George F. Andreasen (February 16, 1934 – August 11, 1989), born in

Fremont, Nebraska Fremont is a city and county seat of Dodge County in the eastern portion of the state of Nebraska in the Midwestern United States. The population was 27,141 at the 2020 census. Fremont is the home of Midland University. History From the 1830 ...

, was an American orthodontist and

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

. Andreasen, most noted for his invention and patent of the

Nitinol Nickel titanium, also known as Nitinol, is a metal alloy of nickel and titanium, where the two elements are present in roughly equal atomic percentages. Different alloys are named according to the weight percentage of nickel; e.g., Nitinol 55 and ...

Wire, also known as Memory Wire or

shape memory alloy In metallurgy, a shape-memory alloy (SMA) is an alloy that can be deformed when cold but returns to its pre-deformed ("remembered") shape when heated. It may also be called memory metal, memory alloy, smart metal, smart alloy, or muscle wire. P ...

, began his experimentation with the

nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow to ...

titanium Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

(NiTi) alloys as early as 1969. His idea for Nitinol came from an article he read in the United States Naval laboratory publication supplement in the Journal of American Orthodontics. Over the course of the next seven years, Andreasen experimented with his formula until he reached his goal and was awarded U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,324 on July 26, 1979. To this day, this is the highest earning patent fostered by the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

College of Orthodontics. Andreasen joined the University of Iowa Orthodontics department in 1963 and was chairman of the orthodontics department from 1965 to 1975. He held degrees in mechanical engineering and in dentistry from

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and the

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. He was a diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics. Dr. Andreasen died on August 11, 1989, of

multiple myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, an ...

at the age of 55. In recognition of Dr. Andreasen's significant contributions to the field of orthodontics and thanks to generous contributions by alumni and other supporters, the Department of Orthodontics at the University of Iowa has established a Dr. George Andreasen Memorial fund to support orthodontic resident research projects.

References

New York Times

"Inventor of the Year." July 17, 1980
Page 13A Cedar Rapids Gazette {{DEFAULTSORT:Andreasen, George Nickel–titanium alloys 1934 births 1989 deaths University of Iowa faculty University of Nebraska–Lincoln alumni People from Fremont, Nebraska Deaths from multiple myeloma 20th-century American inventors Alumni of the University of Oxford Deaths from cancer in the United States