Sponsored by the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The University of British Columbia, GLAB Reactor and Fluidization Technologies Inc. 
This award is presented to a person who, as a Canadian citizen or an individual working in Canada, has made an exceptional contribution to chemical engineering, particularly in the fields of particle technology, clean energy, greenhouse gas mitigation, and novel applications that enhance quality of life.
The 2026 awards are now open for submission.
Nominate yourself or a colleague deserving of recognition.
Press release: Award winners will be recognized at the x2026 Conference.
View the Terms of Reference and list of Past Winners
The 2025 winner of the John R. Grace Award is:
Hongbo Zeng, MCIC
University of Alberta
Hongbo Zeng is a Professor in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta. He holds the Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Intermolecular Forces and Interfacial Science and is a Senior University of Alberta Engineering Research Chair. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. Zeng received his BSc and MSc degrees from Tsinghua University and completed his PhD at the University of California, Santa Barbara. His research interests include colloid and interface science, functional materials, with a particular focus on intermolecular and surface interactions in soft materials and engineering processes. He has published a book and over 500 peer-reviewed journal articles, and his contributions have been recognized with many awards, such as the CSChE Innovation Award, the Killam Professorship, the University of Alberta Engineering Career Research Award, the NSERC Steacie Fellowship, and the van der Waals Prize. Zeng also serves as an Editor of Advances in Colloid and Interface Science and as a member of the Editorial Advisory Board for Langmuir.