Mining and mineral engineering professor honored with industry education award


Mining and Minerals Engineering Professor and Head Greg Adel (left) presents Dr. Roe- Hoan Yoon with the 2009 PCMIA Stephen McCann Memorial Award for Educational Excellence
Blacksburg, VA , November 12, 2009

The Pittsburgh Coal Mining Institute of America recently awarded its 2009 Stephen McCann Memorial Award for Educational Excellence to Roe-Hoan Yoon of Virginia Tech’s department of mining and minerals engineering.

Yoon , the Nicholas T. Camicia Professor in the College of Engineering, was recognized for his international record of teaching and researching in mineral processing science and technologies. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering , and is the director of the Center for Advanced Separation Technologies , a consortium of five universities whose goal is to develop advanced technologies that can be used to produce clean solid, liquid and gaseous fuels from domestic energy resources in an efficient and environmentally acceptable manner.

Yoon has garnered headlines during the past year for co-developing a dewatering technology that reduces the moisture content of ultrafine coal to less than 20 percent, transforming it to a salable product rather than being discarded.

The Pittsburgh Coal Mining Institute of America established the award in 1986 to honor instructors, teachers or professors of mining engineering curricula who have made significant career impacts on educational services to the mining industry. Candidates for the award are judged on their contributions, achievements, and commitment to quality mining education. Yoon is the fifth professor in Virginia Tech mining engineering department to have achieved this honor. Professors Greg Adel , current department head; Tom Novak, former department head; Mike Karmis and Gerald Luttrell all have received the honor. The award consists of an inscribed commemorative clock.

The College of Engineering at Virginia Tech is internationally recognized for its excellence in 14 engineering disciplines and computer science. The college’s 6,000 undergraduates benefit from an innovative curriculum that provides a “hands-on, minds-on” approach to engineering education, complementing classroom instruction with two unique design-and-build facilities and a strong Cooperative Education Program. With more than 50 research centers and numerous laboratories, the college offers its 2,000 graduate students opportunities in advanced fields of study such as biomedical engineering, state-of-the-art microelectronics, and nanotechnology. Virginia Tech, the most comprehensive university in Virginia, is dedicated to quality, innovation, and results to the commonwealth, the nation, and the world.

Read related stories on Roe-Hoan Yoon:

New coal dewatering technology turns sludge to powder

University shows the world how to burn cleaner coal and reduce emissions


Steven Mackay
(540) 231-4787