Seven chemical engineers were honored by the Academy of Chemical Engineers at Missouri University of Science and Technology during an induction ceremony on Thursday, April 16.

The academy honors chemical engineers for contributions to the profession, leadership, and involvement with Missouri S&T. The academy serves as an advisory group to the Missouri S&T chemical engineering department.

The following are new members:

– Richard L. Burkhalter, of Chesterton, Ind., is president of Covenant Engineering Services. Burkhalter earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T in 1967. He conducted graduate studies in business at Regent University before attending the U.S. Army War College. Burkhalter has worked for several major corporations in engineering and production management, beginning with A.E. Staley Manufacturing Co. In 1995, he founded Covenant Engineering Services.
– Dr. Frank J. Doering, of St. Louis, is project manager for Crosslink and Akermin Inc. Doering earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees at Missouri S&T in 1970, 1971 and 1976, respectively. He began his career with Monsanto as a research specialist. In 2003, he became a research associate for Washington University. He became a project manager for Crosslink in 2004 and a project manager at Akermin in 2009.
– F. Frederick Keilhorn, of Wilmington, Del., is founder and managing director of Kielvest LLC. Keilhorn earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Missouri S&T in 1987. He began his career with DuPont in 1987. In 2000, he began NanoDrop Technologies Inc., a supplier of spectrophotometry and fluorescence instruments to the life sciences industries. When NanoDrop was sold to ThermoFisher Scientific in 2007, Kielhorn founded Kielvest, a private investment company.
– Margaret C. Montana, of Houston, Texas, is executive vice president of supply and distribution for Shell Downstream Inc. Montana earned her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Missouri S&T in 1976. She began her career with Shell at the Deer Park Refinery. She held various management positions, including some global management positions, before assuming her present responsibilities.
– Robert B. Puyear, of St. Louis, is a corrosion specialist for Monsanto. Puyear earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Missouri S&T in 1954 and his master’s in industrial administration from Purdue University in 1967. He began his career with the Haynes Satellite Division of Union Carbide Corp. He accepted a position with Monsanto in 1970 as a corrosion specialist and managed the mechanical and materials engineering section. Puyear played a leadership role in the formation of the Materials Technology Institute of the Chemical Process Industries Inc., which provides cost effective studies for companies.
– Dr. Frank F. Tao, of Saratoga, Calif., is a senior engineering associate at Exxon Research and Engineering Co. Tao earned his doctorate in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T in 1964. He began his career with Taiwan Fertilizer Company in Hsinchu, Taiwan, as a department supervisor. After earning his master’s degree at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Tao went to work for Dorr-Oliver Inc. as a research engineer. In 1964, he joined Exxon, researching lubrication and petroleum products as well as the development of synthetic fuel.
– Terry L. Tolliver, of St. Louis, Mo., is a contract engineer for ConocoPhillips. Tolliver earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in chemical engineering at Missouri S&T in 1969, 1972 and 1982, respectively. He began his career with Monsanto in 1969, and worked his way up to senior fellow of process control at the time of his retirement from the company in 2003. In 2004, he took on his current position as a contract engineer. Tolliver has held lecturing positions at Washington University and Lehigh University and has been a registered professional engineer since 1974.