Three Princeton engineering professors have been elected members of the National Academy of Engineering, a high professional honor among engineers.

Christodoulos Floudas, Richard Miles and Alexander Smits were among 68 new members and nine foreign associates elected to the academy, according to a Feb 8 announcement by NAE President Charles Vest.

In the announcement, Floudas, the Stephen C. Macaleer ’63 Professor in Engineering and Applied Science and professor of chemical and biological engineering, was noted for his contributions to theory, methods and applications of global optimization in process systems engineering, computational chemistry and molecular biology.

Miles, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, was lauded for his development of laser-based flow field diagnostics and contributions to hypersonic testing technologies.

And Smits, the Eugene Higgins Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and chair of mechanical and aerospace engineering, was praised for his contributions to the measurement and understanding of turbulent flows, fluids engineering and education.

Founded in 1964, the National Academy of Engineering is a member of the National Academies, which also includes the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council.

Membership in the academy honors those who have made contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature,” and to the “pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”

The latest elections bring the total membership of the academy to 2,290 U.S. members and 202 foreign associates. The additions of Floudas, Miles and Smits brings the number of Princeton engineering faculty in the National Academy of Engineering to 28, including emeritus professors.