Borys Paton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Borys Yevhenovych Paton
HOU Борис Євгенович Патон |
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Paton in 2010
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| Born | 27 November 1918 |
| Died | 19 August 2020 (aged 101) |
| Nationality | Ukrainian |
| Citizenship | Ukraine |
| Alma mater | Kyiv Polytechnic Institute |
| Known for | studies in metallurgy of electrical welding; President of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (since 1962) |
| Spouse(s) | Olha Paton |
| Children | Yevhenia |
| Awards | Hero of Ukraine Hero of Socialist Labor (twice) Lomonosov Gold Medal |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Metallurgy |
| Institutions | Paton Electrical-Welding Institute, International Association of Science Academies, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine |
| Influences | Yevhen Paton |
Borys Yevhenovych Paton (Ukrainian: Бори́с Євге́нович Пато́н; 27 November 1918 – 19 August 2020) was a famous Ukrainian scientist. He was known for his important work in electric welding. For a very long time, he was the head of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. He started this job in 1962 and stayed in it until he passed away. His father, Evgeny Paton, was also a well-known scientist in electric welding.
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Biography
Borys Paton was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, on 27 November 1918. His father, Evgeny Paton, was a scientist who started the Paton Institute of Electric Welding in Kyiv. Evgeny Paton was famous for building the first welded bridge in Kyiv, called the Paton Bridge. Borys's mother was a housewife.
Borys grew up in a building where professors lived at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute. His father taught there. In 1941, Borys finished his studies at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and became an engineer.
Work During World War II
During World War II, in 1941 and 1942, Paton worked at a factory in a city then called Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod). He designed electric circuits that helped make Soviet tanks faster. This work was very important for the war effort.
Leading the Paton Institute
In 1952, Borys Paton earned his doctoral degree in technical sciences. The next year, in 1953, he became the head of the Paton Institute of Electric Welding. This was the same institute his father had founded and led before him. Paton joined the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1952. He believed in keeping some ties to Ukraine's past as part of the Soviet Union. In 2019, he said he was against policies that aimed to remove all signs of the Soviet era.
Academy of Sciences Leadership
Paton became a member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in 1958. From 1963 to 1991, he was also a member of the USSR Academy of Science. In 1962, he was chosen to be the chairman of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. He held this important job for many decades, until he died.
He was even asked to lead the USSR Academy of Sciences in Moscow, but he said no. Paton felt it was important for him to stay in Kyiv. He wanted to work at his family's Institute of Electric Welding and the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences.
Political and Public Life
Paton was a deputy in the Supreme Soviet of the USSR (the main governing body of the Soviet Union) for 27 years, from 1962 to 1989.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Paton advised the Soviet government not to build the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. This shows he had concerns about its safety.
In 1998, Borys Paton was the very first person to receive the title of Hero of Ukraine. This is a very high honor in Ukraine.
In 2008, President Viktor Yushchenko made Paton a member of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. This group advises the president on security matters. In 2010, he supported a political candidate named Yulia Tymoshenko.
Paton was re-elected as chairman of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in 2015. In March 2020, he decided not to run for the position again, meaning he would leave the role.
Borys Paton passed away on 19 August 2020, at the age of 101. He was buried at Baikove Cemetery in Kyiv. He wrote over 1,000 scientific papers and books, and was responsible for more than 400 inventions.
Family
Borys Paton was married to Olha Paton. They had a daughter named Yevhenia, who also became a scientist. Sadly, Yevhenia died in 2009. Four years later, his wife Olha also passed away. After his wife's death, his granddaughter, Olha, helped take care of him.
Research Activities
Borys Paton focused his scientific work on many areas related to welding. He made huge advancements in how metals are joined together.
His key research areas included:
- Automatic and semi-automatic welding: He worked on making welding machines that could do the work by themselves or with little help. This included submerged arc welding, a method where the arc is hidden under a layer of flux.
- Improving welding machines: He developed the basic ideas for creating automatic and semi-automatic machines for electric arc welding. He also worked on the power supplies needed for these machines.
- Controlling the welding process: Paton studied how to control the long arc of electricity used in welding. He also found ways to manage the entire welding process more effectively.
- Creating new materials: He worked on making new types of materials that could be used in different ways.
Under his guidance, a completely new way of welding was invented called electroslag welding. This method uses a special molten slag to join very thick pieces of metal. Paton also led research into using the heat from welding to make melted metal better quality. This led to a new field of metal science called special electrometallurgy. This field includes methods like electroslag, plasma arc welding, and electron-beam remelting.
He was also the first scientist to seriously study how to use welding and similar technologies in space.
Honours and Awards
Borys Paton received many important awards and honors throughout his long career.
- Ukraine
- Hero of Ukraine (1998) – This was for his dedication to science and his amazing work in welding and special electrometallurgy.
- Order of Liberty (2012)
- Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise:
- 1st class (2008) – For his many years of service to science and his big contribution to Ukraine's scientific and economic strength.
- 4th class (2003) – For his important work in developing Ukrainian science.
- 5th class (1997) – For his great contribution to Ukrainian science and making its academic work known worldwide.
- State Prize of Ukraine (2004)
- Honour of the President of Ukraine (1993)
- Soviet Union
- Hero of Socialist Labour, twice (1969, 1978) – This award meant a statue of him was put up in Kyiv.
- Four Orders of Lenin (1967, 1969, 1975, 1978)
- Order of the October Revolution (1984)
- Order of the Red Banner of Labour (1943)
- Order of Friendship of Peoples (1988)
- Lenin Prize (1957)
- Stalin Prize (1950)
- Honoured Worker of Science and Technology of the Ukrainian SSR (1968)
- Honoured Inventor of the USSR (1983)
- Lomonosov Gold Medal (1981)
- Russian
- Order of Merit for the Fatherland;
- 1st class (2008) – For his great contribution to world science and strengthening ties between countries.
- 2nd class (1998) – For his outstanding work in science.
- Order of Honour (2004) – For his scientific work and helping friendship between Russia and Ukraine.
- Other
- IEEE Honorary Membership (2020)
- Korolev Gold Medal (2003)
- Czochralski Gold Medal (2006)
- Honorary Citizen of Mariupol (1998)
- Professor Emeritus of Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (2003)
- Global Energy Prize (2010)
- Honorary member of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova
See also
In Spanish: Borýs Patón para niños
