Flotation, 1932 r

Flotation, 1932 r - A. M. Gaudin

A. M. Gaudin. After brief interludes in industry, Gaudin returned to Columbia in 1924 as a lecturer. In 1926 he became an American citizen. From 1926-1929 he taught at the University of Utah, and from 1929-1939 was professor at the Montana School of Mines. He then assumed a professorship at MIT in 1939, which he retained until his retirement in 1966. In World War II and subsequently, Gaudin led an MIT team extracting uranium from low-grade ore.

Gaudin and his colleagues at the University of Utah/U.S. Bureau of Mines systematically investigated the function of reagents on the flotation behavior of pure minerals, during the period, 1926 -1929. Gaudin is admired as the father of ‘Fundamental Flotation Research’ due to his focused research on flotation process. Other important contributors to flotation research of those times are Coghill, Fahrenwald, Langmuir, Norris, Ralston, Sulman, Taggart, et al. Gaudin published a text book ‘Flotation’ which has two editions, 1931 and 1957. The book "Principles of Mineral Dressing" authored by AM Gaudin is still the basic book for all mineral processing engineers.

For his distinguished career in education, Gaudin was awarded several of the highest honors bestowed by the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers.

The American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers published two volumes titled Flotation - A.M. Gaudin Memorial Volume in 1976, edited by MC Fuerstenau. In 1975 the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME) instituted the 'Antoine M. Gaudin Award' in honour of Gaudin. It is awarded for: "scientific or engineering contributions that further understanding of the technology of mineral processing".