W. E. S. Turner
   HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - W. E. S. Turner
OR:
W. E. S. Turner on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

William Ernest Stephen Turner (22 September 1881 – 27 October 1963) was a British chemist and pioneer of scientific glass technology.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
accessed 15 July 2009


Biography

Turner was born in
Wednesbury Wednesbury () is a market town in Sandwell in the county of West Midlands, England. It is located near the source of the River Tame. Historically part of Staffordshire in the Hundred of Offlow, at the 2011 Census the town had a population of 3 ...
, Staffordshire on 22 September 1881. He went to King Edward VI Grammar School, Five Ways,
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, and achieved a BSc (1902) and MSc (1904) in chemistry at the
University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university located in Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingha ...
. He married Mary Isobell Marshall (died 1939) and they had 4 children. In 1904, he joined the University College of Sheffield as a lecturer, and, in 1915, established the Department of Glass Manufacture, becoming in 1916 the Department of Glass Technology. He remained as its head until his retirement in 1945. In 1943, he married Helen Nairn Munro, an artist noted for her glass engraving, and a teacher of glass decoration at the
Edinburgh College of Art Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of eleven schools in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Edinburgh. Tracing its history back to 1760, it provides higher education in art and design, architecture, histor ...
. She was provided with a blue dress and shoes in glass fibre cloth (which was then an unusual industrial material). This has been selected as one of the items in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's
A History of the World in 100 Objects ''A History of the World in 100 Objects'' was a joint project of BBC Radio 4 and the British Museum, consisting of a 100-part radio series written and presented by British Museum director Neil MacGregor. In 15-minute presentations broadcast on ...
. BBC A History of the World
Glass Fibre Wedding Dress The same year, he established a collection of historical and modern glass which became the Turner Museum of Glass from his extensive collection, and the wedding dress is on display there.Turner Museum Website
/ref> He died on 27 October 1963.


Work


Publications

From 1904 to 1914, he published 21 papers on physical chemistry, mainly on
molecular weight A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioch ...
s in solution. However, the bulk of his work from 1917 to 1954 was on the chemistry and technology of glass. Following his retirement, he produced an extensive series on the history of glass technology and on glass in archeology. Apart from this, in 1909, he wrote a series of articles in the
Sheffield Daily Telegraph The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' is a weekly newspaper published in Sheffield, England. Founded in 1855 as the ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'', it became known as the ''Sheffield Telegraph'' in 1938. History The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' was founded i ...
about the scientist in industry, in which cooperation with universities was urged.


Research

His early career was strictly academic, largely dealing with the associations of molecules in the liquid state. However, as his articles in the local newspaper showed, he was interested in the application of science to practical industrial problems, and this became the main theme of his work. The beginning of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
cut off
metallurgical Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
supplies from
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, and Turner proposed that the University should help British industry. The work in metallurgy led to enquiries about glass, and in 1915 Turner produced a 'Report on the glass industry of Yorkshire', noting that this was largely unscientific and rule of thumb in nature. He thereby persuaded the University to set up a Department of Glass Manufacture in 1915 for research and teaching where he remained for the rest of his career, becoming internationally known. The main thrust of his research was on a fundamental understanding of the relationship between the chemical composition and the working properties of glasses. In 1916, he founded the Society of Glass Technology, becoming its first secretary. It published a Journal, which he edited until 1951. He was also involved in the formation of the International Commission on Glass.


Teaching

Turner initially taught physical chemistry, and in 1905 started specific courses for metallurgists. This involvement led him to become President of the Sheffield Society of Applied Metallurgy in 1914. In 1915, the Department of Glass Manufacture began an outreach programme, providing short courses to industry in
Mexborough Mexborough is a town in the City of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Situated between Manvers and Denaby Main, it lies on the River Don close to where it joins the River Dearne, and the A6023 road runs through the town. It is contiguo ...
, Barnsley, Castleford and Knottingley in addition to Saturday classes in Sheffield. These were extended to glass making centres in Derby, Alloa, Glasgow and London. From 1917, full-time day students entered for what became a Bachelor of Technical Science degree. During the Second World War, Turner and other staff of the department provided technical lectures to industries such as those making glass electronic vacuum tubes.


Honours

He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1919 New Year Honours for application of science to the glass industry, and in 1938 was appointed a Fellow of the Royal Society. He was the only person outside Germany to receive the Otto Schott Medal.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, William E. S. Fellows of the Royal Society Officers of the Order of the British Empire 1881 births 1963 deaths English chemists Glass engineering and science Glass makers