S. Donald Stookey
Encyclopedia
Stanley Donald Stookey is an American inventor. He has 60 patents in his name related to glass and ceramics, some solely his while others are jointly with others. His discoveries and inventions have affected considerably the development of ceramics, eyeglasses, sunglasses, cookware, defense systems, and electronics.
He was a research director at Corning Glass Works for 47 years doing R & D in glass and ceramic development. His inventions include Fotoform, CorningWare, Cercor, Pyroceram
and Photochromic Ophthalmic glass eyewear.
. His father, Stanley Stookey, was a teacher and bank clerk. His mother, Hermie Stookey, was a teacher and housewife. Stookey had three siblings and he was the oldest of the four children. When Stookey was about 6 years old the family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa
, from Hay Springs.
from 1934 to 1936 where he graduated with his first degree, a liberal arts
degree in chemistry and mathematics. Stookey’s grandfather (Stephen Stookey) was previously a professor of botany and geology at that same college. After graduation from Coe College Stookey then went to Lafayette College
in Easton, Pennsylvania
in 1937. He received a $1000 fellowship to cover living expenses and as a teaching laboratory assistant in the chemistry lab. In 1938 he earned his Master of Science
degree in chemistry from Lafayette College. Stookey then went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology
in Cambridge
where he received a doctorate
in chemistry in 1940. The same year he married his wife Ruth.
Stookey took his career job at Corning Glass Works in 1940. He carried out research on glass and ceramic
s, which led to several inventions. Stookey studied and experimented with opal glass and glass ceramics
.
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One of the earliest innovations of Stookey is FotoForm glass. The scientific community recognized its value around 1948. FotoForm glass is used in computer manufacturing and communications technology. A serendipitous
invention made by Stookey in 1953 was when he took a piece of FotoForm glass and mistakenly heated it to 900°C when he meant to heat it to 600°C. When an oven thermometer was stuck on the higher temperature Stookey had accidentally created the first glass-ceramic, Fotoceram. It was later known also as Pyroceram. This was the first glass-ceramic and eventually led to the development of CorningWare
in 1957. CorningWare went to the consumer marketplace the next year in 1958 for cookware by Corning Glass Works and became just one of Stookey's multi-million dollar inventions. It influenced the development of VisionWare, which is transparent cookware. VisionWare was patented by Corning Glass Works in 1966.
Pyroceramic glass has the necessary properties to be used by the military for the nose cones of supersonic radar domes in guided missiles applied in defense. It has the special properties of extreme hardness, super strength, resistance to high heat and transparency to radar waves.
Stookey also developed photochromic glass
. Photochromic glass is a glass that is used to make ophthalmic lenses that darken and fade with bright light or lack of. These lenses were first available to consumers in the 1960’s
as sunglasses made by Corning Glass Works. It is the joint discovery and development of Stookey with William Armistead. Stookey also invented photosensitive glass
using gold in which permanent colored photographs can be produced.
Together he and his wife raised three children named Robert, Margaret and Donald Bruce. They also have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
He was a research director at Corning Glass Works for 47 years doing R & D in glass and ceramic development. His inventions include Fotoform, CorningWare, Cercor, Pyroceram
Pyroceram
Pyroceram is a material developed and trademarked by Corning Glass during the 1950s. Its development has been traced to Corning's work in developing photosensitive glass. Corning credits S...
and Photochromic Ophthalmic glass eyewear.
Early life
Stookey was born on May 23, 1915 in Hay Springs, NebraskaHay Springs, Nebraska
Hay Springs is a village in Sheridan County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 652 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Hay Springs is located at ....
. His father, Stanley Stookey, was a teacher and bank clerk. His mother, Hermie Stookey, was a teacher and housewife. Stookey had three siblings and he was the oldest of the four children. When Stookey was about 6 years old the family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and east of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city...
, from Hay Springs.
Career
Stookey went to Coe CollegeCoe College
Coe College is a private, four-year, liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Founded in 1851, the institution is historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . Its current president is James R. Phifer. It is one of the smaller universities to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa...
from 1934 to 1936 where he graduated with his first degree, a liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
degree in chemistry and mathematics. Stookey’s grandfather (Stephen Stookey) was previously a professor of botany and geology at that same college. After graduation from Coe College Stookey then went to Lafayette College
Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private coeducational liberal arts and engineering college located in Easton, Pennsylvania, USA. The school, founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter,son of General Andrew Porter of Norristown and citizens of Easton, first began holding classes in 1832...
in Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,800 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Northampton County....
in 1937. He received a $1000 fellowship to cover living expenses and as a teaching laboratory assistant in the chemistry lab. In 1938 he earned his Master of Science
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
degree in chemistry from Lafayette College. Stookey then went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
where he received a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in chemistry in 1940. The same year he married his wife Ruth.
Stookey took his career job at Corning Glass Works in 1940. He carried out research on glass and ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
s, which led to several inventions. Stookey studied and experimented with opal glass and glass ceramics
Glass-ceramic
Glass-ceramics are polycrystalline material produced through controlled crystallization of base glass. Glass-ceramic materials share many properties with both glasses and ceramics...
.
FotoForm glass
Serendipity
Serendipity means a "happy accident" or "pleasant surprise"; specifically, the accident of finding something good or useful without looking for it. The word has been voted as one of the ten English words hardest to translate in June 2004 by a British translation company. However, due to its...
invention made by Stookey in 1953 was when he took a piece of FotoForm glass and mistakenly heated it to 900°C when he meant to heat it to 600°C. When an oven thermometer was stuck on the higher temperature Stookey had accidentally created the first glass-ceramic, Fotoceram. It was later known also as Pyroceram. This was the first glass-ceramic and eventually led to the development of CorningWare
Corningware
CorningWare was originally a brand name for a unique pyroceramic glass cookware resistant to thermal shock, that was first introduced in 1958 by Corning Glass Works. CorningWare is notable for the fact that it can be used directly on the stovetop.- History :In 1953, Dr. S...
in 1957. CorningWare went to the consumer marketplace the next year in 1958 for cookware by Corning Glass Works and became just one of Stookey's multi-million dollar inventions. It influenced the development of VisionWare, which is transparent cookware. VisionWare was patented by Corning Glass Works in 1966.
Pyroceramic glass has the necessary properties to be used by the military for the nose cones of supersonic radar domes in guided missiles applied in defense. It has the special properties of extreme hardness, super strength, resistance to high heat and transparency to radar waves.
Stookey also developed photochromic glass
Photochromism
Photochromism is the reversible transformation of a chemical species between two forms by the absorption of electromagnetic radiation, where the two forms have different absorption spectra. Trivially, this can be described as a reversible change of colour upon exposure to light...
. Photochromic glass is a glass that is used to make ophthalmic lenses that darken and fade with bright light or lack of. These lenses were first available to consumers in the 1960’s
as sunglasses made by Corning Glass Works. It is the joint discovery and development of Stookey with William Armistead. Stookey also invented photosensitive glass
Photosensitive glass
Photosensitive glass is a crystal-clear glass that belongs to the lithium-silicate family of glasses, in which an image of a mask can be captured by microscopic metallic particles in the glass when it is exposed to short wave radiations such as ultraviolet light. Photosensitive glass was first...
using gold in which permanent colored photographs can be produced.
Timeline
- 1936 Magna cum laude, Coe College
- 1937 Master of Science in chemistry, Lafayette College
- 1940 Ph.D., physical chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- 1950 First of 60 U.S. Patents Awarded, No. 2.515.937 for photosensitive glassPhotosensitive glassPhotosensitive glass is a crystal-clear glass that belongs to the lithium-silicate family of glasses, in which an image of a mask can be captured by microscopic metallic particles in the glass when it is exposed to short wave radiations such as ultraviolet light. Photosensitive glass was first...
. - 1953 John Price Wetherill Award, Franklin InstituteFranklin InstituteThe Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
- 1955 Alumni Award of Merit, Coe College
- 1960 Ross Coffin Purdy Award, American Ceramic SocietyAmerican Ceramic SocietyThe American Ceramic Society is a non-profit professional organization for the ceramics community, with a focus on scientific research, emerging technologies, and applications in which ceramic materials are an element...
- 1962 John Price Wetherill Award, Franklin Institute
- 1963 Honorary doctor of science degree in 1963, Coe College.
- 1964 Toledo Glass and Ceramic Award
- 1970 Inventor of the Year, George Washington UniversityGeorge Washington UniversityThe George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
- 1971 Award for Creative Invention, American Chemical SocietyAmerican Chemical SocietyThe American Chemical Society is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 161,000 members at all degree-levels and in all fields of chemistry, chemical...
- 1971 E.C. Sullivan Award, Corning Section, American Ceramic Society
- 1973 Beverly Myers Achievement Award, Educational Foundation in Ophthalmic Optics
- 1975 American Phoenix Award of the Glass Industry
- 1979 Achievement Award, Industrial Research Institute
- 1982 Samuel Giejsbeek Award, Pacific Coast Sections, ACerS
- 1984 Distinguished Inventor Award, Central New York Patent Law Association
- 1984 Honorary doctor of science degree, Alfred UniversityAlfred UniversityAlfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students...
- 1985 Published "Journey to the Center of the Crystal Ball", an autobiography
- 1986 United States Medal of Technology presented by President Ronald Reagan
- 1989 Distinguished Life Member, American Ceramic Society
- 1993 Wilhelm Eitel Medallion for Excellence in Silicate Science
- 1994 National Medal of Technology, White House Council
Organization membership
Stookey has held membership in many professional organizations and societies, including,- Sigma Xi
- National Academy of EngineeringNational Academy of EngineeringThe National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
- British Society of Glass TechnologySociety of Glass TechnologyThe Society of Glass Technology is an organization for individuals and organizations with a professional interest in glass manufacture and usage...
- American Institute of Chemical EngineersAmerican Institute of Chemical EngineersThe American Institute of Chemical Engineers is a professional organization for chemical engineers.AIChE was established in 1908 with the purpose of establishing chemical engineers as a profession independent from chemists and mechanical engineers.As of 2010, AIChE had over 40,000 members,...
(Fellow) - The American Ceramic SocietyAmerican Ceramic SocietyThe American Ceramic Society is a non-profit professional organization for the ceramics community, with a focus on scientific research, emerging technologies, and applications in which ceramic materials are an element...
(Distinguished Life and Fellow) - A section on the innovations of glass and glass-ceramics at the Corning Museum of GlassCorning Museum of GlassThe Corning Museum of Glass, in Corning, New York, explores every facet of glass, including art, history, culture, science and technology, craft, and design....
with a Stookey video describing his glass-ceramics inventions.
Works and Publications
- Stookey, S. Donald, ‘’ Journey to the Center of the Crystal Ball : An Autobiography’’, American Ceramic Society (1985), ISBN 0-9160946-9-3
- Stookey, S. Donald, ‘’ Explorations in Glass: An Autobiography’’, Wiley-Blackwell (2000), ISBN 1-5749812-4-2
Later life
Stookey retired from Corning Glass Works in 1987 after a career of 47 years.Together he and his wife raised three children named Robert, Margaret and Donald Bruce. They also have six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.