Professor Cussler teaches chemical engineering at the University of Minnesota. His research, which centers on membrane separations, has led to over 200 papers and four books. A member of the National Academy of Engineering, he has received the Colburn and Lewis Awards from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Separations Science Award from the American Chemical Society, the Merryfield Design Award from the American Society for Engineering Education, and honorary doctorates from the universities of Lund and Nancy.