Alan Nelson

Alan Nelson is currently the Vice President of Technology Development at SLB (formerly known as Schlumberger), headquartered in Houston, Texas. He leads the development and commercialization of sustainable technologies across carbon dioxide capture and storage, hydrogen, geothermal and geoenergy, long duration energy storage, and critical minerals.

He was born and raised in Cloquet, Minnesota where he graduated from University of Minnesota-Duluth with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1997 followed by Michigan Tech with a doctorate degree in chemical engineering in 2001. Under the leadership of Kirk Schulz at Michigan Tech, Alan studied the deactivation of three-way automotive emissions control catalysts in collaboration with the Ford Motor Company.

After graduating from Michigan Tech, Alan accepted a tenure-track academic position at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, where he received tenure as an Associate Professor and Associate Department Chair of Chemical Engineering. He then accepted a position with The Dow Chemical Company in Midland, Michigan where he held several roles in technology leading product and process development across water treatment, agriculture chemicals, acrylics and acrylates, battery materials, and semiconductors.

Alan went on to become the Chief Technology Officer and CEO of New Markets for Johnson Matthey in London, U.K. where he led technology and commercial development across automotive, platinum group metal refining, catalysis and process engineering, and new business development. He then accepted a position as the Chief Technology Officer for Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in Abu Dhabi, UAE leading technology, digital and AI, and sustainability for the state oil company. Alan joined Redwood Materials as the Senior Vice President of Battery materials responsible for technology development for cathode active materials for lithium-ion batteries.

Alan is a Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), where he served as AIChE President and Board Director, and was member Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS), Continuing Education Committee, Awards Committee, Career and Education Operating Council, and Catalysis and Reaction Engineering Division. Alan is a Professional Engineer in Alberta, Canada, a Chartered Engineer in the U.K., and a Fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE).

Excerpted from the 2025 Chemical Engineering Academy induction ceremony.