Yurii Korcheviy

The Institute’s structure included the Division of High-Temperature Energy Conversion, which was headed by the Deputy Director for Scientific Work, Yurii Korcheviy.

Корчевий Юрій Петрович, Академік НАН України, енергетичне машинобудування

Yurii Korcheviy (October 15, 1936 – June 2, 2012) A prominent scientist in the fields of physical electronics, thermophysics, and power engineering, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, founder of leading scientific schools, and an organizer of energy science.

Yurii Korcheviy was born on October 15, 1936, in Kyiv. His path into advanced science began at the Taras Shevchenko State University of Kyiv, where he graduated from the Faculty of Radiophysics in 1959, specializing in Physical Electronics. It was there that he initiated his early research, successfully defending his Candidate of Sciences (Ph.D. equivalent) dissertation in 1966.

Since 1969, Yurii Korcheviy activities were closely linked with the institutions of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR:
1969–1985 — worked at the Institute of Electrodynamics of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR. In 1982, he successfully defended his Doctor of Sciences (D.Sc.) dissertation titled “Elementary Processes in Low-Temperature Alkali Metal Plasma” and became the Head of the Department of Low-Temperature Plasma Physics;
1985–1988 — leadership of the Division of the Institute for Energy Modelling Problems of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR;
1988 — began working at the Institute of Energy Saving Problems of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR as the Deputy Director for Scientific Work and the Head of the Division of High-Temperature Energy Conversion.

Under his leadership in the 1990s, the scientific foundations of the combustion and gasification processes of high-ash coal were established, significantly expanding the country’s fuel base.

Yurii Korcheviy became a key figure in the establishment of specialized scientific centers in Ukraine. In 1996, the Scientific and Technical Center of Coal Energy Technologies (STCCET) was founded on the basis of the Division he headed at the IESP of the NAS of Ukraine. The Center operated under a dual institutional affiliation (the NAS of Ukraine and the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine).

In accordance with the Decree of the President of the President of Ukraine, the IESP of the NAS of Ukraine was designated as the lead organization for developing the Comprehensive State Energy Saving Program of Ukraine, which was enacted by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 148 dated February 5, 1997.

In 2002, STCCET was reorganized into the Institute of Coal Energy Technologies (ICET) of the NAS of Ukraine. Thanks to Yurii Korcheviy charisma and energy, the Institute rapidly became a leading, internationally recognized scientific institution in the field of energy. He served as the Director of ICET from 2002 to 2009, and later became its Honorary Director.

The scope of the scientist’s research interests encompassed the direct conversion of thermal energy into electricity and the utilization of low-grade fuels. Yurii Korcheviy became the founder of two powerful scientific schools:
Research on physicochemical processes in low-temperature alkali metal plasma.
Highly efficient and environmentally friendly coal technologies for power engineering.

In 1992, Yurii Korcheviy was elected a Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, specializing in Thermophysics. In 1994, he was awarded the title of Professor, and in 1997, he was elected an Academician of the NAS of Ukraine, specializing in Power Machinery Engineering.
The scientist’s creative and research output includes more than 300 scientific papers. He also supervised and trained 11 Candidates of Sciences (Ph.D. equivalent) and 2 Doctors of Sciences (D.Sc.).

His merits and outstanding achievements were recognized at the highest level:

  • Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (1997);
  • Laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in the Field of Science and Technology (2002);
  • Honorary Energy Specialist of Ukraine (2005);
  • Honored Worker of Science and Technology of Ukraine (2008);
  • Awarded the Distinction of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine “For Scientific Achievements” (2011).
The Most Significant Results of the IESP of the NAS of Ukraine:
For the first time in Ukraine, the draft Law of Ukraine “On Energy Saving” was developed. Its scientific concept reflected globally accepted views on the nature and substance of state policy in the field of energy saving, tailored to the specific conditions of our country, alongside draft state standards on energy saving;
For the first time, the main directions for regional energy development were scientifically substantiated, incorporating energy-saving policies. This became highly relevant in the context of economic independence and the market relations that were beginning to emerge within the country’s economy.

Yurii Korcheviy has forever entered history as an intellectual leader of Ukraine’s fuel and energy complex, whose ideas continue to evolve through the work of his students and followers.

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