Delbert Day

Delbert Day
Education
Known forTheraSphere and Glasphalt co-invention
TitleCurator's Professor Emeritus of Materials Sciences (Missouri S&T)
Spouse
Shirley Ann Day (Foraker)
​
​
(m. 1956; died 2014)​
[1]
Children2[1]
AwardsDistinguished Alumni Award (PSU)

Delbert E. Day, a Curator's Professor Emeritus of Ceramic Engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology, made the first U.S. glass melting experiments in micro-gravity on NASA's Space Shuttle.

Day was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2004 for the development of radiotherapeutic glass microspheres and their transfer to medical applications.[2][3] He is also a fellow of the Society of Glass Technology, American Ceramic Society, National Institute of Ceramic Engineers, and National Academy of Inventors.[4][5][6]

Day earned a Bachelor of Science degree in ceramic engineering from the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy (now Missouri S&T) in 1958, and a Master of Science degree and doctorate in ceramic technology from Pennsylvania State University in 1959 and 1961, respectively.[7]

Day co-invented TheraSphere glass microspheres for medical and dental applications, and Glasphalt which recycles waste glass for use in asphalt paving.[7] In 1984, Day founded the Mo-Sci Corporation in Rolla, Missouri, which manufacturers high-tech glass products; as of 2007, the company was solely owned by Day's son, Ted.[8] The company was acquired by Heraeus in 2021 after Ted died in 2020.[9]

In 2011, the Delbert Day Cancer Institute was initiated at the Phelps County Regional Medical Center (now Phelps Health), funded by a gift from Day's son and daughter-in-law, Ted and Kim Day.[10] The 37,000-square-foot (3,400 m2) facility, completed in January 2017, occupies the first two floors of a new building on the north side of the medical center campus.[11]

Day and his wife, Shirley, donated to his Missouri S&T alma mater for establishment of a Day Family Endowed Scholarship in Materials Science & Engineering.[12]

In May 2019, Day received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Penn State University, their highest honor for alumni.[6]

  1. ^ a b "Shirley Day Obituary". Rolla Daily News. September 12, 2014. Retrieved August 9, 2024 – via Legacy.com.
  2. ^ "Delbert Day: glass master and cancer fighter". Missouri S&T Alumni of Influence. 2011. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
  3. ^ Stoltz, Mary Helen (December 13, 2016). "Biomaterials expert Delbert Day named National Academy of Inventors Fellow". Missouri S&T News and Events. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
  4. ^ "Dr. Delbert E. Day". Missouri University of Science and Technology. Archived from the original on January 22, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  5. ^ "Dr. Delbert E. Day". National Academy of Engineering. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Carroll, Matthew (June 24, 2019). "Earth and mineral sciences alumnus honored with Distinguished Alumni Award". Penn State University. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Penn State alumnus Delbert Day named National Academy of Inventors Fellow". Pennsylvania State University. March 24, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  8. ^ Milne, Stuart (February 27, 2015). "Bioactive Glass: An Interview with Ted Day". AZO materials. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  9. ^ Hammerand, Jim (September 24, 2021). "Heraeus buys Mo-Sci and ETS Technology Holdings". Medical Design & Outsourcing. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
  10. ^ "A new Day in cancer research" (PDF). Missouri S&T Magazine. Vol. 85, no. 1. Spring 2011. p. 22. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  11. ^ "McCarthy Completes Construction of Delbert Day Cancer Institute at Phelps County Regional Medical Center" (Press release). McCarthy Building Companies. January 18, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  12. ^ Missouri University of Science and Technology. "Donors: Shirley and Delbert Day". AcademicWorks. Archived from the original on February 11, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)