Professor John B. Heywood has been appointed the first holder of the Sun Jae Professorship of Mechanical Engineering. Professor Heywood is widely known for his outstanding contributions to the research areas of energy, engines, combustion, power and propulsion, and transportation.
The chair was established in 1991 by the Daewoo Heavy Industries of Korea to recognize the joint concern of both Daewoo and MIT with the advancement of teaching and research in the areas of automotive and manufacturing engineering.
In addition, this professorship provides a permanent memorial and reminder of the legacy of Sun Jae Kim, the son of the chairman of Daewoo. Sun-Jae Kim was a Master's degree candidate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering when he was killed on November 21, 1990 in an automobile accident. Sun-Jae Kim demonstrated that someone with a background in psychology could not only succeed but excel in engineering in the rigorous MIT environment. It is hoped that Sun Jae's experience will lead others to choose to work at the interface of disciplines, and that this professorship will serve as a source of inspiration for that approach.
Professor Heywood's research activities have centered on the design and operating characteristics, and fuels requirements, of automotive and aircraft engines. A major emphasis has been on developing models to predict the performance, efficiency and emissions of spark-ignition and diesel engines, and in carrying out experiments to evaluate these models. He is also involved in technology assessments and policy studies related to automotive engines, automobile fuel utilization and the control of air pollution from mobile sources. He has recently published a major text and professional reference entitled "Internal Combustion Engine Fundamentals." He has published approximately 120 technical papers based on his research, as well as chapters in two other technical books.
Professor Heywood's contributions to teaching are also substantive. In addition to his regular teaching assignments, Professor Heywood has taught professional courses on engines for practicing engineers. He has supervised 94 theses to date, and served on the doctoral committees of 25 more.
Professor Heywood received his BA degree from Cambridge University in 1960, his SM and PhD degrees from MIT in 1962 and 1965, and his ScD in 1967 from Cambridge University. He was first appointed in 1968 as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering, becoming a full professor in 1976. He has held a Leaders for Manufacturing Chair since 1989. He has been the Director of the Sloan Automotive Laboratory since 1972, and presently is both the acting co-director of the Leaders for Manufacturing Program and the coordinator for Transportation Programs in the Energy Laboratory. He has been active in many organizations outside MIT, including the Society of Automotive Engineers and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, in both of which he is a Fellow. He has received numerous awards for his groundbreaking work in various aspects of automotive engineering.
A version of this article appeared in the September 2, 1992 issue of MIT Tech Talk (Volume 37, Number 4).
