Warren M. Rohsenow

Warren Max Rohsenow (12 February 1921 – 3 June 2011) was an American mechanical engineer. He was a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the founder of Dynatech Corporation.

Early life and education

Warren Max Rohsenow was born in Chicago on February 12, 1921. His parents were Fred and Selma Rohsenow. He grew up in Fort Worth, Texas and Wichita, Kansas.

In 1941, he completed his Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from Northwestern University, then in 1943, he earned a Master of Arts from Yale University. He received in D.Eng. from Yale in 1944. He served in the U.S. Navy, in a technical role, after completing his doctorate.

Corporate career

In the late 1950s, he co-founded the Dynatech Corporation, a consulting and manufacturing company responsible for significant developments in the fields of cryomechanics. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1975 for “contributions to boiling and condensing liquid-heat transfer and the teaching of the concepts of heat and mass transfer.”

The Heat Transfer Lab, which Rohsenow had led for 28 years, was renamed the Rohsenow Kendall Heat and Mass Transfer Lab in 2010, following a major renovation funded by his student, Dr. Gail E. Kendall.