Dr. Robert E. Moore

Dr. Robert E. Moore, Curators’ Professor Emeritus of Ceramic Engineering, and former chair of the ceramic engineering department at the University of Missouri-Rolla died suddenly on July 9, 2003. Born June 1, 1930, in Randolph, Nebraska, he was 73 years old. He is survived by his wife Ellen, his eleven children, two step children and thirteen grandchildren.

Bob received a Bachelor of Science degree in Ceramic Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla in 1956 and a Master of Science degree in silicate science from the University of Toledo in 1957. He joined the Ceramic Engineering Department at UMR in 1957, and received his Ph.D. in Ceramic Engineering in 1962 from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Bob served as chair of the department from 1965-1989 and from 1992-1997, when he retired. In January 1995, the University of Missouri Board of Curators named him a Curators’ Professor of Ceramic Engineering, the highest professorial title at UMR.

Bob was internationally known for his early work on glass-bonded mica materials and for his pioneering studies on thermal shock of ceramics. More recently his research focused on ceramic matrix composites, other structural ceramics and refractory ceramics. He served as Site Director of the Refractories Satellite of the Center for Glass Research, a National Science Foundation coordinated center for industry-university cooperation located at Alfred University. Bob was the founder and first editor of the Refractories News and Applications, a technical magazine dedicated to the publication of articles on refractory science, technology and applications and of news of producers and users of refractories worldwide. He was past president of the National Institute of Ceramic Engineers, the Ceramic Educational Council and Keramos. He was also vice president of UNITECR, an international refractories research organization. He held various offices in the Refractories Ceramics Division and the St. Louis Section of the American Ceramic Society and was an emeritus member of ACerS.

Bob received numerous awards during his professional career, including The Theodore J. Planje St. Louis Section Refractories Award (1991), the Greaves Walker Award of Honor from the National Institute of Ceramic Engineers (1993), UMR Outstanding Teacher Awards and Faculty Excellence Awards. He published over 100 papers and served on numerous national committees.

Bob was generous with his time and talents and inspired generations of ceramic engineers. To honor his lifelong commitment to his profession, UMR has created the ‘Robert E. Moore Scholarship’ for ceramic engineering students. Information about this scholarship can be obtained from the MS&T Materials Science and Engineering Department (eddings@mst.edu).