Symposium Celebrating the Career of Clark Colton and His Students
May 16, 2026
Time: TBD
66-110
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Bio
During Clark Colton’s 55 years as a professor in the department, he has been a valued member, contributing to our research and academic community. He is a pioneer in the field of biomedical engineering and helped to revitalize our undergraduate lab courses.
Colton received his PhD from MIT in Chemical Engineering in 1969. Inspired by Ed Merrill and Kenneth Smith, his research focused on biomedical applications of chemical engineering, specifically the first study to understand mass transfer in hemodialysis (the artificial kidney). Post-graduation, he became a professor in the department and pursued a wide variety of research interests: hemofiltration (a better artificial kidney), ultrafiltration of protein solutions, blood microfiltration for plasmapheresis, oxygen transport in blood, enzyme engineering, and transport of lipoproteins across endothelium into blood vessel walls with application to atherosclerosis. His research related to diabetes spanned his entire career, beginning with development of an implantable glucose sensor coupled with an insulin pump for glucose control and then a hybrid artificial pancreas comprised of islet cells encapsulated in a polymeric device. Colton pioneered study of the role of oxygen in the performance of such devices and its effect on islet insulin secretion. He was the first academic chemical engineer at a major research university that spent their entire research career on mainly biomedical subjects. Consequently, my students pioneered many new areas of biomedical research and went into highly diverse careers not previously populated by chemical engineers.
Colton served as acting department head in 1977-78 and appointed the first graduate admissions committee. He subsequently chaired that committee for a decade and established the basic framework of graduate recruiting that continues to be used today. In 1988 he chaired the celebration of 100 years of Course X, the Centennial of Chemical Engineering Education, that brought leading scholars in chemical engineering to a retreat off campus to discuss the future of chemical engineering education followed by a convocation that filled Kresge Auditorium with alumni and friends of the department.
Colton has left an indelible mark on both undergraduate and graduate education in the department. He had the unique perspective of being both a student of and then professor leading Course 10.56 “Chemical Engineering in Medicine,” and taught several bioengineering courses. In the 1990s, Colton helped to revitalize the 10.26/27/29 undergraduate projects laboratory, working with industry partners to provide students the opportunity to solve real-world chemical engineering problems while learning to communicate professionally and navigate team dynamics.
Colton has been recognized with the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation Teacher-Scholar Award, Allan P. Colburn Award (AIChE), Curtis W. McGraw Research Award (ASEE), Gambro AB Award (International Society of Blood Purification), Lifetime Contribution Award (Bioartificial Organs) from the Engineering Foundation, a Food, Pharmaceutical, and Bioengineering Division Award from AIChE, and inclusion in 100 Chemical Engineers of the Modern Era. He is a founding fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, and was elected fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science and the Biomedical Engineering Society.