Carleton Ellis
Ellis Laboratories and Standard Oil
Inducted 1974
Carleton Ellis (1876 – 1941) was a chemist whose discoveries laid the foundation for the modern petrochemical industry. He pioneered the development of urea-formaldehyde molding compounds and unsaturated polyester materials and was the author of the first comprehensive treatise on synthetic resins and plastics, published in 1923. Ellis was one of the most prolific and innovative chemists of the 20th century.
Born in Keene, New Hampshire, Ellis graduated from MIT and set up Ellis Laboratories in Montclair, New Jersey, shortly after that. In 1916, Ellis discovered a method for making isopropyl alcohol from cracked refinery gases by absorbing olefins in sulfuric acid. The isopropyl alcohol was then converted into acetone. The Standard Oil Company adopted the Carbide and Carbon Chemicals Company process.
Ellis held 753 patents and helped develop or improve many materials and products that are now taken for granted. In 1933, he was issued the first U.S. patent (USP 1,897,977) for unsaturated polyester, followed by a patent for polyester co-polymers the year before his death (USP 2,195,362). He developed a gasoline formula that reduced engine knock, longer-lasting house paint, more durable polyesters and plastics, improved printing inks, flameless combustion methods, hydroponics for plant growth without soil, and a healthier and more palatable version of margarine.
At the time of his death, TIME magazine noted: “Ellis, 64, a chemical inventor who held some 750 patents, more than any other American except Thomas Edison and John O’Connor; of influenza; in Miami Beach. Chemist Ellis’ inventions gave birth to more than 100,000 compounds. He developed Standard Oil’s tube-&-tank process of cracking oil, found the formula for cheap acetone to fireproof airplane wings in World War I, and made plastics an exact and lucrative science.”
Ellis was awarded the Edward Longstreth Medal in 1916. A merchant marine tanker, the S.S. Carleton Ellis, was named in his honor during World War II.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastic materials
Related Links:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carleton_Ellis
http://www.plastiquarian.com/index.php?id=85