It is with heavy heart that we report the passing of Ken Mills, an outstanding metallurgist who made major contributions to our knowledge of the high temperature physical, physico-chemical and thermodynamic properties of alloys, slags and materials.
Ken was born 13 February 1935, Doncaster, Yorkshire, UK. He studied Chemistry at Kingֹ’s College, Newcastle upon Tyne, graduating from Durham University in 1956. He obtained his Ph.D. in Metallurgy from the University of Sheffield in 1960. After completion of his thesis, Ken took up a position as an assistant lecturer at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University), Pittsburgh, USA. Upon his return to the UK in 1963, Ken joined the National Physical Laboratory, Teddington, where established a world-class laboratory and became a pioneer in the development of methods for the measurement of material properties at high temperatures. Ken was awarded D.Met. from the University of Sheffield in 1989 in recognition of his work.
From 1999 onwards to his passing earlier this year, Ken continued active involvement in research and teaching in the Department of Materials, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London. In addition to his valuable measurements and research, Ken became an internationally recognised authority on mould powders used in the continuous casting of steel.
In recognition of his contributions to the field, Ken was awarded the Kroll Medal, Institute of Materials, London, for outstanding contributions to the field of chemical metallurgy in 1996, Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining IOM3 (London) Bessemer Gold Medal (2013) for contributions to steel research, and Honorary Membership of the Iron and Steel Institute of Japan (2003) and award from the Japanese Society for Promotion of Science for contributions to field of Metallurgy in 2004.
Ken was passionate about his work. He has published books, contributed to numerous book chapters and technical reports and more than 200 refereed publications. Ken produced important compilations and critical assessments of a wide range of topics including books on Thermodynamic Data for Inorganic Sulfides, Selenides, and Tellurides (1974), Slag Atlas (1995), Recommended Values of Thermophysical Properties for Selected Commercial Alloys (2002) and The Casting Powders Book (2017). These, in addition to his research publications, have been of lasting value to research, process development and industrial applications in metallurgical engineering.
Ken was a great human being, willingly and enthusiastically sharing his experience and knowledge with others, and providing advice and support where he could. Ken will be greatly missed by the many colleagues he has worked with and mentored over the years. Ken was a happy guy. He loved life, his football and cricket, and his family, wife Margaret, children Woody and Anna, and now his grandchildren.
Peter Hayes, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia and numerous colleagues and friends worldwide.