Mark Holtzapple is a chemical engineering professor at Texas A&M University.

In his early years, Mark's father was an Air Force pilot, so the family moved frequently.

In 1961, his father left the Air Force to become an architect and his family returned to the United States to live in York, Pennsylvania.

There, he researched water desalination and microclimate cooling, a method to prevent heat stress in soldiers encapsulated in chemical protective clothing.

[2] Dr. Holtzapple's research interests include the following: fuels and chemicals from biomass, food and feed processing, water desalination, high-efficiency air conditioning, high-efficiency engines, jet ejectors, compressors, expanders, conversion of waste heat to electricity, high-torque electric motors, and vertical-lift aircraft.