© 2004 Dream Merchant Dream Merchant • 2309 Torrance Blvd. #104, Torrance, CA 90501 (310) 328-1925 email: Jkm316@aol.com INVENTORS HALL OF FAME
Hanford, Holmes
Patent No. 2,284,896 Polyurethane
William Edward Hanford was born December 9, 1908 in Bristol, Pennsylvania. Donald Fletcher Holmes was born September 29, 1910 in Woodbury, New Jersey. Hanford received his B.S. from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy in 1930, Homes with a B.S. in Organic Chemistry from Amherst College in 1931. Both recieved Masters and Doctorate degrees from the University of Illinois.
They teamed up at E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, receiving their polyurethane patent in 1942. The process reacts polyols and related hydroxy compounds with diisocyanates to yield polyurethane. It's the basis today for the manufacture of all polyurethanes.
Flexible polyurethane foam is used as an upholstery material, and the rigid foam is commonly used as a heat insulating material in homes, offices, and refrigerators. Plyurethane is also used in life-saving artificial hearts, safety padding in modern automobiles, and in carpeting.
Don Holmes remained with Du Pont , working in the textile divisions until just before his death on October 13, 1980.
Hanford left Du Pont in 1942 to join GAF Corporation. In 1946, he joined M.W. Kellogg where he became Director of Research and served on the Board of Directors. In 1957, he became Research and Development Vice President at Olin Industries. He and his son organized Water-Sure, Inc. in 1968, specializing in equipment for sanitizing water supplies in third world countries. Dr. Hanford received numerous chemical industry awards.
The above information was supplied by the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc., Room 1D01-Crystal Plaza 3, 2021 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22202. Videotapes and printed materials are currently available. For more information, visit the Foundation's web site at http://www.invent.org
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