Background
Nance Dicciani was born in 1947 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father was an industrial engineer, who supported her interest in the sciences.
Nance Dicciani was born in 1947 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father was an industrial engineer, who supported her interest in the sciences.
She studied chemical engineering, obtaining a bachelor"s degree at Villanova University in 1969, a masters at the University of Virginia in 1970, and her doctoral degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1977.
Forbes magazine has ranked her as one of The World"s 100 Most Powerful Women. In her doctoral dissertation, "Ultrasonically-Enhanced Diffusion of Macro Molecules in Gels," she applied chemical engineering to medical imaging, work that significantly contributed to the development of ultrasonic scanners for examining pregnant women. In 1987, she earned an Master of Business Administration from the Wharton Business School.
She was involved in developing the company"s first non-cryogenic process for the separation of nitrogen and oxygen from air, and in identifying a new catalyst for producing benzene from coke.
In 1991, Dicciani was hired by Rohm and Haas as business director for its Petroleum Chemicals Division. By 1999, she had become senior vice president
In November, 2001, Dicciani became president and chief executive officer of Specialty Materials, a strategic business group of Honeywell. Specialty Materials, based in Morristown, New Jersey, provides customers with high-performance specialty materials, including fluorine products.
Specialty films and additives.
Advanced fibers and composites. Intermediates; specialty chemicals. Electronic materials and chemicals.
And technologies and materials for petroleum refining.
Dicciani is credited with having cut costs, boosted sales and emphasized innovation at Specialty Materials. Nance Dicciani retired from Honeywell as of April 14, 2008.
In 2006, Dicciani was appointed by President George W. Bush to the President"s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). She also currently serves on the Executive Committee of the American Chemistry Council and chairs the Board Research Committee. Dicciani is also a vice president of Service Civil International, the Society of Chemical Industry and serves on their Executive Committee. Dicciani serves on the Boards of Directors for Halliburton, Praxair, and Rockwood Holdings, Incorporated. She also serves on the board of trustees of Villanova University. She has received a number of awards, including a 1987 Achievement Award from the Society of Women Engineers. She was the 2003 Warren K. Lewis Lecturer in Chemical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has been ranked one of “The World"s 100 Most Powerful Women” by Forbes magazine.
