Univ.-Prof. Dr. Helmut Clemens will retire on October 1, 2022 and thus leave the Montanuniversität Leoben after 19 years. Helmut Clemens and the Physical Metallurgy in Leoben are linked by a success story with numerous awards, publications and scientific highlights.
Helmut Clemens was born on July 26, 1957 in Klagenfurt, where he also grew up and went to school. He studied Materials Science at Montanuniversität Leoben, where he graduated in 1983 and was awarded his Ph.D. in 1987. In 1997, he submitted his habilitation in the field of Intermetallic Materials.
Until 1990, Helmut Clemens worked as a university assistant at the Institute of Physics at Montanuniversität Leoben, before moving on to the Plansee company in Reutte in Tyrol, where he initially worked in research and development and then in 1992 became head of the special metals working group (later Intermetallic Materials). From 1998 to 2000, he held a professorship in Metallic Materials at the University of Stuttgart. After that he was professor of Materials Science at the University of Kiel and at the same time director of the Institute for Materials Research at the GKSS Research Center (now Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon) in Geesthacht. From 2003 until September 30, 2022, Helmut Clemens was professor of Physical Metallurgy and Metallic Materials at Montanuniversität Leoben.
As one of the most internationally recognized experts in research on titanium aluminides, Helmut Clemens has devoted himself to the development of these alloys for more than two decades. His work has contributed significantly to their use as important engineering materials for the production of next-generation air-jet engines and vehicle engines. His exceptional achievements in the development of these materials have been recognized with many scientific awards and honors, most notably the highly endowed and prestigious Honda Prize. Helmut Clemens is the author and co-author of approximately 500 technical articles and has published 14 books and special issues of scientific journals. His activities as a mentor and teacher at Montanuniversität Leoben are also impressive, as can be seen by the 47 dissertations and 80 master's theses supervised by him and the more than 500 diploma examinations. To celebrate his tireless efforts, a surprise party was held at the Department of Materials Science in his honor on July 7, 2022.
We thank Helmut Clemens for the successful and wonderful time together!
