ECS President | 1965-1966
Ernest B. Yeager was born in Orange, New Jersey on September 24, 1924. He received his B.A. degree from New Jersey State College at Montclair in 1945, his M.S. from Western Reserve University in 1946, and his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the same University in 1948. Dr. Yeager stayed on as an Instructor in the Department of Chemistry at Western Reserve. He became an Assistant Professor in 1951, an Associate Professor in 1953, and a Professor in 1957. During the 1964-1965 academic year, he served as Chairman of the Department of Chemistry. He was Director of the Ultrasonics Research Laboratory and Chairman of the Frontiers in Chemistry series at the University. Dr. Yeager was Director of the Case Center for Electrochemical Sciences from 1976 until 1991. In 1994, the Center was renamed the Ernest B. Yeager Center for Electrochemical Sciences.
His research interests included the properties of electrolytes, electrode kinetics, applications for ultrasonic techniques in physical chemistry, and emission spectroscopy. He and his graduate students are credited with the initial development of the sodium amalgam-oxygen fuel cell. In addition to many published articles in electrochemistry and ultrasonics, Dr. Yeager was editor of The Electrochemical Society Monograph on “Electrode Processes”.
In 1954, Dr. Yeager received the Technical Award of the Cleveland Technical Societies Council, in 1956 the Biennial Award of the Acoustical Society of America, in 1959 the Annual Award of the Chemical Professions in Cleveland.
Dr. Yeager was an active member of the Society from the time he joined in 1949. He served as Vice-Chairman of the Theoretical Division 1953-1954 and Chairman from 1955-1957. He was Chairman of the Cleveland Section from 1954-1955. He was elected Vice-President of the Society in 1962 and President in 1965. He was made an Honorary Member of the Society in 1977. He was awarded the Edward Goodrich Acheson Medal and Prize in 1980 and the Vittorio DeNora Award in 1992.
