Lloyd Hamilton Donnell (May 25, 1895 – November 7, 1997) was an American

mechanical engineer Mechanical may refer to: Machine * Machine (mechanical), a system of mechanisms that shape the actuator input to achieve a specific application of output forces and movement * Mechanical calculator, a device used to perform the basic operations of ...

, and Professor of

Mechanical Engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

at the

Illinois Institute of Technology Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the merger of the Armour Institute and Lewis Institute in 1940. The university has prog ...

. He is considered internationally renowned expert in

engineering mechanics Applied mechanics is the branch of science concerned with the motion of any substance that can be experienced or perceived by humans without the help of instruments. In short, when mechanics concepts surpass being theoretical and are applied and e ...

, specifically known for his work on shell analysis and thin-shell structure. He was recipient of the 1969

ASME Medal The ASME Medal, created in 1920, is the highest award bestowed by the ASME (founded as the American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Board of Governors for "eminently distinguished engineering achievement". The award has been presented every year ...

Biography

Youth, education and early career

Donnell was born

Kents Hill, Maine Kents Hill is an unincorporated village in the northwestern corner of the town of Readfield in Kennebec County, Maine, United States, east of the town of Fayette, with which the village shares a zip code (04349). The village's name comes from ...

in 1895, son of Albert Webb Donnell and Annie Morrell Hamilton Donnell. His father was a teacher and his mother an author.Lloyd H. Donnell - NNDB
at ''nndb.com,'' 2014. Accessed 2017-07-19. After regular education he obtained his BSc in Mechanical Engineering from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

in 1915. In 1930 he also obtained his PhD at the University of Michigan under

Stephen Timoshenko Stepan Prokofyevich Timoshenko (russian: Степан Прокофьевич Тимошенко, p=sʲtʲɪˈpan prɐˈkofʲjɪvʲɪtɕ tʲɪmɐˈʂɛnkə; uk, Степан Прокопович Тимошенко, Stepan Prokopovych Tymoshenko; ...

. After his graduation in 1915, Donnell had started teaching at

. From 1930 to 1933 he was research assistant at the Aeronautical Laboratory of Caltech at

Theodore von Kármán Theodore von Kármán ( hu, ( szőllőskislaki) Kármán Tódor ; born Tivadar Mihály Kármán; 11 May 18816 May 1963) was a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer, and physicist who was active primarily in the fields of aeronaut ...

. From 1933 to 1939 he was engineer at Goodyear Zeppelin Company, where he worked on the design of airships.

Further career and acknowledgment

In 1939 Donnell joined the Illinois Institute of Technology faculty, where he served as Professor of Mechanical Engineering until his retirement in 1962. Afterwards he was Professor at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, and in 1974 guest professor at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

. Donnell was founding editor of the engineering journal ''Applied Mechanics Reviews''. He was awarded the honorary doctor degree by the

. In 1960 he received the

Worcester Reed Warner Medal Worcester Reed Warner (May 16, 1846 – June 25, 1929) was an American mechanical engineer, entrepreneur, manager, astronomer, and philanthropist. With Ambrose Swasey he cofounded the Warner & Swasey Company. Biography Life and career Warner ...

of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME),''Journal of Engineering for Power,'' 1964. p. 644 the

Theodore von Karman Medal The Theodore von Karman Medal in Engineering Mechanics is awarded annually to an individual in recognition of his distinguished achievement in engineering mechanics, applicable to any branch of civil engineering. This award was established and endo ...

in 1968 and the

in 1969.

Work

Donnell is known for his "stress-analysis research into cylindrical shells, which advanced development of monocoque (wherein the external frame helps supports structural load) bodies for automobiles and planes. He also studied dynamics, elasticity, instability, and wave propagation."

Selected publications

* Donnell, Lloyd Hamilton. ''Longitudinal wave transmission and impact.'' University of Michigan, 1930. * Donnell, Lloyd Hamilton.
Stability of thin-walled tubes under torsion
'' NACA Report No. 479, 1935. * Donnell, Lloyd Hamilton. ''Beams, plates and shells.'' McGraw-Hill Companies, 1976. * Donnell, Lloyd Hamilton. ''Symposium on the Theory of Shells (1966 : University of Houston). Proceedings,'' 1967

References

External links

Lloyd H. Donnell
Illinois Institute of Technology, Hall of Fame {{DEFAULTSORT:Donnell, Lloyd Hamilton 1895 births 1997 deaths American mechanical engineers American centenarians Men centenarians University of Michigan faculty Illinois Institute of Technology faculty Stanford University faculty People from Readfield, Maine ASME Medal recipients 20th-century American engineers University of Michigan College of Engineering alumni