2/27/2026 Julia Park
Written by Julia Park
Mechanical Science and Engineering Professor Joseph Bentsman passed away unexpectedly on February 23, 2026. He was 74.
Bentsman completed his MS in electrical engineering in 1979 from Byelorussian Polytechnic Institute (BPI) in Minsk, and his PhD in electrical engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in 1984. After a short postdoctoral appointment at the University of Michigan, he joined the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as an assistant professor in 1985, where he remained for more than 40 years. He was actively engaged in his research and teaching until his passing. In addition to his home appointment in MechSE, Bentsman held affiliations with the departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Aerospace Engineering, and with the Carle Illinois College of Medicine.
His research utilizing control theory, modeling, and software development impacted a variety of industries and areas, including the laser chemical vapor deposition process, continuous steel casting, and automated electrosurgery. In 2006, he and colleagues developed a real-time 2D solidifying steel shell temperature control unit that was implemented at Nucor and ArcelorMittal and which ignited years of additional collaborations to continually improve the system. More recently, he and his graduate students closed the world’s first control loop around electrosurgical power, to minimize tissue damage during electrosurgery. In an interview in 2022, Bentsman said that when faced with challenges in his research, the bigger picture of finding breakthroughs was the most rewarding aspect of his work.
Growing up in Soviete Belorussia, Bentsman drew initial interest in engineering from his father, who worked as an electric drives control engineer, as well as from tinkering with tube amplifiers for his garage rock band in which he was the lead singer. After completing his undergraduate degree at BPI, he was drafted into the Soviet Army, where he served from 1973 to 1975. During his service, he built automated power stations in Siberia, including one of several stations with enormous antennas that supported the Apollo-Soyuz project.
Upon completing his military service, Bentsman joined the Kirov Machine Tool Factory Design Bureau in Minsk as a full-time electric drives control engineer, all while earning his master’s degree at BPI.
Bentsman was recognized with many awards for research and teaching during his long career. He was a Life Fellow in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and a Life Member of IEEE. He authored two books, eight book chapters, and more than 230 technical articles. He delivered invited talks, seminars, and conference presentations on six continents, mentoring scores of graduate students, and teaching thousands of undergraduates along the way.
In addition to his career in engineering, Bentsman maintained a lifelong love of music, having studied classical music as a child and later moving on to guitar and drums in his high school rock band—ultimately honing his skills in piano rock. His adventures with music continued during his time in service. “In 1973, when I was drafted into the Soviet army to serve in a Siberia military base, I was invited to sing folk songs in a base choir over the weekends and I also organized my own rock band there,” he said.
Throughout his career in academia, he established a custom of playing a version of Jailhouse Rock – which he referred to as “Joe’s House Rock” – for his PhD students upon completion of their defense. In an on-camera interview from 2023, he performed the song and spoke with passion and playfulness about the role of music in his life. You can read more about his musical experiences in the 2023 MechSE Magazine (pp 28-29).
Bentsman’s contributions to science, engineering, and education had a profound impact on MechSE as well as the broader university community. He will be missed.