Select one of the “achievements” listed in Table 1.2 and write a short essay (as defined above) describing the development of the achievement and the role that chemical engineering (or specific chemical engineers) played in that development.

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Table 1.2 Some Great Achievements of Chemical Engineering (adapted from ref. 2) Semiconductor Fabrication: Chemical engineers have played a key role in the flourishing of the electronic and computer age. They have developed and refined semiconductor fabrication pro- cesses to make smaller and more powerful semiconductor systems, leading to powerful personal computers, cell phones, portable music players, and other "smart" electronic devices. Medicine: Because the body is essentially a chemical plant, chemical engineers have worked hand in hand with physicians to develop medicines, replacement parts, and physiologic support products. The resulting biomedical technology has led to improved clinical care, high-tech diagnostic and therapeutic devices, new "wonder drugs," and artificial organs. Environmental Protection: Chemical engineers are seriously involved in environmental technology to clean up existing problems and to prevent future pollution. Chemical engineers have helped to develop catalytic converters for cars, double-hosed gasoline pumps, and modern jet engines. Scrubbers on smokestacks also help maintain air quality. Crude Oil Processing: Chemical engineers discovered ways to use crude oil by breaking down ("cracking") long carbon molecules into smaller ethylenes, propylenes, and so on. These ad- vancements opened the way for the development of many of the petrochemical products used today, including fuels, plastics, pharmaceuticals, and the like. Plastics: During the awakening of the plastics age in the 1930s, chemical engineers helped to develop nylon, polyvinylchloride, acrylics, polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene, followed more recently by aerospace plastics, composites, and laminates. Synthetic Fibers: Beginning with the first extrusion of rayon fibers in 1910 and nylon in 1939, chemical engineers have helped to develop and manufacture many synthetic fibers, from blankets, to clothing, to upholstery, to carpets, to very strong (even bulletproof) fabric. Today, some eighty billion pounds of synthetic fibers are produced each year. Synthetic Rubber: Chemical engineers helped to develop synthetic rubber (styrene-butadiene rub- ber, or SBR) during World War II, when natural rubber was hard to obtain. Today, approximately two-thirds of the 40 billion pounds of rubber produced annually is synthetic, and SBR still ac- counts for half of all synthetic rubber produced. Synthetic rubber is used in tires, gaskets and hoses, and in many consumer products, such as running shoes. Gases from Air: Chemical engineers pioneered ways to process and use purified oxygen and nitro- gen. Air is separated into these gases through cryogenics (liquefying the gases at very low tem- peratures). Nitrogen is used as an inert gas in many applications, while oxygen is used in many industrial processes and in hospitals. Chemical engineers also developed vacuum-insulated tank trucks for delivering liquefied gases. Food: Chemical engineers have helped to produce fertilizers, like phosphates and urea, and pesticides that protect crops. They are also at the forefront of efforts to improve food processing technology, such as freeze-drying and microwave processing. Separation and Use of Isotopes: Chemical engineers developed the processes that separate isotopes from one another. Chemical engineers also played a major role in developing and using isotopes from fission in nuclear medicine as advanced diagnostic and treatment techniques. Radioisotopes are also useful in medical imaging and monitoring, biochemical research archaeological dating. and production of nuclear energy. Antibiotics: Chemical engineers have developed ways to mass produce antibiotic drugs. For exam- ple, with penicillin (discovered in 1929), research led to a thousand-fold increase in yield through mutation and through development of methods for "brewing" penicillin in huge tanks. These and similar developments have resulted in low-cost, widely available "wonder drugs" including peni- cillin, streptomycin, erythromycin, and many more.