William Chandler Roberts-Austen
Encyclopedia
Sir William Chandler Roberts-Austen, (March 3, 1843 in Kennington
- November 22, 1902, London
), was a metallurgist noted for his research on the physical properties of metals and their alloys. Austenite
is named in his honor.
He was born William Chandler Roberts in Kennington, Surrey, the son of George and Maria née Chandler Roberts. He later (1885) assumed the name of Roberts-Austen at the request of his uncle, Major Austen, as a condition of inheritance . He was educated privately and at the Royal School of Mines
(1861–1865).
He was appointed Assistant to the Master of the Mint and then Chemist of the Royal Mint
(1869), Professor of Metallurgy at the School of Mines (1880) and Chemist and Assayer to the Royal Mint
(1882–1902). He developed procedures for the analysis of alloy constituents and an automatic recording pyrometer used to record temperature changes in furnaces and molten materials. He became a world authority on the technical aspects of minting coins. His work had many practical and industrial applications.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in June 1875 and was their Bakerian Lecture
r in 1896. He was made CB in 1896 and knighted {KCB} in 1899. He was also a Chevalier of the Legion d'honneur
,
He was largely responsible for the building of St Martin's chapel of ease, Blackheath in 1893. He died at his residence in the Royal Mint and was buried in St Martin's churchyard, Canterbury, Kent.
He had married Florence Maude Alldridge in London in 1876.
Kennington
Kennington is a district of South London, England, mainly within the London Borough of Lambeth, although part of the area is within the London Borough of Southwark....
- November 22, 1902, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
), was a metallurgist noted for his research on the physical properties of metals and their alloys. Austenite
Austenite
Austenite, also known as gamma phase iron, is a metallic non-magnetic allotrope of iron or a solid solution of iron, with an alloying element. In plain-carbon steel, austenite exists above the critical eutectoid temperature of ; other alloys of steel have different eutectoid temperatures...
is named in his honor.
He was born William Chandler Roberts in Kennington, Surrey, the son of George and Maria née Chandler Roberts. He later (1885) assumed the name of Roberts-Austen at the request of his uncle, Major Austen, as a condition of inheritance . He was educated privately and at the Royal School of Mines
Royal School of Mines
Royal School of Mines comprises the departments of Earth Science and Engineering, and Materials at Imperial College London.- History :The Royal School of Mines was established in 1851, as the Government School of Mines and Science Applied to the Arts...
(1861–1865).
He was appointed Assistant to the Master of the Mint and then Chemist of the Royal Mint
Royal Mint
The Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
(1869), Professor of Metallurgy at the School of Mines (1880) and Chemist and Assayer to the Royal Mint
Royal Mint
The Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
(1882–1902). He developed procedures for the analysis of alloy constituents and an automatic recording pyrometer used to record temperature changes in furnaces and molten materials. He became a world authority on the technical aspects of minting coins. His work had many practical and industrial applications.
He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in June 1875 and was their Bakerian Lecture
Bakerian Lecture
The Bakerian Lecture is a prize lecture of the Royal Society, a lecture on physical sciences.In 1775 Henry Baker left £100 for a spoken lecture by a Fellow on such part of natural history or experimental philosophy as the Society shall determine....
r in 1896. He was made CB in 1896 and knighted {KCB} in 1899. He was also a Chevalier of the Legion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
,
He was largely responsible for the building of St Martin's chapel of ease, Blackheath in 1893. He died at his residence in the Royal Mint and was buried in St Martin's churchyard, Canterbury, Kent.
He had married Florence Maude Alldridge in London in 1876.