(*9. 2. 1960– 22. 5. 2023)
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., the Leading Scientific Researcher at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics of SAS, died on May 22, 2023.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was born on February 9, 1960, in Lučenec. After completing his secondary education at the Secondary Technical School of Mechanical Engineering in Zvolen, he pursued his studies at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, which he completed in 1984.
Since graduating, Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., has worked continuously at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS. He started with a two-year study stay in 1984, followed by his doctoral studies, which he successfully defended in 1991.
As an independent scientific researcher, he led the Department of Intermetallic Phases (since 1995) and later the Division of Material and Construction Properties (since 2001). In 2006, he obtained the academic title of Doctor of Sciences (DrSc.). From 2009 to 2017, he was a member of the Presidium of SAS, serving as the Vice-Chairman of the Division for Department I from 2009 to 2015. Since 2015, he served as the Head of the Centre for Applied Research of SAS, focusing on new materials and technologies. He was a member of the Learned Society of SAS and served as a member of the APVV Council for Technical Sciences from 2014 to 2018. He also worked as an expert for the European Commission, evaluating projects within the framework programs, and was the national delegate for Horizon 2020 – Space.
From the beginning of his career, Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., focused on the research of solidification processes of complex metallic alloys and their influence on microstructure and selected mechanical properties of the components produced from them. He initially dedicated his work to the directional solidification of nickel alloys for aircraft engine blades, one of the leading research topics at the Institute of Materials and Mechanics of Machines, SAS. After a long-term stay at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium, in collaboration with Prof. F. Delannay, he established his team focusing on complex intermetallic alloys based on nickel, titanium, and iron. He successfully built a top-notch scientific team at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, specializing in the solidification processes of complex intermetallic alloys. Their research aimed to significantly improve their mechanical properties at high temperatures and enhance their corrosion (oxidation) resistance. In 2013, he received the Minister of Education, Science, Research, and Sport of the Slovak Republic Award in the Scientific and Technical Team of the Year category.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was one of the most prolific and influential authors at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, with numerous scientific publications in respected journals and significant citation impact. He and his colleagues have published 126 scientific papers indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection database since 1990, including 83 peer-reviewed articles. His works received 1300 citations, corresponding to a Hirsch index of 24.
He was the principal investigator for three APVV projects, seven VEGA projects, two projects within the 6th and 7th Framework Programs of the European Union, as well as projects for ESA, Copernicus, COST 522, COST 538, and four projects funded by the SAS.
He supervised the education of five PhD students. Since 2007, he served continuously as the chairman of the scientific council at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS. He was the guarantor of doctoral studies in the field of Materials Engineering. Since 2004, he held the position of Editor-in-Chief of the CC journal Kovové Materiály-Metallic Materials.
In his field of expertise, he successfully established himself as one of the leading European experts. He was a key reviewer for various scientific journals, including Intermetallics, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Material Characterization, Acta Materialia, Letter of Philosophical Magazine, Journal of Material Science, and Journal of Material Research. He served as a member of several program committees of international congresses.
Thanks to the projects he initiated and led, the institute had access to all the necessary unique equipment for research in solidification processes, ranging from special furnaces enabling controlled solidification in different atmospheres to centrifugal casting and long-term measurement and evaluation of mechanical properties at high temperatures. This allows the demonstration of acquired knowledge in practical applications for high-temperature components such as aircraft engine blades or turbochargers. Two such applications are currently in the patenting process.
He received several awards for his scientific work, including being part of the collective team he led, recognized as a top scientific team of SAS according to the evaluation of an independent agency in 2011, and the Minister of Education, Science, Research, and Sport of the Slovak Republic Award in the Scientific and Technical Team of the Year category in 2013. On his 60th birthday, the SAS awarded him the Honorary Plaque Aurel Stodola for his contributions to technical sciences.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was one of the key scientific researchers at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, who significantly shaped its direction and contributed to the high-quality fundamental research of the institute. As a member of the Learned Society of SAS and a former vice-chairman of SAS, he was a respected and influential scientific researcher within the SAS, where he spent his entire professional life.
We have lost a person who devoted his entire life to science, education, and research, thereby contributing to the development of our society. We will carry him in our hearts as a precious and loyal colleague who never shied away from responsibility, always stood by the institute and the academy, effectively defended them, and represented them excellently. He was unassuming, modest, and shared the good and the bad with us with good faith.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., passed away on May 22, 2023, at 63, after a short and severe illness.
May his memory be honoured!
Ing. M. Nosko, Ph.D.
Director of the IMMM, SAS
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was born on February 9, 1960, in Lučenec. After completing his secondary education at the Secondary Technical School of Mechanical Engineering in Zvolen, he pursued his studies at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, which he completed in 1984.
Since graduating, Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., has worked continuously at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS. He started with a two-year study stay in 1984, followed by his doctoral studies, which he successfully defended in 1991.
As an independent scientific researcher, he led the Department of Intermetallic Phases (since 1995) and later the Division of Material and Construction Properties (since 2001). In 2006, he obtained the academic title of Doctor of Sciences (DrSc.). From 2009 to 2017, he was a member of the Presidium of SAS, serving as the Vice-Chairman of the Division for Department I from 2009 to 2015. Since 2015, he served as the Head of the Centre for Applied Research of SAS, focusing on new materials and technologies. He was a member of the Learned Society of SAS and served as a member of the APVV Council for Technical Sciences from 2014 to 2018. He also worked as an expert for the European Commission, evaluating projects within the framework programs, and was the national delegate for Horizon 2020 – Space.
From the beginning of his career, Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., focused on the research of solidification processes of complex metallic alloys and their influence on microstructure and selected mechanical properties of the components produced from them. He initially dedicated his work to the directional solidification of nickel alloys for aircraft engine blades, one of the leading research topics at the Institute of Materials and Mechanics of Machines, SAS. After a long-term stay at the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium, in collaboration with Prof. F. Delannay, he established his team focusing on complex intermetallic alloys based on nickel, titanium, and iron. He successfully built a top-notch scientific team at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, specializing in the solidification processes of complex intermetallic alloys. Their research aimed to significantly improve their mechanical properties at high temperatures and enhance their corrosion (oxidation) resistance. In 2013, he received the Minister of Education, Science, Research, and Sport of the Slovak Republic Award in the Scientific and Technical Team of the Year category.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was one of the most prolific and influential authors at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, with numerous scientific publications in respected journals and significant citation impact. He and his colleagues have published 126 scientific papers indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection database since 1990, including 83 peer-reviewed articles. His works received 1300 citations, corresponding to a Hirsch index of 24.
He was the principal investigator for three APVV projects, seven VEGA projects, two projects within the 6th and 7th Framework Programs of the European Union, as well as projects for ESA, Copernicus, COST 522, COST 538, and four projects funded by the SAS.
He supervised the education of five PhD students. Since 2007, he served continuously as the chairman of the scientific council at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS. He was the guarantor of doctoral studies in the field of Materials Engineering. Since 2004, he held the position of Editor-in-Chief of the CC journal Kovové Materiály-Metallic Materials.
In his field of expertise, he successfully established himself as one of the leading European experts. He was a key reviewer for various scientific journals, including Intermetallics, Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Material Characterization, Acta Materialia, Letter of Philosophical Magazine, Journal of Material Science, and Journal of Material Research. He served as a member of several program committees of international congresses.
Thanks to the projects he initiated and led, the institute had access to all the necessary unique equipment for research in solidification processes, ranging from special furnaces enabling controlled solidification in different atmospheres to centrifugal casting and long-term measurement and evaluation of mechanical properties at high temperatures. This allows the demonstration of acquired knowledge in practical applications for high-temperature components such as aircraft engine blades or turbochargers. Two such applications are currently in the patenting process.
He received several awards for his scientific work, including being part of the collective team he led, recognized as a top scientific team of SAS according to the evaluation of an independent agency in 2011, and the Minister of Education, Science, Research, and Sport of the Slovak Republic Award in the Scientific and Technical Team of the Year category in 2013. On his 60th birthday, the SAS awarded him the Honorary Plaque Aurel Stodola for his contributions to technical sciences.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., was one of the key scientific researchers at the Institute of Materials and Machine Mechanics, SAS, who significantly shaped its direction and contributed to the high-quality fundamental research of the institute. As a member of the Learned Society of SAS and a former vice-chairman of SAS, he was a respected and influential scientific researcher within the SAS, where he spent his entire professional life.
We have lost a person who devoted his entire life to science, education, and research, thereby contributing to the development of our society. We will carry him in our hearts as a precious and loyal colleague who never shied away from responsibility, always stood by the institute and the academy, effectively defended them, and represented them excellently. He was unassuming, modest, and shared the good and the bad with us with good faith.
Ing. Juraj Lapin, DrSc., passed away on May 22, 2023, at 63, after a short and severe illness.
May his memory be honoured!
Ing. M. Nosko, Ph.D.
Director of the IMMM, SAS