Dr. Della Roy

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Dr. Della M. Roy Dr. Della Roy

Dr. Della M. Roy is perhaps the most distinguished pioneer among women entering the nascent field of materials research. After more than 50 years on the faculty of Penn State, where she conducted teaching and research and rose to Full Professor in 1969 (and more recently also at Arizona State), she has accumulated many firsts for women scientists/engineers. She was the first woman elected to the National U.S. Academy of Engineering (in 1987) in any field of materials, and also the first in the World Academy of Ceramics.

Her research field is the science/engineering of cement—by far the highest volume material made by humankind-- in which she has made permanent and seminal contributions. These include the development of ultra-high strength cements, biomaterials for hard tissue replacement, cements for nuclear and hazardous waste management, and energy saving by utilization of by-products in high performance cements.

Most significantly she launched, and was Editor in Chief of Cement & Concrete Research for 34 years, the premier journal in the field. Significantly, she presented papers at nine successive quinquennial International Symposia on the Chemistry of Cement, from Washington DC (1960), Tokyo, Moscow, Paris, Rio de Janiero, New Delhi, Goteburg, Durban, to Montreal (2007).

She received her B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Oregon, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in mineralogy and geochemistry from Penn State. She has been active in The American Ceramic Society all her professional life and has been recognized by the Society as a Fellow (1971), the Jeppson Medal (1982), Copeland Award (1987), and Bleininger Award (2004). The Annual Della Roy lecture awards began in 2000. Currently a member of the Cements Division and the Nuclear and Environmental and Basic Science Divisions, she served as Trustee of the Society from1992 to 1995.