1985. He continues his research andteaching on a part-time basis as Professor Emeritus.
An endowment has been established for a Graduate
Fellowship Fund in his name.
On behalfof Professor
Rohsenow’s
formerstudents, his colleagues, and his friends from all over
the world, we wish him many happy returns andrespectfully dedicate this Festschrift in his honor.

J. P. HARTNETT
A. E. BERCLES
P. J. MARTO
M. M. YCNANOVICH