National Academy of Inventors Selects LSU Coast & Environment Professor Emeritus as 2020 Fellow

January 5, 2020

BATON ROUGE – Ralph Portier, professor emeritus of the LSU College of the Coast & Environment is one of two LSU professors who have been named 2020 National Academy of Inventors Fellows, or NAI. Election to NAI Fellow status is the highest professional distinction accorded solely to academic inventors, and Portier is one of only eight LSU professors to receive it in the history of the program. Portier was selected for demonstrating “a prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on the quality of life, economic development, and the welfare of society.”

“Dr. Portier is an outstanding member of our innovative faculty who is most deserving of this prestigious honor. He has made technological advances that are examples of the important and world-transforming work being performed at LSU. He has made significant strides in bioremediation research and is highly deserving of this recognition,” said Chris D’Elia, professor and dean of the LSU College of the Coast & Environment.

Portier is a Louisiana native as well as a professor and alumnus of LSU. He received his PhD in oceanography and coastal sciences in 1982 and joined the faculty as an assistant professor in 1984. He is an ecotoxicology and bioremediation expert who holds eight patents related to bioremediation of contaminated sediment and soil using immobilized bioreactors. During his nearly 40-year career at LSU, he developed a vast library of bioremediation microbes, which has helped private companies as well as local, state, and national government organizations mitigate a wide range of environmental hazards in the U.S. and across the globe. These microbes can be used to break down dangerous chemicals and pollutants, including fuels, plastics, herbicides, and pesticides—and Portier designed custom bioreactors to do just that.

“Our ability to design biofilms specifically to target certain types of hazardous waste is probably the most important of the patents developed here at LSU. We have designed reactor systems which have been used successfully in almost every state of the union and in a dozen or so countries overseas,” Portier said.

Furthermore, Portier has helped shape policies and processes for the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA. So far, 265 sites across the country and 12 international sites have been remediated using LSU biotechnology patents and intellectual property that he developed.

“Not only does this award recognize our efforts through the years at solving real environmental problems, it also reflects positively on all of my students who have graduated from LSU and now are successfully employed worldwide. Most importantly, I am proud of how our department has opened the door for so many women to enter the scientific field. I remember teaching one young woman, who now has her PhD, who designed one of the reactors for lunar and Mars missions for NASA. So, it’s been a lot of fun,” Portier said.

Portier will be among 175 new fellows from around the world, including Konstantin Kousoulas from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, who will be inducted during the NAI’s annual meeting, June 7-9, 2021, in Tampa, Florida. Currently, NAI Fellows hold more than 38,000 issued U.S. patents, which have generated more than 13,000 licensed technologies, and created more than 19.5 million jobs. In addition, more than $2.2 trillion in revenue has been generated based on NAI Fellow discoveries.

 

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Contact Christine Wendling
LSU College of the Coast & Environment
225-578-4984
christinew@lsu.edu 

or

Ernie Ballard
LSU Media Relations
225-978-8277
eballa1@lsu.edu