[2] He, along with R. Byron Bird and Warren E. Stewart, co-authored the classic textbook Transport Phenomena.
After graduate school he worked for Pfizer & Co in Brooklyn where he received US Patent US2787578 A for his development of a commercial process for recovering and purifying vitamin B12.
His research interests were in the development of improved separation processes and controlling the dynamics of biological systems.
In later life, he turned his attention to ways of developing scientifically informed intuition in bioengineers (in particular quantum biology).
Lightfoot was a 2004 recipient of the National Medal of Science, awarded by President George W. Bush "for his innovative research and leadership in transport phenomena focusing on biochemical and biomedical engineering with application to blood oxygenation, bioseparation techniques, and diabetic responses.
[12] In the spring of 2016, the University of Wisconsin Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering hosted qbio 2016,[13] a symposium in honor of Lightfoot's 90th birthday.