Burton, William Meriam
Published: September 11, 2006, 4:17 pm
Updated: September 11, 2006, 4:17 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Tom Lawrence
William Meriam Burton (1865-1954), an American chemist and oil industry executive who developed a thermal cracking process that doubled the yield of gasoline from crude petroleum. This evolved into the first commercially-successful process for converting crude oil into motor gasoline and other products. He started work at the Standard Oil Company in Cleveland, Ohio as a chemist, and transferred to Standard Oil of Indiana in 1890. There, he worked his way up to Superintendent of the refinery, and later to Director, Vice Pesident, and ultimately President of the corporation in 1918. His organizational model for research institute infrastructure accelerated the advent of corporate research & development (R&D) centers in the oil, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries.
Further Reading
Inventor Profile: William Meriam Burton (National Inventors Hall of Fame)
Are you absolutely sure you want to delete this article? This process cannot be undone and is permanent.
Yes, Delete This Article
Are you absolutely sure you want to remove this article? This process cannot be undone and is permanent.
Yes, Remove This Article
Citation
Cutler J. Cleveland (Lead Author);Tom Lawrence (Topic Editor) "Burton, William Meriam". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth September 11, 2006; Last revised Date September 11, 2006; Retrieved May 18, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Burton,_William_Meriam>
The Author
Cutler J. Cleveland is Professor of Earth and Environment at Boston University, where he also is on the faculty of the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. Professor Cleveland is Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Energy (Elsevier, 2004), winner of an American Library Association award, the Dictionary of Energy (Elsevier, 2005), Handbook of Energy (Elsevier, forthcoming), and is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. He is the recipient of the Adelma ... (Full Bio)
William Meriam Burton (1865-1954), an American chemist and oil industry executive who developed a thermal cracking process that doubled the yield of gasoline from crude petroleum. This evolved into the first commercially-successful process for converting crude oil into motor gasoline and other products. He started work at the Standard Oil Company in Cleveland, Ohio as a chemist, and transferred to Standard Oil of Indiana in 1890. There, he worked his way up to Superintendent of the refinery, and later to Director, Vice Pesident, and ultimately President of the corporation in 1918. His organizational model for research institute infrastructure accelerated the advent of corporate research & development (R&D) centers in the oil, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries.
Further Reading
Inventor Profile: William Meriam Burton (National Inventors Hall of Fame)
Are you absolutely sure you want to delete this article? This process cannot be undone and is permanent.
Yes, Delete This Article
Are you absolutely sure you want to remove this article? This process cannot be undone and is permanent.
Yes, Remove This Article
Site Options
0 Comments
Add Comment