Lloyd Montgomery Pidgeon, (December 3, 1903 – December 9, 1999) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

chemist who developed the

Pidgeon process The Pidgeon process is one of the methods of magnesium metal production, via a silicothermic reduction. Practical production requires roughly 35–40 MWh/ton of metal produced, which is on par with the molten salt electrolytic methods of producti ...

, one of the methods of

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

metal production, via a silicothermic reduction. He is considered the "father" of academic metallurgical research in Canada.

Biography

Born in

Markham, Ontario Markham () is a city in the Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in York Region, fourth largest ...

, the son of E. Leslie Pidgeon, a

United Church of Canada The United Church of Canada (french: link=no, Église unie du Canada) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholi ...

minister, and Edith Gilker, he received a Bachelor of Arts in science from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

in 1927, and a Ph.D. in chemistry from McGill University in 1929. In 1929, Pidgeon was awarded a

Sir William Ramsay Sir William Ramsay (; 2 October 1852 – 23 July 1916) was a Scottish chemist who discovered the noble gases and received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1904 "in recognition of his services in the discovery of the inert gaseous elements ...

Memorial Fellowship from Oxford University and worked under Sir Alfred Egerton until 1931. In 1931, he joined the

National Research Council National Research Council may refer to: * National Research Council (Canada), sponsoring research and development * National Research Council (Italy), scientific and technological research, Rome * National Research Council (United States), part of ...

, where he discovered the process that bears his name. Because of the demand for magnesium during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, a magnesium plant was built by Dominion Magnesium Limited (DML) near Ottawa, and five more magnesium plants were built during the war in the US to his design. Pidgeon was appointed Director of Research by DML in 1941. In 1943, he was appointed chairman of the department of metallurgy at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. He retired from that post in 1969. Pidgeon died in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...

at the age of 96, the author of over 50 original scientific papers as well as the holder of a number of patents in the field of chemical metallurgy.

Honours and awards

In 1996, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. He was made a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; french: Société royale du Canada, SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bil ...

in 1943, at the same time as he was awarded the Inco Medal for contributions to Extractive Metallurgy. The next year, he was given the Civil Service Professional Association Medal and the McCharles Prize, from the University of Toronto for outstanding work in Canadian Metallurgy. In 1946, he became a Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

. In 1967, the Alcan Medal for his contribution to the field of Metallurgy was his. He also received the Monel Medal from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

for distinguished achievements in Mineral Technology. He was inducted into the

Canadian Mining Hall of Fame The Canadian Mining Hall of Fame was conceived by Maurice R. Brown as a way to honor Canada's mine finders and builders, in recognition of accomplishments by leaders in the Canadian mining industry. The Hall was established in 1988; in 2022 it ha ...

Family

Pidgeon married Frances Rundle. They had two children.

References

1903 births 1999 deaths Canadian chemists Canadian Members of the Order of the British Empire McGill University alumni Officers of the Order of Canada People from Markham, Ontario University of Manitoba alumni University of Toronto faculty Canadian metallurgists Fellows of the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society {{Canada-scientist-stub