James Albert Kent

Beloved husband and father, and world renowned engineering educator and author, passed away on January 6 after a brief illness. He was 92 and the son of Catherine Varnak Kapnicky McGinnes (deceased) and Nicholas Kapnicky (deceased). He was also predeceased by his brother George and son James A. Kent Jr. Dr. Kent has lived in Jupiter, FL with his wife of 72 years, Anita Barbe Kent, since 2010, where they are members of St. Patrick’s Church. Born in 1922 in New Britain Connecticut, his family moved to Jere, WV where they owned a grocery store and post office. He was an Eagle Scout. Following officer training at West Virginia University (WVU) and earning membership in Scabbard and Blade, he served as a Lieutenant in the 164th Engineer Combat Battalion. The 164th landed on Utah Beach as part of the D-Day invasion, and he led combat engineering activities across Europe, including battles at Andenne, Belgium and protection of the Remagen bridgehead in Germany. Academically gifted, Jim entered WVU at the age of 16, where he earned his B.S. Ch.E in 1943, M.S. Ch.E in 1948 and Ph.D. in 1950. From 1950 to 1954, Dr. Kent was a project engineer and research group leader with Dow Chemical and Monsanto, respectively. He later was a popular professor of Chemical Engineering at WVU where he was also a lead researcher at the WVU Nuclear Experiment Station. His accomplishments included development of wood-plastic combinations through the use of gamma-radiation. He later served as WVU Engineering Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Dean of Engineering at Michigan Technological University, and Chrysler Professor and Dean of Engineering and Science at the University of Detroit Mercy. One of his most enduring contributions to chemical engineering is his 50 years as the Editor of Kent and Riegel’s Handbook of Industrial Chemistry and Biotechnology. During that time he has issued 7 editions and grew it into a worldwide reference, tapping over 70 contributors and encompassing 38 chapters to meet the latest needs of scientists and engineers. He was working on the next edition at the time of his passing. Jim met his wife Anita while they were attending WVU, and they were married in Morgantown.

He was born James A. Kapnicky and is survived by his wife, Anita; brother Paul (Carol) Kapnicky of Morgantown, WV; and four of their sons, David (Young Hee) Kent of Troy, AL, Nicholas Kent of Jupiter,FL, Edward (Pamela) Kent of Palm Beach Gardens, and Joseph (Gay) of Oxford, MI. He also leaves behind 7 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren. A Memorial Mass will be said on January 9 at St Patrick’s Catholic Church, North Palm Beach, FL. A memorial service and internment will be held in Morgantown, WV in the spring. Contributions can be made to the James A. Kent Endowment for Biomedical Engineering (fund ID 2W296) attention Brett Knuckles, West Virginia University Foundation, One Waterfront Pl, 7th Floor, PO Box 1650, Morgantown, WV 26507-1650.