Thomas J. Dolan (1907 – 10 January 1996) was an American engineer and educator. He was a professor and department head at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

Education

Dolan graduated in 1929 from the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

with highest honors and named Bronze Tablet. After briefly working in industry, he returned to Urbana to the University of Illinois, earning a M.S. in civil engineering in 1932.

Research and career

Dolan worked for the

Chicago Bridge and Iron Co Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. between his B.S. and M.S. He spent the remainder of his career at the University of Illinois, with the except of a period during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

when he was a captain in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

(1942–45). He studied

fatigue Fatigue is a state of tiredness (which is not sleepiness), exhaustion or loss of energy. It is a signs and symptoms, symptom of any of various diseases; it is not a disease in itself. Fatigue (in the medical sense) is sometimes associated wit ...

and

fracture Fracture is the appearance of a crack or complete separation of an object or material into two or more pieces under the action of stress (mechanics), stress. The fracture of a solid usually occurs due to the development of certain displacemen ...

of metals and introduced the Dolan-Corten Cumulative Damage Theory, published in 1956. Dolan was Head of the Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at the University of Illinois from 1952 to 1970. He became an emeritus professor in 1972. Dolan was the President of the Society for Experimental Stress Analysis (SESA) (now

Society for Experimental Mechanics Society for Experimental Mechanics (SEM) is a professional organization for engineers and scientists studying the design and implementation of experiments to characterize materials, structures, and systems. Formed in 1943 as the Society for Experim ...

) from 1951 to 1952. He was named the ninth Honorary Member of the Society in 1975, a position held until his death in 1996. SESA introduced the rank of Fellow in 1975 and Dolan was among the first class of SESA Fellows along with the seven other living Honorary Members of the society named through 1975. He served as vice president and Member of the executive committee of

ASME The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...

, on the Board of Directors of

ASTM ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is a standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical international standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems and s ...

, and on the U.S. National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. He also consulted to several companies, including

A.O. Smith A. O. Smith Corporation is an American manufacturer of both residential and commercial water heaters and boilers, and the largest manufacturer and marketer of water heaters in North America. It also supplies water treatment and water purificat ...

Bendix Aviation Bendix Corporation is an American manufacturing and engineering company founded in 1924 and subsidiary of Knorr-Bremse since 2002. During various times in its existence, Bendix made automotive brake shoes and systems, vacuum tubes, aircraft ...

Caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

John Deere Deere & Company, Trade name, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, Transmission (mechanical device), transmi ...

, and

Rocketdyne Rocketdyne is an American rocket engine design and production company headquartered in Canoga Park, California, Canoga Park, in the western San Fernando Valley of suburban Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, in southern California. Rocketdyne ...

Awards and recognition

R.L. Templin Award (1952) *

C.B. Dudley Medal (1954) * SEM

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American bicycle manufacturer * Murray Motor Car Company, an American car manufacturer * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trus ...

Lecture and Award (1969) *University of Illinois College of Engineering Alumni Honor Award for distinguished service in Engineering (1974) * SEM Honorary Member (1975-1996) * SEM Fellow (1975) *

Nadai Award (1984)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frocht, Max American engineers Grainger College of Engineering alumni Fellows of the Society for Experimental Mechanics 1907 births 1996 deaths