Ting L Chu

Ting Li Chu passed away April 12, 2017. Ting was born in Beijing, China on December 26, 1924. He received both his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in chemistry at the Catholic University of Peking in China, before immigrating to St. Louis, Missouri in 1949 during the Communist Revolution. Ting earned his doctorate in chemical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis in 1952. Ting was a celebrated researcher in the field of materials science and a recognized pioneer in solar energy conversion. He invented the technology utilized in the NASA Space Shuttle and Hubble Space Telescope to provide energy from solar panels, earning five distinctions from NASA for his contributions. Ting also served as the Chief Consultant for the Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Research Institute. Over the course of his distinguished career, Ting was granted twenty patents, authored over 160 scientific articles and four books, and presented 110 papers at professional conferences. Ting was a member of the faculty in the School of Engineering at Southern Methodist University for twenty-one years, retiring as a full professor in 1988. He was recognized as Outstanding Professor at SMU and was also honored as a Distinguished Educator of America. He also served as a professor in the School of Engineering at the University of South Florida between 1988 and 1991 and while there received the designation of Professor Emeritus. Ting gave back to the institutions he served so that others could receive a quality education; there are currently endowed scholarships in his name and his wife’s name at both Southern Methodist University and Washington University. Among his favorite interests was travelling with his wife Shirley, and until her passing in 2012, the couple travelled extensively to virtually every continent across the globe. Ting is preceded by his devoted wife of fifty-seven years, Shirley Shan Chi Chu. He is survived by, children Dennis T. Chu, Dora T. Chu, and Daniel T. Chu, and grandchildren Kaitlin Elizabeth Chu, Zachary Daniel Chu, and Joshua Bradford Chu, all of Dallas, Texas. A funeral service will be held on Thursday, April 20th at 10 am at Sparkman/Hillcrest Funeral Home at 7405 W. Northwest Highway in Dallas. Interment will follow in Hillcrest Memorial Park. A reception will be held after the burial at Sparkman/Hillcrest.