Hayne Palmour Papers 1948-2004

Summary
Contents
Names/subjects
Using these materials
Please note that some historical materials may contain harmful content and/or descriptions. Learn how we’re addressing it.
Creator
Palmour, Hayne
Size
38.5 linear feet (77 archival boxes)
Call number
MC 00223

This collection contains material documenting the career of Hayne Palmour, North Carolina State University Professor Emeritus of Ceramic Engineering. Included are biographical files, general correspondence, manuscripts, patents, administrative files, and research material generated by Palmour over a period of nearly six decades, from 1948 to 2004.

Hayne Palmour began his career at North Carolina State University in 1958, retiring in 1994. During his tenure at North Carolina State, Palmour was active as a researcher, educator, advisor, and administrator. Specific research interests included mechanisms of flow and fracture in spinel structured ceramics, materials processing and rate controlled sintering, and precision digital dilatometry. His focus was in the development of processes for the firing of complex ceramics. His involvement with the international scientific and technical research community and many contributions that he made to the field of advanced ceramics engineering, the defense industry, and the world of nuclear power are documented in the collection. Dr. Palmour died in 2017 at the age of 91.

Biographical/historical note

Hayne Palmour, North Carolina State University Professor Emeritus of Ceramic Engineering, attended the Georgia School of Technology and received a B.S. in the Technology of Ceramic Engineering in 1948, and in 1950 earned an M.S. in the Technology of Ceramic Engineering. He received a Ph.D. in Ceramic Engineering from North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (later North Carolina State University) in 1961. Palmour held numerous positions in industry before becoming an instructor of ceramic engineering with the Ceramic Engineering Department at North Carolina State College in 1958. In 1961 he became a Research Engineer with the N.C. State College Department of Engineering and in 1965 he was made a Research Professor with the Department of Engineering Research, North Carolina State Univesity, and a Professor of Ceramic Engineering, Department of Materials Engineering, in 1981. In 1985 Palmour traveled to Eastern Europe as a Fulbright Scholar.

During his 37 years at North Carolina State University, Palmour was active as a researcher, educator, advisor, administrator, and as a Faculty Senator. Palmour contributed to North Carolina State's development of ceramics engineering education and of advanced industrial applications of ceramics technology. Ceramics products are used in semiconductors, abrasives, computers, electrical equipment, and in the food and drug industry. Aerospace manufacturing utilizes ceramic components for jet engines, rocket nozzles, launching pads, and heat shields. All nuclear power reactors use ceramics materials as fuel elements. Advanced ceramics are also important as shielding and control materials used in nuclear reactors, and are used in the containment of nuclear waste.

Palmour's pioneering work in sintering and ceramics technology helped put the Department of Ceramics Engineering at North Carolina State University at the forefront of academic and governmental research. Sintering is the art and science of forming a coherent mass (of metallic powders for example) by heating without melting. Palmour's research interests included the development of processes for the firing of numerous complex ceramic materials, mechanisms of flow and fracture in spinel structured ceramics, materials processing and rate controlled sintering, and precision digital dilatometry.

Palmour was active in scientific and professional societies, including the American Ceramic Society, of which he was named a Fellow in 1965; National Institute of Ceramic Engineers; Keramos (Ceramic Professional Fraternity); the Society of the Sigma Xi; Phi Kappa Phi; and the International for Science and Sintering. Additionally Palmour was the recipient of the Governor's Award of Excellence, the Alcoa Foundation Engineering Research Achievement Award, John Marquis Award, 1987, and the Frenkel Prize (for extraordinary contributions in the field of sintering). In 1984 Palmour served as a Fulbright Distinguished Professor, Faculty of Chemistry, E. Kardelj University in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Dr. Palmour died in 2017 at the age of 91.

Scope/content

This collection contains material spanning a period of nearly six decades, 1948-2004, documenting the career of Hayne Palmour. Included are biographical files, professional correspondence, and manuscripts generated by Palmour for academic and technical publication. There are also technical reprints, proposals, grants, contracts, and papers related to patented inventions and processes designed by Palmour. Additionally there is an extensive collection of material related to the numerous ceramics conferences that Palmour participated in over the years. Papers related to Palmour's work as a ceramics engineering instructor and administrator at North Carolina State University are included in the collection as are academic research files, and material related to Palmour's work as an independent industry consultant. Research interests documented here include the development of processes for the firing of numerous complex ceramic materials, mechanisms of flow and fracture in spinel structured ceramics, materials processing and rate controlled sintering, and precision digital dilatometry.

Arrangement

Where possible, these papers have been maintained in the order that they were in at the time of their donation to the NC State University Libraries. They are organized into twelve series:

  • Series 1. Biographical and Correspondence Files, 1948-2004
  • Series 2. Manuscripts, 1955-1989
  • Series 3. Reports and Reprints, 1949-1993
  • Series 4. Proposals, Grants, and Contracts, 1959-1986
  • Series 5. Patents, 1955-1982
  • Series 6. Conferences and Seminars, 1959-1994
  • Series 7. NC State University Administration, 1958-1994
  • Series 8. Teaching and Students, 1957-1993
  • Series 9. Professional Organizations, 1952-1997
  • Series 10. Publications, 1959-1997
  • Series 11. Research Files, 1962-1985
  • Series 12. Consulting, 1974-1993

Use of these materials

The nature of the NC State University Libraries' Special Collections means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The NC State University Libraries claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials.

The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.

This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Hayne Palmour Papers, MC 00223, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC

Related material

Source of acquisition

Gift of Hayne Palmour III, 1987 - 1997 (Accession no. 1987-0018, 1989-0011, 1995-0011, 1997-0007).

Processing information

Processed by Michael Watts, 2006 March

Encoded by Michael Watts, 2006 March

Please note that some historical materials may contain harmful content and/or descriptions. Learn how we’re addressing it.

Access to the collection

This collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice. Because of the nature of certain archival formats, including digital and audio-visual materials, access to digital files may require additional advanced notice.

For more information contact us via mail, phone, or our web form.

Mailing address:
Special Collections Research Center
Box 7111
Raleigh, NC, 27695-7111

Phone: (919) 515-2273

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Hayne Palmour Papers, MC 00223, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC

Use of these materials

The nature of the NC State University Libraries' Special Collections means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The NC State University Libraries claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials.

The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.

This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which North Carolina State University assumes no responsibility.