Maurice Morton (3 June 1913 – 23 March 1994) was a polymer author, educator, and researcher. He was the first director of the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classifie ...

's Institute of Rubber Research, which in 1993 was renamed the Maurice Morton Institute of Polymer Science.

Personal

Morton was born the Russian Empire on 3 June 1913. Due to political instability following World War I, Morton's family moved from Latvia to Canada, settling in Montreal. Some of his earliest memories were of gunfire when the Russian Revolution began in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. He attended college at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...

. He married Lilian Rosenbloom in 1933. The two were married for sixty years, until her death in 1993. Morton emigrated to the United States in 1948, to take a position at the

, where he would remain for his career. Morton had three children, Jay Dennis, John Alex, and Ruth.

Education

* 1934 - BA Chemistry at

* 1945 - PhD Chemistry,

on the topic of emulsion copolymerization of butadiene-styrene ( SBR) rubber.

Career

* 1936 - 1941 Chief Chemist -

Johns Manville Johns Manville is an American company based in Denver, Colorado, that manufactures insulation, roofing materials and engineered products. For much of the 20th century, the then-titled Johns-Manville Corporation was the global leader in the m ...

, Quebec * 1941 - 1944 Chief Chemist - Congoleum Canada, Montreal * 1945 - 1948 Assistant Professor and department head at Concordia University * 1948 - hired by George S. Whitby as assistant director of rubber research for the U. S. Government Rubber Research Program's at the

. Some of his first accomplishments were the design and execution of experiments to confirm theories developed by

Paul J. Flory Paul John Flory (June 19, 1910 – September 9, 1985) was an American chemist and Nobel laureate who was known for his work in the field of polymers, or macromolecules. He was a leading pioneer in understanding the behavior of polymers in solu ...

. * 1952 - upon retirement of Prof. Whitby, the university appointed Morton as the first Professor of Polymer Chemistry, and assistant director of the chemistry department. * 1956 - founded the Ph.D. program in Polymer Chemistry at the university's Institute of Rubber Research * 1962 - served as chairman of the ACS Division of Polymer Chemistry. * 1993 - retired as Regents Professor Emeritus of Polymer Chemistry Morton held three patents in polymer chemistry. He wrote more than 100 technical articles over his career, as well as widely used texts.

Awards and Recognitions

* 1979 -

Colwyn medal Colwyn was a local government district with borough status from 1974 to 1996, being one of six districts in the county of Clwyd, north-east Wales. History The borough was created on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972. It covered ...

of the Plastics and Rubber Institute of Great Britain * 1985 -

Charles Goodyear Medal The Charles Goodyear Medal is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society, Rubber Division. Established in 1941, the award is named after Charles Goodyear, the discoverer of vulcanization, and consists of a gold medal, a framed ...

from the

ACS Rubber Division ACS or Acs may refer to: Organizations and societies * American Cancer Society, an American voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer * American Ceramic Society, an American professional organization * American Cheese Socie ...

* 1988 -

Polymer Education Award * 1990 - Médaille de la Ville de Paris * 1991 - Honorary Doctorate,

* 1994 - International Rubber Science Hall of Fame

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, Maurice Polymer scientists and engineers 1913 births 1994 deaths U.S. Synthetic Rubber Program University of Akron faculty Latvian emigrants to Canada Canadian emigrants to the United States