The A. S. Mujumdar medal was set up in 2007. It aims to commend scientific research workers who have made distinguished contributions to scientific research in the field of international dryness and at the same time have made outstanding guidance for life. It is one of the top prizes in the field of drying. At the 9th Asia-Pacific Drying Conference, ADC 2017 held on September 24 to 26, Professor Chen Xiaodong was awarded the A.S. Mujumdar medal and became the twelfth person in the world to win the award.

Professor Chen Xiaodong made a systematic contribution in spray drying field, and achieved breakthrough from industrial level drying tower and granular product development to single droplet drying process and spray drying theory, bringing the understanding of spray drying process to a new level. The REA drying theory founded by him is now widely used in other drying fields. Professor Chen's research work covers a wide range of bionic chemical industry, food engineering, digestive tract engineering and particle technology, etc. By 2017, Professor Chen published more than 520 periodical papers, more than 220 conference papers, more than 20 book chapters and 3 professional books. He won the lifetime achievement award at the Twelfth International Conference on Engineering and Food in 2015. In 2017, Professor Chen received the honorary doctorate degree awarded by the French National Institute of Higher Education of Agronomy and Food Research for the first time in 187 years.

In addition to scientific research achievement, another important consideration of A. S. Mujumdar medal is its guiding role and leadership role in the drying field. For a long time, Professor Chen's outstanding contributions to this field are obvious to all. His students and postdoctoral students have developed in the food, dairy and dry industries to bring vitality to the industries. When attending international conferences and other academic exchanges, Professor Chen actively gives advices to young scholars and often brings new inspiration to them. At the same time, Professor Chen Xiaodong also provides a new platform for academic exchanges and cooperation in the field of international drying by hosting international conferences and establishing multi-country cooperation and exchange platforms. At dozens of international conferences, he made speeches and keynote speeches, has been active in the forefront of the research and application of dry technology for a long time, and continues to affect the development of drying field.

The award of A. S. Mujumdar medal is a comprehensive affirmation of the achievements, service and guidance of Professor Chen Xiaodong in the drying field for a long time. It is expected that Professor Chen will bring more new refreshing developments to the drying field in the future.