Richard A. Dobbins *61

Richard Dobbins, professor emeritus of engineering at Brown University, died May 8, 2015, at the age of 89.

Dobbins was in the Navy during World War II, serving  from 1943 to 1946. He graduated from Harvard in 1948 with a degree in engineering and physics. In 1958, he earned a master’s degree in physics from Northeastern, then a Ph.D. in aeronautical engineering from Princeton in 1961. He taught in the division of engineering at Brown from 1961 to 1993 in fluid mechanics and thermodynamics.

At Brown, he was chair of the engineering division from 1983 to 1988. Research was very important in his career, and he took sabbaticals at California Institute of Technology, the Abadan Institute in Iran, and at the former National Bureau of Standards. Among other consulting positions, he consulted with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and NASA.

His published work was well recognized in the international aerosol-research community, including his seminal work in formation of soot particles during combustion, an important topic for the environment and climate change. He continued at his office and with his research until 2011.

Dobbins was predeceased in 2012 by his wife, Ilona, whom he had married in 1953. He is survived by their two daughters and three grandchildren.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.