Seventh World Congress on Oxidation Catalysis
A new session format is included with the goal of presenting new ideas and methodologies for decoding the complexity inherent in catalysis and catalytic processes. Presenters are encouraged to discuss exciting combinations of theory and experiment and the combination of multiple experimental techniques. Presentations will be scheduled early in the program with a discussion workshop to generate consensus on the current state and direction of the field.
The oxidative catalytic applications important to industry in a great sense drive the fundamental work discussed above. The petrochemical processes focused on syngas generation/conversion, combustion, partial and selective oxidation, amines and C1 chemistry, along with processes for biomass conversion to fuels will be presented. Fine chemical and pharmaceutical production that generally employ homogeneous oxidations are covered among the subtopics of olefin and aromatic oxidation, epoxidation and the chemistry of radical species. Finally, the contribution of catalysis to environmental technologies such as VOC oxidation, wastewater treatment and autoexhaust catalysis will be presented.
The Congress begins with a full day on Sunday, June 9th, and lasts through Wednesday June 12th. It will be held in Saint Louis, Missouri on the campus of Washington University. With Washington University acting as host the Congress is made quite economical and many will find the registration prices coupled with the availability of campus housing a pleasant surprise. The Congress dinner will be on Tuesday, June 11 and a group excursion to the top of the Gateway Arch will take place on Wednesday, June 12. For more information about the 7th World Congress, visit www.7wcoc.org.
Nicholas Delgass is the Winner of the 2013 Herman Pines Award in Catalysis
The Catalysis Club of Chicago is pleased to announce that Prof. W. Nicholas Delgass (Maxine Spencer Nichols Emeritus Professor of Chemical Engineering at Purdue University) is the recipient of the 2013 Herman Pines Award in Catalysis. This Award is given to recognize Prof. Delgass’ outstanding contributions to catalyst characterization, reaction and catalyst chemistry, and advanced catalyst design. Prof. Delgass first introduced the applications of Mössbauer spectra and XPS to the catalysis community.
Prof. Delgass has served on the editorial boards of leading catalysis journals such as Journal of Catalysis and as chairs for international catalysis conferences. He is a gifted teacher, winning the Purdue School of Chemical Engineering Teaching Awarding for seven times. Prof. Delgass has been invited to give more than 190 lectures on national and international scientific meetings. He has published over 160 publications.
The award includes an honorarium ($1,000) and a plaque. Prof. Delgass will receive this Award during the Catalysis Club of Chicago Spring Symposium on May 7, 2013 at BP Research Center (Naperville, IL). Prof. Delgass will deliver the Award address at the Symposium.
Previous recipients of the Herman Pines Award
1999 Harold Kung (Northwestern University)
2000 John Monnier (Eastman Chemical)
2001 Lanny Schmidt (University of Minnesota)
2002 James Brazdil (BP)
2003 James Dumesic (University of Wisconsin)
2004 Alak Bhattacharyya (BP)
2005 Israel Wachs (Lehigh University)
2006 Jeffrey Miller (BP)
2007 Chunshan Song (Pennsylvania State University)
2008 Aleksey Yezerets (Cummins)
2009 Tobin Marks (Northwestern University)
2010 James Rekoske (UOP)
2011 Jingguang Chen (University Delaware)
2012 Stuart Soled (ExxonMobil)
Election Results for Director-at-Large and By-Laws
The electronic election for six Director-at-Large positions and for the modifications of by-laws previously approved by the NACS Board is now complete.
I am pleased to announce that
- Jingguang Chen (Columbia University)
- Robert J. Davis (University of Virginia)
- Maria Flytzani-Stephanopoulos (Tufts University)
- Bruce C. Gates (University of California at Davis)
- Fabio H. Ribeiro (Purdue University
- Stuart L. Soled (ExxonMobil)
were elected to four-year terms as Directors-at-Large from 11 candidates. They will be seated as NACS Board members at the start of the NAM23 meeting on June 2, 2013. Umit Ozkan (The Ohio State University), as the candidate with the next higher voter count, will be serving as Alternate Director-at-Large. This is not a Board position, but the Alternate would succeed a DAL in case any of the elected DAL is unable to serve.
The proposed modifications to the by-laws were approved by a vote of 338 to 7.
Votes were recorded from 590 of 1954 members of the North American Catalysis Society.
The electronic ballots were collected, recorded, and certified by Creative Scanning Solutions, Inc. an independent organization contracted by the North American Catalysis Society for this purpose.
Enrique Iglesia
President, North American Catalysis Society
2013 SWCS Spring Symposium
The Spring Symposium for the Southwest Catalysis Society will be help on April 26th on the Rice campus (Grand Hall in the Memorial Center). The circular is attached. Registration will begin at 7:30 AM with the technical program beginning at 8:25. We anticipate the meeting concluding by 3:30 PM. There is plenty of parking on the Rice campus: rice.edu/maps/maps.html.
There’s visitor parking all over campus (shaded yellow), and the one lot closest to our meeting site is “Central Campus Garage” underneath the Jones Business School (#51).
SOUTHWEST CATALYSIS SOCIETY
2013 SPRING SYMPOSIUM
Friday, April 26th, 2013
Grand Hall of the Rice Memorial Center
Rice University
Houston, TX
Invited Speakers (alphabetical order)
Developing HDS understanding based on real feed-stocks
Tushar V. Choudhary, Phillips 66, Bartlesville, OK
From Hydrodesulfurization to Hydrodeoxygenation: What are the similarities at the atomic-scale?
Lars C. Grabow, University of Houston, TX
Shell Alternative Transport Fuels,
Kim Johnson, Shell Chemical Co., Houston, TX
Advances in Hydroprocessing Catalyst Technology: The Discovery of ExxonMobil/Albemarle’s Nebula Catalyst
Doron Levin, ExxonMobil, Annandale, NJ
Nanostructured Gold Model Catalysts on Oxygen-free Substrates
Li Liu, Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University
Natural Gas to Syngas using Rh-substituted pyrochlore (La2Zr2O7) catalysts
Jerry Spivey (LSU), D. Pakhare (LSU), D. Haynes (DoE/NETL), D. Shekhawat (DoE/NETL), V. Abdelsayed (DoE/NETL)
2013 Southwest Catalysis Society Applied Catalysis Awardee: Prof. Jerry Spivey, Department of Chemical Engineering, LSU, Baton Rouge, LA.
Elections for Directors-at-Large
This year, for the second time, the North American Catalysis Society (NACS) will be using on-line balloting as the only way to vote for Directors-at-Large. We have contracted with a firm that is experienced in on-line voting to ensure the accuracy and confidentiality of the process. The elections are scheduled for March 18th to April 5th. You will be receiving an email message on March 17th with your username, unique password and a link to a restricted voting webpage. The subject headline is “NACS Elections for Directors-at-Large”. Please don’t delete this email until you cast your vote. If you have a problem receiving this email, then you need to contact Edrick Morales at edrickmorales@live.com.
The web log-in page will have instructions on how to use your electronic ballot with links to technical assistance in case you have difficulty with the log-in and PDF documents with the proposed amendments and revised version of the by-laws.
You can cast your vote starting on March 18th at 12:01 am. The voting webpage will be held open to those members of NACS (including students) who reside within North America. Background information for each candidate will be available on the ballot site with a hyperlink associated to each candidate’s name. On the ballot website, you will be selecting only six (6) or less members from the slate of 11 candidates for the office of Director-at-Large and one vote to approve or not approve the amendments to the by-laws. The top six candidates will be elected to office if the amendments to the by-laws are approved; otherwise, the top four (4) candidates will be elected.
Voters will need to log back in and complete the ballot from scratch if they log-out or close the browser window without submitting their ballot. Your password will be deactivated after you record your vote.
Deadlines Extended for Awards Sponsored by the European Federation of the Catalytic Societies
The European Federation of the Catalytic Societies (EFCATS) Board announces the extension of the deadline for the applications of two EFCATS awards: the Young Researchers Award and the Applied Catalysis Award. The new deadline is April 15th 2013.
Young Researchers Award
The EFCATS Award aims to recognize individual contributions in the field of heterogeneous catalysis with emphasis on theoretical or experimental discovery and understanding of new catalysts and catalytic processes, synthesis and catalytic function of novel inorganic solids and complexes, mechanisms of reactions, deactivation phenomena.
The candidates for the award must have already shown the potential for research independence and evidence of maturity. Applicants should also be able to demonstrate a promising track-record of early achievements appropriate to their specific research field and career stage, including significant publications (as main author) in major international peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journals, or in the leading international peer-reviewed journals of catalysis field. They may also demonstrate a record of invited presentations in well-established international conferences, granted patents, awards, prizes etc.
Selection of the Award winner will be made by a committee of renowned scientists appointed by the President and vice-president of The European federation of Catalysis Societies. Selection shall be made on the basis of excellence. The award winner must not have turned 41, March 1st of the award year. Thus, nomination documents should indicate the date of birth of the nominee.
Nominations for the Award should prove the candidate’s excellence and will include:
- A presentation letter in which the merits of the candidate are detailed. The presentation letter should be prepared by the person proposing the candidate.
- Two further recommendation letters.
- The candidate’s CV (highlighting a date of birth).
Nomination documents should be submitted in one complete package to the President of EFCATS (Avelino Corma at corma@itq.upv.es) before April 15, 2013.
Applied Catalysis Award
Selection of the Award winner will be made by a committee of renowned scientists including a majority of current or previous industrial scientists appointed by the President and vice-president of The European federation of Catalysis Societies from names suggested by members of the EFCATS board. Committee members who are current or recent employees of the company of any nominee shall abstain from voting on that proposal. Selection shall be made on the basis of excellence scientific novelty, technical achievements in development and scale-up, interdisciplinary teamwork between scientists and engineers, with emphasis on actual or potential commercial application.
Nominations for the Award should prove the candidate’s excellence and will include:
- A presentation letter in which the merits of the candidate(s) are indicated (prepared by the person proposing the candidate(s)),
- A list of the achievements of the candidate(s) confirmed by the company applying the new contribution within a supporting letter.
- A detailed CV of the candidate(s).
Nomination documents should be submitted in one complete package to the President of EFCATS (Avelino Corma at corma@itq.upv.es) before April 15, 2013.
Maria Flytzani-Stephanopoulos is the winner of the 2013 Michigan Catalysis Award
Professor Stephanopoulos was chosen for distinguished contributions to the field of catalysis, particularly new insights into the activity of atomic-scale metals as catalysts for fuel conversion processes and “green” production of chemicals.
The Michigan Catalysis Society has two awards to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions to catalysis research and development. Both awards are sponsored by the Memorial Trust Fund for Professor Giuseppe Parravano, which has been established at the Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Michigan. The Michigan Catalysis Society administers both awards which are presented in alternating years. Both awards consist of a medal and a prize of $1,000. The two awards differ only in the eligibility rules. The recipient of the award is selected by a committee that is appointed by the officers of the Michigan Catalysis Society.
- The Michigan Catalysis Society Guiseppe Parravano Memorial Award for Excellence in Catalysis Research
- The award is given biennially in odd numbered years to an individual from North America to formally recognize outstanding contributions to catalytic science and technology.
- The Michigan Catalysis Society Parravano Award for Excellence in Catalysis Research and Development
- The award is given biennially in even numbered years to formally recognize outstanding contributions to catalytic science and technology by researchers in the greater Michigan area. To be eligible, a person must be a resident of Michigan or a neighboring area such as western Ontario/northern Ohio and be nominated by a member of the Michigan Catalysis Society.
Candidates for Director-at-Large
Semi-retired consultant
Founder of a personal, global consulting business, GlobalCatalysis.com. My dedicated interests in catalysis continue through occasional technical publications (such as Catalysis Today 178 (2011) 8), invited lectures, and attendance at major national and international catalysis focused meetings. I bring over 40 years of experience in catalysis beginning with my undergraduate research at Penn State University and my PhD work at Stanford University. After receiving my doctorate degree, I spent 4 years as an assistant professor at Boston University, then joined Allied Chemical Corporation’s central research center for 11 years, and moved to Air Products & Chemicals to lead a catalysis research center before retirement.
My past role with the NACS (8 years as President and 7 years as Treasurer) focused on bringing visibility to the catalysis community at large, establishing our popular website, returning excess proceeds from our NAM meetings to the membership, strengthening the financial position of the NACS as well as the individual clubs, building up the corpus to the Keith Hall Educational Fund, establishing new ways to provide educational assistance to the membership, and enhancing the number and identity of our professional Awards program.
Having stepped aside from a leadership role in the NACS for the last 4 years, I would like to rejoin the Board of Directors and again work for the membership at large. I would like to continue to serve as a resource to the Society by participation in Board activities while mentoring new generations of our leaders, because I believe there is more that I can still contribute.
Thayer Lindsley Professor of Chemical Engineering
Columbia University
Jingguang Chen started his career at the Exxon Corporate Research Laboratories before joining the faculty at the University of Delaware, serving as the Claire LeClaire Professor of chemical engineering and Director of the Center for Catalytic Science and Technology. In the past two decades he has been actively serving the catalysis community, including the Catalysis Secretariat of ACS, Chair of the Gordon Research Conference on Catalysis, Kokes Chair for the Philadelphia NAM, and co-founder and team leader of the Synchrotron Catalysis Consortium. He has served as the Director-at-Large of NACS since 2005. His recent contributions as DAL included the application and distribution of travel grants to graduate students and young faculty to the ICC meeting.
If re-elected he would like to help establish a more formal process in NACS in applying and granting travel assistance to catalysis conferences.
Distinguished Regents Professor
Department of Chemical & Nuclear Engineering
University of New Mexico
Abhaya Datye has been on the faculty at the University of New Mexico since 1984 and presently serves as the undergraduate advisor for chemical engineering and formerly served as Associate Chair. He serves as Director of the Center for Microengineered Materials, a strategic research center at UNM that reports to the Vice President for Research.
Abhaya received his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1984. He has authored over 240 publications, 3 patents and has presented 120 invited lectures around the world. He was the Chair of the Gordon Research Conference on Catalysis in 2010. He served as the program co-chair for the North American Catalysis Society meeting at Snowbird, UT. He has been actively involved in the Western States Catalysis Club, where he has served as president and as the Club representative to the NAM board. As a Director at large for the Society, he plans to enhance the visibility of catalysis and to get new students, especially graduate and undergraduate students into the field.
His research group has pioneered the development of electron microscopy tools for the study of catalysts. Using model catalysts, his group has shown metal/support interfaces can be studied at near atomic resolution. His current work involves the synthesis of biorenewable chemicals, fundamental studies of catalyst sintering, alcohol reforming into H2 and synthesis of novel nanostructured heterogeneous catalysts, especially the stabilization of isolated single atoms on supports. He leads the NSF Partnership for International Research and Education (PIRE) on Conversion of Biomass derived reactants into Fuels, Chemicals and Materials (a collaboration between faculty and researchers in the US, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands and Finland).
Proposed Amendments to the By-laws
Below is an overview of the proposed amendments, as well as a rationale for each one of them, followed by the full text of the by-laws. The rational to amend the by-laws was coded using a blue-italic font, deletions were strike-through and amendments were coded using an italic font highlighted in yellow. View the Letter form the President for more information. A PDF version of this document is available at Proposed By-laws — February 2013.
AMENDMENTS
ARTICLE V
Section 2. No one person shall be entitled to hold two office positions at any one time.
Proposal: Extend the exclusion from holding two office positions to all such positions
Rationale: Apply this consistently to all officers, not just to the President and Secretary, as currently stated.
ARTICLE VIII
Section 1. The Board of Directors shall consist of members elected by the affiliated catalysis society(ies), one from each, six (6) members elected from the members elected at large by the membership of the (NACS), and any officers (elected by the Board) who are not already members of the Board.
ARTICLE XIII
Section 1. The at-large members of the Board of Directors to be elected by the membership at large shall be elected from a slate of not fewer than ten (10) nominees selected by the Nominations Committee, appointed by the President. Election shall be by electronic ballot of the membership of the NACS. Any member of the NACS shall be added to the slate upon receipt by the President of the (NACS), no more than one-half of whom shall be members of any one affiliated catalysis society(ies), provided that the petition shall be received by the President prior to the first of January of the year in which new members of the Board of Directors are to be elected. Election shall be by plurality vote. The elected at-large members of the Board of Directors will be seated at the next meeting of the Board of Directors and will be the at-large members who vote for the election of new officers.
Proposal: Increase number of Directors-at-Large from 4 to 6 and the required number of candidates from 7 to 10.
Rationale:
- The current number of DAL date to a time when membership and local clubs were fewer than today and they represent a smaller fraction of the Board than in earlier times.
- The “at-large” members represent the community at the national level and they are the only members of the Board elected by the entire membership of NACS.
- DAL are more permanent members of the Board than the local representatives, which often change between meetings due to rotations and local elections; DAL also tend to attend these meetings with fewer instances of substitutions. In doing so, DAL represent a cadre of experienced board members and provide meeting-to-meeting continuity, as well as a pool from which to draw in case of unexpected or planned rotations of officers.
ARTICLE XV
Section 2: The act of the majority of the members of the Board of Directors present at a meeting of the directors at which a quorum is present shall be the act of the Board. Members of the Board of Directors may participate in a meeting of the Board by means of conference telephone or similar communications equipment whereby all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other, and participation in a meeting in this manner shall constitute presence in person at the meeting. In the absence of a meeting by a majority of the members of the Board, resolutions can be enacted by a majority written consent of all the members of the Board.
Proposal: Change from “unanimous” to “a majority”
Rationale: “Unanimous written consent” as in current bylaws is not consistent with our operating rules, by which all motions are approved by a majority of the votes cast.
ARTICLE XVII
Section 3. The Executive Committee shall comprise of elected officers and key functional positions within the NACS. Members of the Executive Committee shall be designated by the President, but should include: the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Lead Trustee of the Keith Hall Educational Fund, Communications Director, Archivist, and the most recent living past President.
Proposal: Update the by-laws to reflect previous votes of the Board in which Communications Director and Lead Trustee were made Officer positions and the position of Archivist was created. Note that the Executive Committee differs from Officers and the members of the former are appointed by the President; the Executive Committee is advisory and non-voting (although some members may hold voting rights as Officers). The proposed changes also clarify as “most recent living” the specific identity of the “past President”
Rationale: The modification of Executive Committee members reflect the changes of Officers approved by the Board in the past meetings. The original bylaws were unclear about which past-President was meant.
ARTICLE XIX
Section 1. These Bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the members voting either (a) in person, by proxy or by ballot receive at a duly convened membership meeting of the (NACS), or (b) by electronic ballot circulated at the instance of the Board of Directors, provided that notice of the proposed amendment shall be contained in the notice of such duly convened meeting or in such electronic ballot so circulated.
Proposal: Replace mail ballots with electronic voting managed by independent contractor to ensure accuracy and confidentiality
Rationale: Previous NACS postal mail ballots have led to <20% vote yields and included many returned ballots because of outdated postal addresses. A shift to electronic voting has led to nearly 50% responses, while ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and accuracy of the process. Electronic ballots have become the norm for all learned societies, as well as for corporate shareholder votes more generally.
ARTICLE XX
Section 1. These Bylaws shall be adopted by a majority of votes cast of the general membership as herein provided, and shall become effective immediately thereafter.
Proposal: Clarify the wording by adding “of votes cast”
Rationale: The current wording is unclear and the interpretation could be equivocal. A majority of votes of the general membership, as in any election, is not certain to be achieved because not all members may choose to participate in the voting.
BYLAWS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN CATALYSIS SOCIETY
Revision — February 2013
We, the members hereof, associate ourselves for these purposes: to promote and encourage the growth and development of the science of catalysis and those scientific disciplines ancillary thereto; to organize and participate in professional meetings of scientists; to report, discuss and exchange information and viewpoints in the field of catalysis; to serve as a central exchange for the several catalysis club(s)/society(ies) (hereafter referred to as societies) concerning information on their activities; and to provide liaison with foreign catalysis societies, with the International Association of Catalysis Societies, and with other scientific organizations and individuals
ARTICLE I — Name
- Section 1. The name of this corporation shall be: The North American Catalysis Society, (NACS).
ARTICLE II — Membership
- Section 1. Any person from North America associated, directly or indirectly, with the fields of endeavor referred to in the purpose clause of these Bylaws, shall be eligible for full membership.
- Section 2. All members of any affiliated North American catalysis society(ies) shall become individual members of the NACS in the event of an appropriate resolution of affiliation enacted by the Executive Board of similar governing body of such catalysis society(ies), as hereinafter provided.
- Section 3. Any North American catalysis society(ies) in existence at the time of the adoption of these Bylaws may thereafter affiliate with the NACS by resolution of its Executive board or similar governing body.
- Section 4. Any North American catalysis society(ies) founded after the adoption of these Bylaws may affiliate with the NACS by resolution of its Executive Board or similar governing body, but only after being invited to do so by the Board of Directors of the NACS.
- Section 5. Nothing herein shall preclude members of any catalysis society(ies) from becoming individual members of the (NACS), notwithstanding that such catalysis society(ies) may not have been invited to affiliate with the NACS.
- Section 6. Persons from outside North America may indicate their interests in joining NACS as Associate Members. As Associate Members they do not have to pay dues, and they are not eligible to vote on elections and other matters pertaining to the NACS.
- Section 7. The local clubs shall be entities that are separate from the NACS.
ARTICLE III — Dues, Finances and Compensation
- Section 1. Membership fees shall be paid in such amounts and for such periods as shall be determined by the Board of Directors.
- Section 2. The fiscal year of the NACS shall end on December 31.
- Section 3. No compensation shall be paid to any officers or directors for their services rendered to the NACS in such capacities; provided, however, that this shall not preclude such officers and directors from being reimbursed for expenses incurred by them in the conduct of their activities in such capacities, at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE IV — Location
- Section 1. The registered office of the NACS shall be located within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, at such place as shall be determined by the Board of Directors. The principal office of the NACS shall be located at such place as shall be determined by the Board of Directors without restriction as to jurisdiction.
ARTICLE V — Officers
- Section 1. The officers of the NACS shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Lead Trustee and
Foreign SecretaryCommunications Director. - Section 2. No one person shall be entitled to hold
the office of President and Secretarytwo office positions at any one time. - Section 3. Only members of the NACS shall be eligible for election to office.
ARTICLE VI — Duties of Officers
- Section 1. The President shall be the chief executive officer of the NACS and shall preside at all meetings of the membership and/or the directors; he/she shall call all meetings of the directors; he/she shall have general and active management of the business of the NACS and shall, either directly or by delegation, see that all orders and resolutions of the Board of Directors and that all duties of the officers are properly performed; he/she shall submit interim reports of the operation of the NACS to the membership as and when meetings of the membership shall be held and to the Board of Directors at their various meetings as hereinafter provided; he/she shall appoint all committees except as herein otherwise provided, and he/she shall be an ex-officio member of all committees so appointed; he/she may delegate the performance of any of the foregoing; he/she shall execute any and all contracts and other documents in behalf of the NACS pursuant to authority delegated to him/her for such purposes by resolution duly adopted by the Board of Directors, and he/she shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors from time to time.
- Section 2. The Vice-President shall perform all duties of the office of President in the latter’s absence, incapacity or arbitrary refusal to act, and, when so acting, shall have all powers of and be subject to all restrictions upon the office of President. Further, he/she shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors or by the President, from time to time.
- Section 3. The Secretary shall attend all meetings of the Board of Directors and of the membership and shall perform the following various duties: he/she shall maintain a list of the membership and their addresses; he/she shall record minutes of all meetings in a book to be maintained for that purpose and, when required, shall perform a similar service for all standing committees; he/she shall send to the Board of Directors and/or to the membership all notices as to the business of the NACS and as to the time, date and place of all meetings to be held of the Board of Directors and/or of the membership, respectively; he/she shall engage in, and maintain records of, all correspondence as required by the business of the NACS; he/she shall be the custodian of the corporate seal and of all books and records of the (NACS), except as herein otherwise provided; he/she shall attest any and all contracts and other documents, and shall affix the corporate seal as necessary, in behalf of the NACS pursuant to authority delegated to him/her for such purposes by resolution duly adopted by the Board of Directors or by the President, from time to time. In the event of the Secretary’s absence, incapacity of arbitrary refusal to act, his/her duties shall be performed by a Secretary Pro Tem appointed by the Board of Directors or by the President.
- Section 4. The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all funds as well as financial books and records of the NACS and shall deposit all such funds in the name of the NACS in such depository or depositories as shall be designated by the Board of Directors; he/she shall collect and receive all fees, contributions and grants paid to the NACS; he/she shall pay all vouchers and obligations pursuant to authority duly granted to him/her by the President and Secretary or be resolution of the Board of Directors; he/she shall prepare and submit complete an accurate interim financial reports of the finances of the NACS as and when meetings may be held, as well as to the Board of Directors at any time upon request therefrom, and he/she shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors or by the President, from time to time.
- Section 5.
The Foreign Secretary shall attend all meetings of the Board of Directors and perform the following duties: maintain contact with other catalysis societies outside North America and maintain records of correspondence with these societies, distribute the NACS Newsletter to other catalysis societies and serve those functions of the Secretary with foreign members, serve as one of the two NACS representatives to the Council of the International Association of Catalysis Societies, and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors or by the President, from time to time. The Lead Trustee shall monitor and assign variety of investment vehicles with input from trustees; lead sub-committee (of trustees, President and Treasurer) that reviews investment decisions; review investment strategy (biannual); generate annual financial report by March 15 for IRS reporting; and with accountant prepare 990 tax form and submit to IRS by May 15 of each year. - Section 6. The Communications Direction shall maintain and add new content in the NACS website; renew website domain name as scheduled by payments in register.com; publish a Newsletters with a target of four issues per year; maintain a list of current members from local Clubs; maintain an email distribution list of members; update distribution list in mail server as needed; provide mailing list for rental on a fee per use basis to customers; administer electronic elections for Director-at-Large every 4 years or other events as needed; and arrange contract for electronic website for voting and generate usernames and passwords for electronic ballots.
ARTICLE VII — Bonds
- Section 1. The Board of Directors may require any of the officers to be bonded at such times and for such amounts as it shall deem necessary.
- Section 2. The Board of Directors may require the administrators(trustees) of the Keith Hall Educational Fund and any outside professional who assumes an active role in administering the proceeds of the Fund to be bonded.
ARTICLE VIII — Board of Directors
- Section 1. The Board of Directors shall consist of members elected by the affiliated catalysis society(ies), one from each,
four (4)six (6) members elected from the members elected at large by the membership of the (NACS), and any officers (elected by the Board) who are not already members of the Board. - Section 2. Only members of the NACS shall be eligible for election to the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE IX — Duties and Powers of the Board of Directors
- Section 1. The property and business of the NACS shall be managed by the Board of Directors.
- Section 2. In addition to the general powers of the Board of Directors existing by virtue of their office, the powers and authority expressly given by law, by the terms of the Articles of Incorporation of the (NACS), and elsewhere in these Bylaws, the following specific powers are expressly conferred on the Board of Directors.
To appoint and/or remove any and all agents, servants or employees of the (NACS), other than the members of the Board of Directors and the officers, and to determine their duties and salaries, as well as to delegate such powers to an officer of the NACS; to authorize the negotiating and executing of all contracts, documents and instruments appropriate for the proper operation of the NACS; to delegate any powers of the Board of Directors to any committee of Board members, not less than two (2) in number, for so long and under such terms as the Board may determine; to establish policies of the NACS and to direct the execution of the same, pursuant to the purposes of the (NACS), and generally to do all lawful acts and things as are not herein otherwise delegated or directed to be done by the membership or officers of the NACS.
ARTICLE X — Meetings of the Board of Directors
- Section 1. The Board of Directors shall meet at least annually at the call of the President. In addition, the Board of Directors shall meet intermittently at such times and places as may be set by resolution duly adopted at duly convened meetings of the Board of Directors.
- Section 2. Special meetings of the Board of Directors shall be called by the President and/or Secretary as and when they or either of them shall deem it necessary, or upon the signed written request of any three (3) members of the Board of Directors, the times and places of such special meetings to be determined by the officer calling the same.
- Section 3. The Secretary shall send to each member of the Board of Directors, at least one (1) week’s prior written notice of any special meeting and at least ten (10) days prior written notice of any annual or intermittent meeting.
- Section 4. Not withstanding Article 20, the Provisions of the ARTICLE may be amended at any regular duly convened meeting by a majority vote of the members of the Board of Directors present and voting at such meeting.
ARTICLE XI — Meetings of the Membership
- Section 1. Meetings of the membership in general shall be held at such times and places as shall be determined by the Board of Directors.
- Section 2. Notices of the meetings of the membership in general shall be given to each member at least thirty (30) days in advance of the date of such meeting, provided that the payment of such member’s membership fee is not then in default.
- Section 3. Location of national biennial technical meetings of the NACS shall rotate around the membership clubs. For this purpose these meetings shall be operated by the local society. For these meetings the NACS shall be responsible for the selection of the meeting organizers. For this meeting, the operating local society has an “agency” (as defined by the US IRS in 2000) relationship with the NACS for the organization and operation of the meeting.
ARTICLE XII — Notices
- Section 1. Notices of all meetings of the membership and of the Board of Directors shall be mailed to each member of the NACS or of the Board of Directors, addressed to such members or directors latest addresses, as recorded in the books of the NACS.
- Section 2. Attendance by a member or by a Director at any meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where attendance at such meeting is for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of business because said meeting was allegedly not lawfully or duly called or convened, and where such objection is made immediately following the convening of such meeting.
- Section 3. Any notice may be waived in writing, signed by the person or persons entitled thereto, either before or after the time and date stated therein, and such waiver shall be entered into the minutes of the meeting held pursuant to such waiver of notice.
- Section 4. Neither the business to be transacted at, nor the purpose of any membership meeting, or any annual or intermittent meeting of the Board of Directors, need be stated in any notice or waiver of notice of such meeting unless otherwise specifically required by law or by these Bylaws. Notice of any special meeting of the Board of Directors shall contain the purpose of, and a brief description of the business to be transacted by such meeting.
ARTICLE XIII — Nominations, Elections and Terms of Office
- Section 1. The members of the Board of Directors to be elected by the membership at large shall be elected from a slate of not fewer than
seven (7)ten (10) nominees selected by the Nominations Committee, appointed by the President. Election shall be bymailelectronic ballot of the membership of the NACS. Any member of the NACS shall be added to the slate upon receipt by the President of the (NACS), no more than one-half of whom shall be members of any one affiliated catalysis society(ies), provided that the petition shall be received by the President prior to the first of January of the year in which new members of the Board of Directors are to be elected. Election shall be by plurality vote. The elected at-large members of the Board of Directors will be seated at the next meeting of the Board of Directors and will be the at-large members who vote for the election of new officers. - Section 2. The one (1) member of the Board of Directors from each affiliated catalysis society(ies) shall be elected by the respective catalysis society(ies) in accordance with its internal procedures.
- Section 3. Nominations for the officers shall be made at a Board meeting and elected by the Board of Directors at a meeting of such Board convened with reasonable dispatch after the election of such Board. The officers shall take office on July 1, 2001, and every four years thereafter.
- Section 4. The term of office for all officers and members of the Board of Directors shall be four (4) years. All officers and members of the Board of Directors shall continue in their respective capacities until their successors are elected.
- Section 5. Any vacancies in the Board of Directors or among the officers arising by reason of death or resignation, shall be filled for the unexpired term by a majority vote of the remaining members of the Board of Directors present and voting at the first meeting held after such death or resignation. In the event that the President is no longer able to serve (for reasons of death or resignation), the Vice-President shall assume his/her duties until a meeting of the Board of Directors within 2 months of the loss of the elected President. In the event that neither the President nor the Vice President is able to serve, the Executive Committee shall elect one of its members to serve as the operating officer (by majority voting) until an emergency meeting of the Board of Directors can be convened (within 2 months of the vacancies).
- Section 6. Election of officers and of members of the Board of Directors shall be by closed, written ballot, whether submitted at a meeting or by mail.
- Section 7. Any member who shall have paid his/her dues shall be eligible to hold office in the (NACS), whether as an officer or as a member of the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE XIV — Quorum
- Section 1. A quorum for the purpose of holding a meeting of the membership generally shall consist of such members as shall be in attendance at the time and place when such meeting is to convene.
- Section 2. A quorum for the purpose of holding any meeting of the Board of Directors shall consist of a majority of all of the members of the Board, exclusive of any member who may have resigned or died. If a quorum is unavailable for any meeting of the Board of Directors, that meeting shall be adjourned to a new time and place, due notice of which shall be given to the members of the Board of Directors, in which event a quorum, for purposes of the said adjourned meeting, shall consist of such members of the Board of Directors as shall be in attendance at the time and place when such adjourned meeting is to convene.
ARTICLE XV — Voting
- Section 1. All matters to be voted upon by the general membership, other than election to the Board of Directors, shall be determined by majority vote of the members voting.
- Section 2. The act of the majority of the members of the Board of Directors present at a meeting of the directors at which a quorum is present shall be the act of the Board. Members of the Board of Directors may participate in a meeting of the Board by means of conference telephone or similar communications equipment whereby all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other, and participation in a meeting in this manner shall constitute presence in person at the meeting. In the absence of a meeting by a majority of the members of the Board, resolutions can be enacted by
unanimousa majority written consent of all the members of the Board. - Section 3. Each member of the Board of Directors shall be entitled to one (1) vote in such capacity at the meeting of the Board, and each member of the NACS shall be entitled to one (1) vote in such capacity.
- Section 4. Proxy voting at membership shall be permitted, provided that such proxy is executed in writing by the individual entitled to cast such vote and provided such proxy specifies the meeting at, or the duration for which, such proxy shall be effective.
- Section 5. Mail balloting at membership meetings shall be permitted, provided that such mail ballot is signed by the member entitled to cast such vote. If the matter being voted upon is to be the subject of a membership meeting, such mail ballot shall be valid only if received no later than the convening of such meeting. If the matter being voted upon is the subject of a general mail ballot only, such mail ballot shall be valid only if received no later than the date specified for such purpose in the material promulgating to the membership the subject to be voted upon.
ARTICLE XVI — Inspection of Books, Accounts and Records
- Section 1. The books, accounts and records of the NACS shall be open for inspection at any time by any officer or member of the Board of Directors.
- Section 2. The books, accounts and records of the NACS shall be open for inspection by any member of the NACS at such reasonable times and places as may be designated by resolution duly adopted by the Board of Directors; provided, however, that the Board of Directors shall designate a time and place for the examination of such books, accounts and records by the membership immediately prior to, during, or immediately following any membership meeting which may be held.
ARTICLE XVII — Committees
- Section 1. The President shall appoint the Nominations Committee to suggest candidates for officers of the NACS; at the time of elections of the officers, additional nominations may be received from those attending the Board meeting.
- Section 2. In addition to such committees as the President may appoint pursuant to these Bylaws, the Board of Directors may establish and appoint, from time to time, such additional standing and/or special committees as it may deem appropriate.
- Section 3. The Executive Committee shall be comprised of elected officers and key functional positions within the NACS. Members of the Executive Committee shall be designated by the President, but should include: the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer,
Foreign Secretary, Lead Trustee of the Keith Hall Educational Fund, Communications Director, Archivist and the most recent living past President. - Section 4. The President may call a meeting of the Executive Committee to seek its advice.
- Section 5. An Awards Committee shall be appointed by the President and led by the Vice President, for the purpose of soliciting suggestions for nominations for the professional award. This committee should be selected in a manner to avoid conflict of interests in the award process.
ARTICLE XVIII — Corporate Seal
- Section 1. The Secretary shall hold the Corporate Seal.
ARTICLE XIX — Amendments to Bylaws
- Section 1. These Bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the members voting either (a) in person, by proxy or by mail ballot receive at a duly convened membership meeting of the (NACS), or (b) by
mailelectronic ballot circulated at the instance of the Board of Directors, provided that notice of the proposed amendment shall be contained in the notice of such duly convened meeting or in suchmailelectronic ballot so circulated.
ARTICLE XX — Adoption of Bylaws
- Section 1. These Bylaws shall be adopted by a majority
voteof votes cast the general membership as herein provided, and shall become effective immediately thereafter.
ARTICLE XXI — Procedural Requirements
- Section 1. All meetings of the Board of Directors and all meetings of the membership of the NACS shall be conducted pursuant to Roberts’ Rules of Order, these Bylaws, and to any additional rules adopted by such meetings not inconsistent with either of the foregoing.
ARTICLE XXII — Professional Awards
- Section 1. The NACS has established a series of professional awards for distinction in catalysis. The President is responsible for the selection of a jury for each award, which shall be made up of established technologists in catalysis without having any conflicts of interest in the nominations or award process. Each jury shall be made up of at least 3 persons appointed by the President. Their decisions shall be confidential and reported only to the President, who then tallies the voting, and notifies the winner.
ARTICLE XXIII — Keith Hall Educational Fund
- Section 1. Within NACS shall be the Keith Hall Educational Fund (Fund), disbursements from only the net income of which shall be made for the support and maintenance of the tax-exempt activities of (NACS), including but not limited to national lectureships, seminars and symposia, assistance for attendance at national meetings of NACS for graduate students or post-doctoral fellows, and award recognizing contributions to the furtherance of the field of catalysis. Although the Fund shall be subject to the ultimate administration of the Board of Directors of (NACS), it may be administered on a day-to-day basis by “trustees,” who shall be appointed by the President of NACS for staggered 6 year terms, with the concurrence of the Executive Committee of NACS. One of these trustees shall be designated by the President as the Lead Trustee, who shall be responsible for reporting the status of the Fund on a quarterly basis to the President and to the Board on an annual basis. These trustees shall receive, hold, invest, and reinvest the assets of the Fund.
- Section 2. The President is empowered to replace an appointed trustee for due cause subject to the approval of a majority of the Executive committee and confirmation by the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE XXIV — Restrictions and Interpretation
- Section 1. No part of the net earnings of NACS shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to, its members, directors, officers, or other private persons, except that NACS shall be authorized and empowered to pay out of pocket expenses for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes of NACS. Approval of the President is required for such expenses, which are to be reported to the Board at its annual meeting.
- Section 2. No substantial part of the activities of NACS shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation. NACS shall be empowered to make the election provided by IRC § 501(h). NACS shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office.
- Section 3. Notwithstanding any other provisions of these Bylaws or the Articles of Incorporation, NACS shall not carry on any activities not permitted to be carried on (i) by a corporation exempt from federal income tax under IRC § 501(a) by reason of description in IRC §501(c)(3), or (ii) by a corporation, contributions to which are deductible under IRC § 170©(2).
ARTICLE XXV — Dissolution
- Section 1. Upon the dissolution of (NACS), the Board of Directors shall, after paying or making provisions for the payment of all of the liabilities of (NACS), dispose of all of the assets of NACS exclusively for one or more of the purposes of NACS which may include distribution to an organization or organizations organized and operated exclusively for one or more of such purposes, or shall distribute all of the assets of NACS to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any assets not so disposed of shall be disposed of by the Circuit Court of the county in which the principal office of NACS is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for one or more of the purposes of NACS.