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NEXT MEETING

October 14th
Wednesday (i.e. not Thursday)
(Reservation required by Oct 7th)

Ronald A. Mayville, Ph.D., P.E.,
Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc.

Joint meeting with Central Massachusetts ASM Chapter


“A New Structural and Metallurgical Review of the Great Boston Molasses Tank Failure of 1919”

Picture


The Boston molasses tank failure is a famous incident in which 21 people lost their lives.  The cause of the failure was never definitively determined even though the court auditor was presented with over 20,000 pages of conflicting testimony by prominent engineering experts from institutions like MIT and Harvard.  The author has examined evidence presented in the case as well as private failure analysis reports by experts of the day in light of our current understanding of structural design, analysis methods, and metallurgical effects.  There were no applicable structural codes when the tank was designed, but the practice for designing riveted structures was documented in well-known text books.  The author has conducted finite element analysis to calculate the stress and strain conditions that existed just prior to failure as well as to simulate the tank collapse and flow of molasses against adjacent structures, many of which were destroyed.  The case is also examined with respect to the methods we currently use to protect against brittle fracture, including the use of toughness tests and the effects of steel chemistry.  The work includes discussion on the differences between the structural steel used to fabricate the tank and what we use today, including an interesting reference to the Titanic failure.

ABOUT OUR SPEAKER:

Dr. Mayville is the head of the Structural Mechanics group at Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc. in Waltham, MA.  He has a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering and is a registered professional engineer in both structural engineering and metallurgical engineering. He has been interested in the molasses tank failure since graduate school and has recently conducted research into the causes of the failure using modern engineering techniques.

    RSVP Form (2015-10-Mayville)

    Please be mindful that no-shows also get charged, so PLEASE inform us if you will miss the event.
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  • Home
  • About
    • 2024-2025 Officers
    • Previous Officers >
      • 2023-2024 Officers
      • 2022-2023 Officers
      • 2021-2022 Officers
      • 2020-2021 Officers
      • 2019-2020 Officers
  • 2024-2025 Program
    • May 2025 - Gregory B. Olson
    • Apr 2025 - Dr. Amber Black, ASM International Trustee
    • Mar 2025 - Student Lightning Talk Competition
    • Jan 2025 - Dr. Kyle Tsaknopoulos
    • Nov 2024 - Alexander Barbati
    • Oct 2024 - Ross Adams
    • Sept 2024 - Dr. Joerg Werner
  • Educational Outreach
    • 2025 Materials Experience
    • 2025 Science Camp for Teachers
  • Contact
  • Past Meetings
    • 2023-2024 Program >
      • May 2024 - Dr. Krassimir Marchev
      • April 2024 - Dr. Elizabeth Hoffman, ASM Trustee
      • March 2024 - Student Networking
      • Feb 2024 - Dr. Michael Kreder
      • Jan 2024 - Georgi Petrov
      • Nov 2023 - Dr. Luis Baquerizo
      • Sept 2023 - Dr. Peter Schindler
    • 2022-2023 Program >
      • May 2023 - Dr. Douglas Matson
      • Apr 2023 - Dr. Ann Bolcavage
      • Mar 2023 - Postgraduate Talks
      • Feb 2023 - Anvesh Gurijala
      • Dec 2022 - Aaron Baskerville-Bridges
      • Oct 2022 - Dr. Anton Geiler
      • Sept 2022 - Dr. Marilyn Minus
    • 2021-22 Program >
      • 2021-22 Andy Perry
      • 2021-22 Paul Verghese
      • 2021-22 Ryan Eriksen
      • 2021-22 James Lallo
      • 2021-22 Andrea Armani
    • 2021-22 Program >
      • 2021-22 Jean Mozolic
      • 2021-22 David WIlliams
      • 2021-22 Ivan Petrov - Scott Julien
      • 2021-22 Andy Perry-Jannatun Nawer
      • 2021-22 Paul Verghese
      • 2021-22 Ryan Eriksen
      • 2021-22 James Lallo
      • 2021-22 Andrea Armani
    • 2020-21 Program
    • 2019-20 Program >
      • 2019-20 Jason Sebastian
      • 2019-20 Victor Champagne
      • 2019-20 Hiring Panel
      • 2019-20 James Scutti
      • 2019-20 Waterworks Museum Tour
      • 2019-20 Eric Gratz
      • 2019-20 Aaron Birt
    • 2018-19 Program >
      • 2018 - 2019 Chapter Officers
      • 2018-5, Christopher A. Schuh
      • 2018-9 Alex Huckstepp
      • 2018-10 Anatol Rabinkin
      • 2018-11 AFFOA Tour
      • 2019-1 Kim Blair
      • 2019-20 James Scutti
      • 2019-2 David L. Saums
      • 2019-3 Anvesh Gurijala
      • 2019-4 Diana Lados
      • 2019-6 Bob Hyers
    • 2016-17 Program >
      • 2017-09 Prof. Mazumder
      • 2017-10 Museum of Fine Arts Tour
      • 2017-11 Lawrence A. Somrack
    • 2016-17 Program >
      • 2017-01 ​Timothy Myers
      • 2017-05 David B. Spenciner
      • 2017-04 Ryan M. Deacon
      • 2017-03 Christian Hoepfner
      • 2017-02 Science Club for Girls Night
    • 2015-16 Program >
      • 2015-09 Stanley Abkowitz
      • 2015-10 Ronald A. Mayville
      • 2016-02 Ronald Latanision
      • 2016-03 Elsa Olivetti
      • 2016-04 Ellen Cerreta
      • 2016-05 Sudipta Seal
      • 2016-09 Thomas L. Altshuler
      • 2016-10 Fast Talk Night
    • 2014-15 Program >
      • 2014-09 Jon D. Tirpak
      • 2014-11 Zildjian Factory Tour
      • 2015-01 Jon D. Tirpak
      • 2015-02 Jim Ritchey & Anna Wynn
      • 2015-03 Stephen Nolet
      • 2015-04 Douglas Matson
      • 2015-11 C.B. Fisk Tour
    • 2014 & Prior >
      • 2012-09 Chris Schuh
      • 2012-09 Saugus Iron Works Tour
      • 2012-10 Olivier de Weck
      • 2012-11 Arthur Heuer
      • 2013-09 Cornie
      • 2014-10 Jim Ritchey