INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEE;RlhrQ CHEMISTRY
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Vol. 22, No. 12
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AMERICAN CQNTEMPORARIES Francis Perry Dunnington
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WAS introduced t o Frank Dunnington by my brother, the Bishop of Georgia, when I entered the University of Virginia in 1881, Dunnington having been a schoolmate of my brother in Baltimore. He was born in Baltimore on March 3, 1851. He took his B.S. degree at the University of Virginia in 1871, and the degrees of C.E., and M.E. in 1872. I n the following year he was appointed adjunct professor of analytical chemistry a t his Alma Mater. He held this position until 1884, when he was made full professor of chemistry, and from 1908 to 1919 he was professor of industrial and analytical chem-
istry. Doctor Dunnington’s early training in the science of chemistry came from that most able teacher and great chemist, John W. Mallet. Not only did he receive his early training from Mallet, but he was associated with him up to the time when Mallet left the University of Virginia to become professor of chemistry at the University of Texas in 1884. Thus he was well prepared to succeed Mallet as professor of chemistry at Virginia. Tall, red-headed (but lacking the fiery disposition usually accompanying this characteristic), a gentle, kindly face-Doctor Dunnington presented an imposing personality. In addition t o having the faculty of thoroughly imparting knowledge, he took a real personal interest in his students Francis Perry even to the extent of caring for them when they became ill. I recall vividly an instance in my own case when I was a student at Virginia. I had been suffering from an ailment and Doctor Dunnington One day noticed my apparent indisposition. He promptly sent me to his own home, where his kind hospitality and watchful care were extended to me until I was restored to normal health. Thus, his home came t o be regarded by his students as a sort of haven t o which they could go in times of distress, whether physical, mental, or spiritual. The very atmosphere of his home, made more ,,harming by the presence of his lovely wife and children, was an inspiration. He was imbued with a radiating spirit of brotherly love that endeared him to his associates, and outside of his duties of teaching chemistry “he went about doing good.” His benevolent activities have not been confined to his duties in connection with the university. He has always taken an active interest in the civic welfare, not only a t the university, but also in the town of Charlottesville, and the benefits resulting from his efforts in this direction will be enjoyed by the community for many years t o come. The installation of modern sewage for more than one hundred buildings in the university area was brought about through his efforts, and the work was personally supervised by him. He has also been instrumental in securing many other civic improvements. Withal he was a man of determination-strong-willed, persevering, and thorough. Thoroughness was a habit with him. When he built his home in Charlottesville he drew up specifications for all the materials to be used. As these materials were
delivered to the job he analyzed them carefully, even to the paint and mortar, to make sure that they conformed exactly to the specifications. Doctor Dunnington was probably the greatest analytical chemist of his day and was interested mainly in inorganic chemistry. Perhaps his greatest work was the demonstration of the practically universal occurrence of titanium in American rocks and soils. He was an exceptional teacher-patient, thorough, and inspiring. In his teaching he put great emphasis on the importance of being able to do a job with the materials and apparatus at hand, and by his own ingenuity in this line he developed this trait in his students, t o their later undoubted benefit. At the time of his graduation from the University of Virginia in 1871, the demand for chemists in industry was small, and Doctor Dunnington embarked on a career of teaching, t o which he has devoted all of his active life, at the University of Virginia. While he has never engaged in industrial activities, there is no doubt that industry has benefited by his influence. I think it must be a source of satisfaction to him t o know that many of his students have contributed in a large measure to the scientific development of our industries. Among his many old students are such well-known chemists and engineers as: Walter N. Page, chief engineer for the Guggenheim interests. Charles Baskerville, late director of laboratories, College of the City of New York. Fred C. Zeisberg, Development Department, E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. F. W. Bradway, Smokeless Powder Department, E. I. du Font de Nemours & Company. Angus B. Echols, vice president, E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. Richard Meade, late consulting chemist on lime and cement, Baltimore, Md. Francis P. Venable, head, Department of Chemistry and expresident, University of North Carolina. John Wilbur Watson, head, Chemistry Department, Virginia Polytechnic Institute. Thomas L. Watson, former state geologist for virgida. J. Hunter Pendleton, professor of chemistry, Virginia Military Institute. Stapleton Gooch, research manager, Coronet Phosphate Company. P. B. Yancey, manager, Explosives Department, Canadian Industries, Ltd. Robert MacDonald, Superintendent “Lionite” Abrasives Corporation. R. H. Stratton, manager, Giant Plant, Atlas Powder Company *
Dunnington
Although Doctor Dunnington has relinquished the arduous duties of teaching, he still maintains his place in the community. He is an elder of the Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville and he has always been an ardent supporter of the cause of temperance, Since his retirement he has devoted himself to a number of activities. He has spent a great deal of time in cataloging the chemical museum in the Cobb Chemical Laboratory; he has worked on the solubility of borates; he has written a number
December, 1930
IiVD USTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
of philosophical articles from a religious standpoint; he gets enjoyment from working in his own garden. As Mrs. Dunnington is now quite infirm, he has taken over a number of the duties in connection with the domestic routine of his household. Unusually active, both mentally and physically, for a man of his years, Doctor Dunnington still retains his interest in the affairs of the university. His continued interest in chemistry is evidenced by his regular attendance a t the meetings of the
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Virginia Section of the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, and at all special events held a t the university in connection with the subject of chemistry such as lectures and addresses by prominent chemists. To his former students, who a t various times and on special occasions return to visit their Alma Mater, the picture would not be complete without “Old Dunny.” He fits in perfectly with all the fine old traditions of the University of Virginia. CHAS.L. REESE
AMERICAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES Fansteel Products Company, Inc.
Present Fansteel Plant and Laboratory, North Chicago, Illinois
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HIRTY years ago scientific research was not so well regarded by business generally, nor was it practiced on the scale it is today. Whereas the inventor of today works in a corporation laboratory, plentifully supplied with equipment and material, in those days he usually worked alone, often without a bank account, hoping to find a partner willing to invest in his enterprise. Such was the case of Carl Pfanstiehl, who had invented a new method of winding the secondaries of high-frequency coils. Working in his basement shop, Pfanstiehl made x-ray coils, one a t a time, selling them to physicians in and around Chicago. After making a sale it was his custom to drop in a t the office of Chase and Sanborn, Chicago coffee merchants, whose cashier, James M. Troxel, obligingly cashed his checks. This was about the time when automobiles were first being manufactured on a commercial scale, and Mr. Troxel saw the possibilities of adapting Pfanstiehl’s coils, with a few changes and improvements, t o automobile ignition. Accordingly, early in 1907 the Pfanstiehl Electrical Laboratories was incorporated, Pfanstiehl furnishing the technical knowledge and ’rroxel most of the capital, amounting to $2570. The infant company prospered almost from the start. The first customer was the Jackson Motor Car Company, of Jacksm, hfich., and soon afterward the Auburn Company standardized on Pfanstiehl coils. \Tithin two years the Pfanstiehl company had expanded to the extent that coils were being turned out on a mass-production basis. By the time automobiles had turned from spark c d s to mzgneto ignition, motor cycles were on the
market in sufficient quantity to keep the Pfanstiehl plant busy. Marine engines and railroad motor cars also used the coils to some extent. Despite the many changes in motor ignition, the Pfanstiehl coil remained in demand for many years, and manufacture was not discontinued until 1921. Now all these coils required contact, or breaker, points, which a t that time were made of platinum. Platinum, always expensive, was becoming increasingly costly, so the two partners began to cast about for a substitute material. Tungsten was already under discussion by the trade as a possible contact material. After elaborate tests the partners decided that tungsten was even better than platinum, and far less costly. In fact, it seemed so much better than platinum that Pfanstiehl coils equipped with tungsten contact points were guaranteed five years, and tungsten contacts were made a talking point in selling the coils. But tungsten contact points were by no means easy to obtain. There was only one source of supply, and this manufacturer made contact points in certain sizes only and in limited quantity. It was therefore decided that the Pfanstiehl Electrical Laboratories would make their own tungsten contacts. It was this decision that definitely put the company into the field of metallurgical research. It is commonly known that tungsten, the hardest of all metals, also has the highest melting point (3370’ C.). The common method of making the tungsten disks for contact points had been to roll the metal into thin sheets and then punch the disks from the sheet. This had the disadvantage of presenting the flat grain of the metal as a contact surface.
