Interview with Don Sturgeon, 2014 July 30
Part of collection: History of Kevlar oral history interviews (2014-249)
Dates
- Creation: 2014 July 30
Creator
- Sturgeon, Don (Interviewee, Person)
Biographical Note
Don Sturgeon was hired by DuPont in the 1960s upon completing a PhD in engineering mechanics at the University of Florida, Donald Sturgeon investigated the properties of Kevlar as they related to potential use in composites. He further contributed to the development and promotion of weight-saving Kevlar composite materials for the aircraft industry, and he was involved in the development of bullet-proof vests and non-cut fabrics.
Scope and Content
Donald Sturgeon details his work at DuPont evaluating the properties of Kevlar fibers, particularly for their utility in composite structures. He recounts that while the fiber was incredibly strong in tension, it had relatively poor performance in compression. The peculiar features of Kevlar fibers required that Kevlar reinforced products had to be carefully engineered. Initially, DuPont hoped that Kevlar would find a large market as tire cord. When tire manufacturers opted for steel belts in radial tires, DuPont had to find other markets for Kevlar.
Sturgeon further describes his work in developing novel applications for Kevlar. Because Kevlar was difficult to make and process, DuPont had invested an unprecedented $500 million by the mid-1970s. Instead of one large market, DuPont had to develop many smaller applications for Kevlar. Sturgeon worked on developing and promoting weight-saving Kevlar composite materials to the aircraft industry. He was also involved in developing bullet-proof vests and non-cut fabrics. Through these extensive product development and marketing efforts, Kevlar eventually became a profitable product. [ID:
2014249_20140730_Sturgeon]
Physical Description
38 MOV files. 14 MXF files. TRT 02:54:58. Access copy is available as an MPEG4.
Extent
From the Collection: 457.5 Gigabytes
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Additional Description
Access Restrictions
This collection is open for research.
Repository Details
Repository Details
Part of the Audiovisual Collections Repository