Tracy Hall facts for kids

Howard Tracy Hall (born October 20, 1919 – died July 25, 2008) was an American scientist. He was a pioneer in making synthetic diamonds, which are diamonds created by people. He used a special machine he designed himself.

Early Life and Dreams

Howard Tracy Hall was born in Ogden, Utah in 1919. People often called him Tracy Hall. He grew up on a farm in Marriott-Slaterville, Utah. When he was only in fourth grade, he decided he wanted to work for General Electric (GE).

He went to Weber College and then the University of Utah. He earned his science degrees there. After serving as an officer in the United States Navy for two years, he returned to the University of Utah. In 1948, he earned his PhD in physical chemistry. Just two months later, his childhood dream came true. He started working at the General Electric Research Laboratory. He joined a team working on making artificial diamonds.

Making Diamonds at GE

Tracy Hall was part of a team trying to create diamonds in a lab. This project was called "Project Superpressure." For almost four years, the team tried many experiments. It was a difficult challenge, and many attempts failed.

On December 16, 1954, Hall finally succeeded. He made synthetic diamonds using a new machine he designed. This machine used a special "belt" that held the materials. It also had two strong "pistons" that pressed down. He even worked on building this machine when it wasn't fully approved.

Hall used an older, smaller press for his experiments. He put iron sulfide and powdered carbon inside. He also used tantalum disks to heat the materials. The experiment needed extreme conditions: about 100,000 times the normal air pressure and 1600 degrees Celsius. After about 38 minutes, he opened the sample. He found tiny diamond crystals on the tantalum disks. The tantalum acted as a catalyst, helping the reaction happen.

Hall's invention was a huge success for General Electric. It led to a big industry for making supermaterials. For his amazing discovery, GE gave Hall a $10 savings bond.

Later Years and New Inventions

In 1955, Tracy Hall left GE. He became a chemistry professor at Brigham Young University (BYU). There, he continued to invent new machines. He created the tetrahedral and cubic press systems. These new presses were even better for making synthetic diamonds.

Around 1960, he shared his cubic press technology with China. Today, most of the world's synthetic diamond powder is made using his cubic press design. For many years, his first tetrahedral press was shown at BYU. In the early 1960s, Hall also invented the first type of polycrystalline diamond (PCD). He helped start two companies in Provo, Utah: MegaDiamond in 1966 and later Novatek.

Tracy Hall passed away on July 25, 2008, in Provo, Utah. He was 88 years old. He had a large family with seven children, 35 grandchildren, and 53 great-grandchildren.

Awards and Recognition

Tracy Hall received many awards for his important work:

• 1970: Chemical Pioneer Award from the American Institute of Chemists.
• 1972: American Chemical Society Award for Creative Invention. This was for being the first to successfully make synthetic diamonds. It was also for designing the high-pressure machine that made it possible.
• 1977: James C. McGroddy Prize for New Materials from the American Physical Society.
• 1994: Utah Governor's Medal for Science and Technology.
• 2016: Weber State University named its new science building the Tracy Hall Science Center in his honor.

His Inventions (Patents)

Tracy Hall received 19 patents during his career. Some of his most important patents include:

• U.S. Patent 2,947,608  or [1] "Diamond Synthesis" (August 2, 1960).
• U.S. Patent 2,947,610  or [2] "Method of Making Diamonds" (August 2, 1960).
• U.S. Patent 3,159,876  or [3] "High Pressure Press" (December 8, 1964).

See also

In Spanish: Howard Tracy Hall para niños