Solomon, David Henry (1929 - )

Summary

David Solomon became the Masson Professor of Chemistry, University of Melbourne in 1990. Earlier he had been Chief of the Division of Chemicals and Polymers, CSIRO. Solomon is best known as the inventor of surface coatings, polymer mineral composites and plastic laminates for banknotes. His research led to forgery-proof banknotes in circulation today. In 2019 David and Valerie Solomon donated funds to the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Technology to establish a mid-career Award in their names, for a science or technology graduate who "demonstrates substantial ability to foster research-industry collaboration and knowledge transfer for the benefit of Australia".

Details

Solomon was awarded the following CSIRO medals:

1987 - CSIRO Medal for Research Achievement (with colleagues, CSIRO Chemicals and Polymers, and Don Addison, Reserve Bank of Australia), for their joint invention of high security polymer banknotes;

1990 - CSIRO Medal for research Achievement (with Ezio Rizzardo and the Specialty Poylmers Group) for developing innovative methods of preparing polymeric materials:

2009 - CSIRO Medal for Lifetime Achievement.

Chronology

1946 - 1953

Career position - Researcher at Balm Paints (later Dulux Australia Ltd) in Sydney

1950

Education - Associate Diploma of Chemistry, Sydney Technical College

1952

Education - Bachelor of Science with Honours (BSc(Hons)), New South Wales University of Technology

1953 - 1955

Career position - Demonstrator/Teaching Fellow at New South Wales University of Technology

1955

Education - Master of Science (MSc), New South Wales University of Technology

1955 - 1963

Career position - Leader of the Resin and Polymer Research Section of Dulux

1959

Education - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of New South Wales

1959 - 1960

Career position - Seconded to ICI Paints Division in Slough, UK

1963 - 1970

Career position - Senior Research Scientist then Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) Division of Applied Mineralogy

1966 -

Career position - Fellow, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1968

Education - Doctor of Science (DSc), University of New South Wales

1968

Award - Archibald D. Ollé Prize, New South Wales Branch, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1968 - 1969

Career position - Seconded to Georgia Kaolin Company, Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.A.

1970 - 1974

Career position - Chief Research Scientist of CSIRO Division of Applied Chemistry

1971

Award - H.G. Smith Memorial Medal, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1974 - 1986

Career position - Chief of the Division of Applied Organic Chemistry, CSIRO

1975 -

Award - Fellow, Australian Academy of Science (FAA)

1975 - 1987

Award - Foundation Fellow, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences (FRS)

1976

Award - David Syme Research Prize, University of Melbourne

1977

Award - Liversidge Lecturer, Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science

1978

Award - Batteard-Jordan Australian Polymer Medal, Polymer Division, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1979 - 1980

Career position - President, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1980

Award - Applied Research Medal, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1980 - 1981

Career position - Seconded to the Reserve Bank of Australia

1985

Award - Leighton Memorial Medal, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

1986 - 1987

Career position - Acting Director of the CSIRO Institute of Industrial Technologies

1987

Award - CSIRO Medal for Research Achievement (with colleagues, CSIRO Chemicals and Polymers, and Don Addison, Reserve Bank of Australia)

1987

Award - Fellow, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (FTSE) [Foundation Fellow AATS 1975]

1988

Award - The Australian Bicentennial Science Achievement Award

1988 - 1989

Career position - Chief of Division of Chemicals and Polymers, CSIRO

1989

Award - Ian William Wark Medal and Lecturer, Australian Academy of Science

1989

Award - Lady Masson Memorial Lecturer, University of Melbourne

1989 - 1990

Career position - Deputy Director of the CSIRO Institute of Industrial Technologies

1990

Award - CSIRO Medal for research Achievement (with Ezio Rizzardo and the Specialty Poylmers Group)

1990

Award - Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for service to science and technology, particularly in the field of polymer chemistry

1990 - 1994

Career position - Head of School of Chemistry, and ICI Australia Masson Professor of Chemistry, University of Melbourne

1991

Award - Centenary Medal for service to Australian society and science in chemical engineer

1991

Award - Keynote Lecturer, 2nd Pacific Polymer Conference, Otsu, Japan

1991

Award - Liversidge Lecturer, Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science

1994

Award - Clunies Ross National Science and Technology Award, Ian Clunies Ross Memorial Foundation

1995 -

Career position - Professorial Fellow of Chemistry, University of Melbourne

2000 -

Career position - Member, Institution of Chemical Engineers

2001

Award - Centenary Medal for service to Australian society and science in chemical engineering

2002

Award - R. K. Murphy Medal, Industrial Chemistry Division, Royal Australian Chemical Institute

2004 -

Award - Fellow, The Royal Society, London (FRS)

2004

Award - CRC for Polymers Chairman's Award for Excellence in Commercialisation (joint)

2005

Award - Doctor of Applied Science (DAppSc), honoris causa, University of Melbourne

2006

Award - Victoria Prize for Science and Innovation, Government of Victoria

2007 -

Award - Fellow, Institution of Chemical Engineers

2007

Award - Sellafield Ltd Award for Engineering Excellence, Highly Commended), Institution of Chemical Engineers

2007

Award - NES Award for Novel Engineering Solutions, Institution of Chemical Engineers

2008

Award - Innovation Award, Australian and New Zealand Branch, Society for Plastic Engineers

2009

Award - CSIRO Medal for Lifetime Achievement

2011

Award - Prime Minister's Prize for Science (jointly with Ezio Rizzardo), Commonwealth of Australia)

2016

Award - Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) - for eminent service to science as an academic, researcher and author in the field of polymer chemistry and plastics, to the development and commercialisation of processes and materials, and to professional scientific institutions

Related entries

Archival resources

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Corporate Records and Archives Strategies

• David Henry Solomon - Records, 1965 - 1990; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Corporate Records and Archives Strategies. Details

Published resources

Books

• Buchanan, Roderick; McCarthy, Gavan; Manhal, Oscar, The Records of Currency Note Research and Development Project, CSIRO, Division of Chemicals and Polymers (Melbourne: Australian Science Archives Project, 1991), 103 pp. Details
• Moad, Graeme and Solomon, D. H., The chemistry of radical polymerization (Elsevier, 2005), 665 pp. Details
• Solomon, David and Spurling, Tom, The plastic banknote: from concept to reality (Collingwood, Vic.: CSIRO Publishing, 2014), 240 pp. Details

Journal Articles

• Collins, David J.; Simpson, Gregory W.; Solomon, David H.; Spurling, Thomas H., 'James Robert Price, 1912-1999', Historical Records of Australian Science, 15 (1) (2004), 95-120. https://doi.org/10.1071/HR03012. Details
• Johnson, C. H. J.; Moad, G.; Solomon, D. H.; Spurling, T. H.; and Vearing, D. J., 'The application of supercomputers in modelling chemical-reaction kinetics - kinetic simulation of "quasi-living" radical polymerization', Australian journal of chemistry, 43 (7) (1990), 1215-30. https://doi.org/10.1071/CH9901215. Details
• Johnson, C. H. J.; Moad, G.; Solomon, D.H.; and Spurling, T. H., 'Kinetic simulation of polymerization involving termination by reversible chain transfer', Australian journal of chemistry, 39 (12) (1986), 1943-50. https://doi.org/10.1071/CH9861943. Details
• Solomon, D. H.; and Spurling, T. H., 'Australian manufacturing industry - third time lucky', Prometheus, 5 (1) (1987), 63-72. Details
• Spurling, Thomas H.; and Solomon, David H., 'Sefton Davidson Hamann 1921-2009', Historical Records of Australian Science, 20 (2) (2009), 255-271 , https://doi.org/10.1071/HR09019. Details

Newspaper Articles

• Edwards, Paul, 'A pioneer from paint to plastic', The Age (2007). Details

Resources

• VIAF - Virtual International Authority File, OCLC, https://viaf.org/viaf/30889561. Details
• Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q21165823. Details
• 'Solomon, David Henry (1929 - )', Recipients [of the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science, 2000 - 2017], Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, 2017, https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20171113015220/http://www.science.gov.au/community/PrimeMinistersPrizesforScience/Recipients/2011/Pages/Professors-Ezio-Rizzardo-David-Solomon.aspx. Details
• 'Solomon, D H (1929-)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1284463. Details
• 'Awarded honorary DAppSc, 2005 [Citation provided]', Honorary degree holders, University of Melbourne, 2023, https://about.unimelb.edu.au/notable-alumni-staff/honorary-degree-holders. Details

Resource Sections

• Spurling, Tom; Healy, Terry; and Solomon, David, 'David Solomon, interviewed by Tom Spurling and Terry Healy, 12 January 2017 and 2 February 2017', in CSIRO Oral History Project, video, text summary and transcript., CSIROpedia, 12 January and 2 February 2017, https://csiropedia.csiro.au/interview-with-david-solomon/. Details
• Ward, C., 'David Henry (Dave) Solomon', in CSIROpedia, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), 2011, https://csiropedia.csiro.au/Solomon-David-Henry. Details