Thomas J. Dolan (1907 – 10 January 1996) was an American engineer and educator. He was a professor and department head at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Education

Dolan graduated in 1929 from the University of Illinois in civil engineering with highest honors and named Bronze Tablet. After briefly working in industry, he returned to Urbana to the University of Illinois, earning a M.S. in civil engineering in 1932.

Research and career

Dolan worked for the Chicago Bridge and Iron Co. between his B.S. and M.S. He spent the remainder of his career at the University of Illinois, with the except of a period during World War II when he was a captain in the U.S. Army (1942–45). He studied

fatigue Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

and

fracture Fracture is the separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacement discontinuity surfaces within the solid. If a displa ...

of metals and introduced the Dolan-Corten Cumulative Damage Theory, published in 1956. Dolan was Head of the Department of

Theoretical and Applied 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 ...

at the University of Illinois from 1952 to 1970. He became an emeritus professor in 1972. Dolan was the President of the Society for Experimental Stress Analysis (SESA) (now

Society for Experimental Mechanics Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) is a professional organization for engineers and scientists studying the design and implementation of experiments to characterize materials, structures, and systems. Formed in 1943 as the Society for Experim ...

) from 1951 to 1952. He was named the ninth Honorary Member of the Society in 1975, a position held until his death in 1996. SESA introduced the rank of Fellow in 1975 and Dolan was among the first class of SESA Fellows along with the seven other living Honorary Members of the society named through 1975. He served as vice president and Member of the executive committee of ASME, on the Board of Directors of

ASTM ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, an ...

, and on the U.S. National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. He also consulted to several companies, including

A.O. Smith A. O. Smith Corporation is an American manufacturer of both residential and commercial water heaters and boilers and the largest manufacturer and marketer of water heaters in North America. It also supplies water treatment products in the Asian ...

Bendix Aviation Bendix Corporation is an American manufacturing and engineering company which, during various times in its existence, made automotive brake shoes and systems, vacuum tubes, aircraft brakes, aeronautical hydraulics and electric power systems, av ...

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

, General Electric,

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

John Deere Deere & Company, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, transmissions, gearboxes) used in heavy equipment, ...

, and Rocketdyne.

Awards and recognition

R.L. Templin Award (1952) *

C.B. Dudley Medal (1954) * SEM

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Lecture and Award (1969) *University of Illinois College of Engineering Alumni Honor Award for distinguished service in Engineering (1974) * SEM Honorary Member (1975-1996) * SEM Fellow (1975) * ASME Nadai Award (1984)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frocht, Max American engineers Grainger College of Engineering alumni Fellows of the Society for Experimental Mechanics 1907 births 1996 deaths