Department of Materials Science and Engineering
1920s
The station was established as "the research agency in engineering" to support extension work for the School of Engineering. The station was intended to address engineering issues of local state and regional concern. H. B. Shaw was the first station director.
A. F. Greaves-Walker organized and served as head of the new Department of Ceramic Engineering, the first department of its kind in the American South. Greaves-Walker was from the U.K. and spent 20 years working in industry as a mining and ceramic engineer and administrator. According to a 1927 Technician article, the department was "established primarily to promote the ceramic industries of North Carolina and to thus provide plants in which its graduates may find employment."
A. F. Greaves-Walker portraitAn article in the Technician stated that the department was established "primarily to train 'miners' for the particular mining problems of the state and the south," who will "be particularly well trained for geological survey work and the development departments of southern railroads." A. F. Greaves-Walker was head of department.
The Ceramics Building, or Ceramic Engineering Building, was built in 1926 and contained a laboratory for the Department of Ceramic Engineering. A smokestack sat beside the structure. Both structures were demolished in 1967-1968, and Poe Hall was later constructed on the site.
Ceramic Engineering BuildingThe Department of Mining Engineering was dissolved and courses were distributed between the ceramic engineering and geology departments.
Following the dissolution of the Department of Mining Engineering, a separate Department of Geology was established. Jasper L. Stuckey was head of the department.
Jasper L. Stuckey, Professor of Geology.1930s
The Department of Geology was renamed the Department of Geological Engineering. Jasper L. Stuckey remained head of department until 1954, when it became part of the new Department of Mineral Industries.
Dr. Jasper L. Stuckey, Professor of Geology, on geological field trip.1940s
Department head A. F. Greaves-Walker took a leave of absence from NC State to serve as Chief of the Metals and Minerals Branch of the Office of Production Research and Development. His research contributed to development of materials in the war effort.
A. F. Greaves-Walker portraitDr. Greaves-Walker was the first ceramic engineer to be honored by membership in the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America, which was composed of top-ranking mining engineers, metallurgists, and geologists in the country.
A. F. Greaves-Walker published a 6-part series of bulletins through the Engineering Experiment Station that outlined the need for developing and investing in North Carolina minerals. The bulletins described "the location of the deposits and enumerate the possible uses of various minerals, with the hope that North Carolinians may be interested in developing new mineral industries during the post-war period." The bulletins advocated investing efforts to ... More
The Engineering Experiment Station was renamed the Engineering Research Department and continued to serve as the research agency for engineering at NC State. The Engineering Research Department worked closely with the departments of ceramic, mining, and geological engineering. W. G. Van Note served as head of the department until 1951, followed by N. W. Conner and R. F. Stoops.
W G Van NoteThe Minerals Research Laboratory opened in Asheville, NC. The laboratory was initially created as a collaboration between the Tennessee Valley Authority, which provided equipment and funds, and the Division of Mineral Resources of the North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development, which provided the building. State Geologist and NC State professor Jasper L. Stuckey was involved in securing the initial contract for the laboratory and served as its founding director.
North Carolina State College Minerals Research Laboratory in Asheville, N.C., 1960 April1950s
Around 1950, William W. (Bill) Austin left the Southern Research Institute in Birmingham, AL, and joined NC State faculty to teach and build metallurgical research activities in mechanical engineering.
Professor Norval W. Conner portraitDean of Engineering Harold Lampe merged the departments of ceramic engineering, geological engineering, and the metallurgy program in mechanical engineering to become the new Department of Mineral Industries. William W. Austin was head of department. Separate degree programs were retained in ceramics, geology, and metallurgy. A departmental memo from 1954 states, "the merger has been made because it is felt that an integration of talents and physical ... More
William W. Austin, Jr.In 1950, the Tennessee Valley Authority announced that due to budget restrictions, it would discontinue support of the Minerals Research Laboratory. The TVA agreed to give the State of North Carolina the equipment in the laboratory “if the State would continue to operate the Laboratory for the benefit of the mineral producers in the area.” Governor William B. Umstead determined that the Minerals Research Laboratory should become “a function of State College,” and ... More
The Department of Materials Science and Engineering initiated a Nuclear Science and Technology Short Course under the sponsorship of the Atomic Energy Commission's Atoms for Peace program. The course included instruction in materials problems in nuclear reactors and was part of growing academic activity in the area of nuclear materials. In addition to the short course, the department introduced additional graduate courses and received funding from the AEC for ... More
Nuclear Technology short course Atoms for Peace Program, Dr. William Barclay instructing class, 1956 July.1960s
Anna Clyde Fraker, a native of Greenville, TN, graduated with a BS in chemistry from Furman University in 1957. She became the first woman to receive an advanced degree in engineering at NC State when she received a master's degree in metallurgical engineering in the Department of Mineral Industries.
College of Engineering laboratory, extension services, industrial extension servicesThe Geological Engineering program separated from the Department of Mineral Industries and the College of Engineering. It was renamed the Department of Geosciences in the newly-formed School of Physical Science and Applied Mathematics, and later became part of the Department of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences in 1980.
The Mechanical Engineering Department moved to Broughton Hall and Riddick Engineering Labs in 1951, making Page Hall available for the new Department of Mineral Industries.
Page Hall at nightStoops earned a BS in ceramic engineering at NC State in 1949 before completing his MS and PhD at Ohio State University. As head of the ERD, Stoops oversaw research activities for the School of Engineering and directed the Minerals Research Laboratory in Asheville, NC.
Anna Clyde Fraker was the first woman to receive a doctorate in ceramic engineering and in the College of Engineering at NC State. Dr. Fraker began her career at NC State's Department of Engineering Research where she contributed to biomaterials engineering research. Her research focused on surgical implant materials and finding a material that was compatible with the chemistry of the human body but would not corrode. In her later work at the National Bureau ... More
A large enhancement grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) brought many new research-oriented faculty and facilities to the School of Engineering. Faculty such as H. T. Beeler, Ray Benson, Robert Davis, and Abdul Fahmy became known for their new teaching and research efforts and brought visibility and recognition to the department.
NC State University, College of Engineering, materials science and ceramicsThe Department of Mineral Industries was renamed the Department of Materials Engineering. Emphasis of the program changed from the exploitation of raw materials to discovering and applying fundamental relationships that exist between the hyperfine structures of solids and their engineering properties. William W. Austin was head of the department.
NC State University, College of Engineering, materials science and ceramics1970s
The Materials Engineering department co-hosted the Research Conference on Severe Environments with NASA; the US Army Research Office based out of Durham, NC; and the US Air Force Aerospace Research Laboratories. Drs. W. W. Kriegel and Hayne Palmour III co-edited the publication "Ceramics in Severe Environments" (1972) as a result of the conference proceedings.
Hayne Palmour and synroc crewThe former Engineering Research Department was renamed the Engineering Research Services Division, serving as research division for the Materials Engineering department. R. F. Stoops remained head of the division until 1981.
The department began to update curriculum to become "more relevant to the current emphases on the environmental aspects of materials," that dealt with pollution control and the effects of materials and processes on the environment. New undergraduate courses were introduced, including Materials and the Environment, Environmental Aspects of Materials Processing, and Materials and Civilization.
Dr. Manning and graduate student Lyn David Lineback received the NASA Achievement Award for Research & Development for their project, "Thermal Shock Resistant Hafnia Ceramic Materials."
Materials engineering professor Leon T. Jordan introduced an Engineering Operations technical course in music instrument manufacture. Jordan believed that with faculty in materials engineering, wood science and technology, physical sciences, and acoustical studies, "NC State is in a unique position to provide a research atmosphere for the development of new materials and new techniques for manufacturing musical instruments." The program was discontinued in the early 1980s.
Professor Leon T. Jordan playing a glass trumpetFollowing W. W. Austin's retirement, H. B. Smith became acting department head.
Dean Henry Brower Smith portrait1980s
Dr. Hans Conrad portraitThe Engineering Research Services Division informally adopted the name Analytical Instrumentation Facility (AIF) during the 1981-1982 fiscal year. By the 1990s, that was the official name of the unit.
Calvin H. Carter Jr. was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy degree. He previously earned a BS degree in 1977 and a MS degree in 1980. He became co-founder of Cree, Inc., and was a 2002 recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.
J. J. Hren became head of the Department of Materials of Engineering. Under Hren's leadership, the department was renamed the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and became involved in the design of research facilities on Centennial Campus.
In July 1986, as a result of successful advocacy by Dr. Hren and others, the Department of Materials Engineering was officially renamed the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. The new name reflected the dual nature of the materials disciplines with expertise in both science and engineering, which was consistent with recent trends among the nation’s materials-oriented academic institutions.
College of Engineering, publicity and promotional material, Caldwell scholarCree, the world's first manufacturer of energy-saving blue light-emitting diodes (LEDs), was established. It arose out of a process developed by Calvin H. Carter Jr. and other former students of Robert Davis.
Dr. Robert Davis with equipment1990s
Due to rapid growth of research in the MSE department, MSE expanded into two new buildings on Centennial Campus: Research Building I and the Engineering Graduate Research Center (later renamed the Monteith Center).
Engineering Graduate Research Center on Centennial Campus2000s
The MSE department expanded into Engineering Building I on Centennial Campus.
Engineering Building II, construction