The Herty Advanced Materials Development Center was established in 1938 by the State of Georgia as an applied research center to honor Dr. Charles H. Herty, a

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe t ...

whose discoveries spearheaded the utilization of southern

softwoods Scots Pine, a typical and well-known softwood Softwood is wood from gymnosperm trees such as conifers. The term is opposed to hardwood, which is the wood from angiosperm trees. The main differences between hardwoods and softwoods is that th ...

in the manufacture of pulp and paper products. In 2012,

Georgia governor The governor of Georgia is the head of government of Georgia and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor also has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either veto or approve bills passed by the Georgia Legisl ...

Nathan Deal John Nathan Deal (born August 25, 1942) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party in 1992 a ...

transferred management of Herty to

Georgia Southern University Georgia Southern University (GS or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The flagship campus is in Statesboro, and other locations include the Armstrong Campus in Savannah and the Liberty Campus in Hi ...

to enhance economic and business development in the State of Georgia. Located on a 10-acre campus in Savannah, the Herty Advanced Materials Development Center is a new product and process accelerator, providing technical, market and manufacturing expertise within a 120,000 square foot facility.

Early history

The Herty Advanced Materials Development Center owes its origins to the Savannah Pulp and Paper Laboratory, a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

research and development center founded in 1932. Establishing the Savannah Pulp and Paper Laboratory was the idea of Dr. Herty, who advocated the creation of a "semi-commercial-scale" laboratory to demonstrate the utilization of southern

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts ...

in the production of newsprint and other fiber-based products derived from southern pine. Initial funding for the Laboratory came from the Chemical Foundation, Incorporated, the State of Georgia, the City of Savannah, the Savannah Electric and Power Company, and local businesses. The Laboratory was located at 512 West River Street, Savannah, GA, and is one of the earliest examples of a public-private partnership in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The founding of the Savannah River Pulp and Paper Laboratory by Dr. Herty in 1932 was a defining moment in the history of the North American paper industry. Dr. Herty's inventions related to the pulping of southern pine were implemented and commercialized in the 1940s and 1950s. Specifically, the demonstration of newsprint production at the Savannah Pulp and Paper Laboratory provided the justification for the first commercial newsprint mill located in

Lufkin Lufkin is the largest city in Angelina County, Texas and the county seat. The city is situated in Deep East Texas and about 60 miles west of the Texas-Louisiana border. Its estimated population is 35,021 as of July 1, 2019. Lufkin was founded ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

in 1940. Subsequent utilization of the Southern forests spurred economic development in the region, helping the United States become one of world's leading producers of pulp and paper products. Following the death of Dr. Herty in 1938, the Savannah Pulp and Paper Laboratory was renamed the Herty Foundation to commemorate the considerable contributions of its founder. The primary mission of the Herty Foundation was the support the pulp and paper industry. Paper companies, chemical companies and equipment suppliers used the Herty pilot facilities to evaluate products and process equipment. Notable projects included: pulping, bleaching and papermaking with

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

and silage sycamore for the

US Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...

; refiner plate evaluations for Sprout Waldron, white-water chemistry studies for the Dow Chemical Company; pilot scale pulping for various pulp mills;

chlorine dioxide Chlorine dioxide is a chemical compound with the formula ClO2 that exists as yellowish-green gas above 11 °C, a reddish-brown liquid between 11 °C and −59 °C, and as bright orange crystals below −59 °C. It is usually ...

bleaching studies for various paper companies, and the production of specialty papers for governmental agencies.

Early history

References

Further reading