Donald R. Hull papers
Creation: 1941-1995Abstract
Donald Robert Hull (1911-1995) was a longtime employee at the DuPont Company mainly working with nylon and textile fibers. The collection pertains to his work at DuPont and Hull's consulting firm, Fiber Concepts, Inc.
Dates
- Creation: 1941-1995
Creator
- Hull, Donald R., 1911-1995 (Person)
Extent
3 Linear Feet
Biographical Note
Donald Robert Hull (1911-1995) was a longtime employee at the DuPont Company mainly working with nylon and textile fibers. Hull was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 31, 1911 and graduated from the University of Minnesota with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 1934. He joined E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company in the same year and worked at the Old Hickory Rayon Plant in Tennessee before being transferred to the Experimental Station near Wilmington. From 1951 to 1957 he was Technical Superintendent of the Seaford Nylon Plant, after which he returned to Wilmington as Engineering Development Manager for all new fiber products. In 1969 he invented conductive fibers for static control in nylon carpet.
Hull retired from DuPont in 1976 and in 1980 formed Fiber Concepts, Inc., a consulting firm, through which he continued his work in nylon and textile fibers. In 1988 he was among the first recipients of the Nylon Technology Awards. He died at his home in Wilmington on October 15, 1995.
Scope and Content
Series I. DuPont Co., documents Hull's work with synthetic fibers, both textile fibers and fiberglass. Among official company documents are copies of the Textile Fibers Dept. Bulletins (1964-1980), a series of lectures on polymers arranged by the Pioneering Research Section, a Textile Fibers Dept. sales handbook for 1957, and an illustrated manual on the nylon manufacturing process (1952). Also included are reference files on the history of nylon, plastics, fiberglass, and static-free carpet.
Series II. Fiber Concepts, Inc., document Hull's efforts to develop and market the "Duralize" yarn-dyeing machine, which could dye with up to four colors simultaneously, and the similar "Xylonize" machine. Included are patents, calculations, correspondence, and drawings. The company's other major projects represented are a plastic mixing valve for use in medical procedures and a scheme for recycling plastic wastes.
Access Restrictions
No restrictions on access; this collection is open for research.
Language of Materials
English
Additional Description
Subjects
Related Names
Subject
- E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. Textile Fibers Department (Organization)
- Fiber Concepts, Inc. (Organization)
Finding Aid & Administrative Information
- Title:
- Donald R. Hull papers
- Description rules:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description:
- English
- Script of description:
- Latin
Repository Details
Repository Details
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
