Alan Neville Gent
| Alan Neville Gent | |
|---|---|
| Born |
November 11, 1927 United Kingdom |
| Died |
September 20, 2012 (aged 84) United States |
| Nationality | British-American |
| Fields | Polymer Science |
| Institutions | BRPRA, University of Akron |
| Alma mater | University of London |
| Known for | Adhesion, Rubber |
| Notable awards |
Bingham Medal (1975) Charles Goodyear Medal (1990) Colwyn Medal (1972) Whitby Award (1987) |
Alan Neville Gent (11 November 1927 – 20 September 2012) was an English scientist who contributed to understanding adhesion physics, and fracture of rubbery, crystalline and glassy polymers.[1][2]
Contributions to Rubber Science
- Discoverer of the Fletcher-Gent effect
- Originator of the Gent hyperelastic model
- Investigated the O-ring failure in the space shuttle Challenger disaster.
- Editor/author of the textbook Engineering with Rubber[3]
- Studied the conditions that cause cavitation in rubber under the action of hydrostatic tensile loading [4]
Life
He was born in Leicester, England. He earned degrees in physics and math at the University of London, finally receiving a doctorate there in 1955 on the mechanics of deformation and fracture of rubber and plastics.
At age 17, he worked as a research assistant at the John Bull Rubber Co. He served in the British Army from 1947-49. He then became a research physicist and later a principal physicist at the British Rubber Producer's Research Association.
Gent joined the faculty of the University of Akron in 1961, spending nearly a half century at the school.
Gent had been assistant director of the Institute of Polymer Science, dean of graduate studies and research, as well as a researcher and professor.
Gent received the Charles Goodyear Medal from the ACS Rubber Division in 1990, and also the George S. Whitby teaching award. Among a number of other honors he received was the Colwyn Medal of the Plastics and Rubber Institute in 1978.
He died Sept. 20 2012 at the age of 85.
References
- ↑ Directory of Graduate Research 1963 p2 "ALAN NEVILLE GENT, Professor (b. 1927). B.Sc, 1946, Ph.D., 1955, Univ. of London. Polymer Physics. Mechanics of rubber spring systems; viscoelastic behavior of polymers; stress relaxation; failure processes; crystallization. A. N. Gent ..."
- ↑ "Dr. Alan Neville Gent Obituary: View Alan Gent's Obituary by Akron Beacon Journal". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
- ↑ Gent, Alan (2012). Engineering with Rubber. Hanser. ISBN 978-1-56990-508-1.
- ↑ Gent, Alan N. (1990). "Cavitation in Rubber: A Cautionary Tale". Rubber Chemistry and Technology. 63 (3): 49–53. doi:10.5254/1.3538266.
- (2012) REMEMBERING PROF. ALAN NEVILLE GENT. Rubber Chemistry and Technology: December 2012, Vol. 85, No. 4, pp. 669–670.