Robert Baker (scientist)

Robert Baker (born Handsworth, Sheffield, England, 1938^[1]) was a British metallurgist and steelmaker.

Baker attended Woodhouse Grammar School and graduated with an honours degree in metallurgy from the University of Sheffield in 1960. He stayed on to conduct research on the use of a stabilised zirconia solid electrolyte for the measurement of oxygen activity in molten steel, for which he was awarded a PhD in 1964.^[1][2]

Baker worked for British Steel for many years, and was appointed Director of Research and Development in 1986 following the retirement of Dr KJ Irvine.^[3] Together with colleagues at the company, he was granted patents relating to steel production.^[4][5]

Baker was a elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IMMM).^[1] The IMMM also awarded him the Sir Robert Hadfield medal with his colleague GD Spenceley in 1987, and the Bessemer Gold Medal in 1998 for services to the industry.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Spenceley, G. D.; Fitzgerald, F. (August 2004). "Obituaries: Dr Robert Baker, BMet, PhD, FREng, FIMMM, Bessemer Medallist". Ironmaking & Steelmaking: Processes, Products and Applications 31 (4): 291–292. http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/maney/ias/2004/00000031/00000004/art00004. 
2. ^ Baker, Robert (1964). Solid electrolytes applicable to the measurement of oxygen activities at steelmaking temperatures (PhD thesis). University of Sheffield. OCLC 270824776. 
3. ^ Metal Construction (Welding Institute) 19: 116. 1987. 
4. ^ US 4089677  Metal refining method and apparatus
5. ^ US 4113469  Refining molten metal
6. ^ "Awards archive". Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. http://www.iom3.org/content/past-winners. Retrieved 2011-02-18. 

Persondata
Name	Baker, Robert
Alternative names
Short description	Metallurgists
Date of birth	1938
Place of birth	Handsworth, Sheffield, England
Date of death
Place of death