Conference: June 13 – 17, 2022 Exhibition: June 14 – 16, 2022
Awarded to an individual who has made significant contributions in the gas turbine industry within the first five years of their career.
History of winners can be found here.
Dr. Natalie Smith is a Senior Research Engineer in the Machinery Department at Southwest Research Institute. Her research experience includes aerodynamic design and testing of turbomachinery and advanced system analysis for programs related to power generation, aviation, oil & gas and energy storage both in academia and industry. She is a demonstrated leader in energy storage in which she has designed and operated first-of-kind laboratory-scale facilities. Her contributions in turbomachinery have resulted in 18 journal publications, three book chapters, 30 conference papers, and three best paper awards. Dr. Smith serves on the ASME Global Gas Turbine News editorial committee, has served on the ASME PTC-10 update committee, and has held leadership positions in Turbo Expo at the technical committee and organizing committee levels. She served as the Review Chair for Turbo Expo 2022. Finally, she teaches thermodynamics at a local university, coaches a high school mountain bike team, and holds two national titles in mountain biking.
