Hillar Rootare
Encyclopedia
Hillar M. Rootare was a physical chemist and materials scientist best known for his work in the development of mercury
porosimetry
, high pressure liquid chromatography, and formulation of the Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
.
, Estonia
, emigrated from Estonia
to Helsinki
, Finland
, in 1944, and later to Visby
, on the Swedish
island of Gotland
, and immigrated to New York City
in the United States from Sweden
in 1946. He attended Wagner College
on Staten Island
, New York
, and received his Ph.D.
from the University of Michigan
in 1973. Although he was displaced several times during and after World War II
, as a result he speaks several languages, including English
, Estonian
, Finnish
, Swedish
, as well as, to a lesser degree, German
and Russian
. Hillar Rootare is the nephew of Estonia
n chess player
Vidrik Rootare
, several of whose games against the world-renowned International Grand Master Paul Keres
are published among Keres's most interesting games, and of Salme Rootare
, a Women's International Master in chess, and 15-time Estonian women's chess champion, who once finished third in the world chess championship competition (1959). Hillar's middle name, Muidar, is radium
spelled backwards—he was given the name because his father, Karl Johannes Rootare, also a chemist, was conducting some early experiments with radium and other radioactive materials around the time Hillar was born in 1928. Hillar's mother, Karin (Kangas) Rootare, was born in Narva
, Estonia
, and is of Ingrian
-Finnish as well as Estonian descent. Rootare and Carl Prenzlow came up with the Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
while in graduate school at the University of Michigan
, in typical Estonian fashion over a late-night beer after working in the laboratory, working it out on cocktail napkins at Metzger's bar in Ann Arbor. Hillar, a former faculty member of the University of Michigan
as well as a former student, is also a former president of the American Fine Particle Society (physics). He was an officer in the United States Air Force
, and served in the Korean War
as a navigator
aboard a B-17 converted for reconnaissance. He has been married to Norene (Kindstrand) Rootare since 1959. They live in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States, and have six children, Laura, Paul, Niel, Eva Marie, Lennart, and Margrethe
. They also have relatives in Sweden and Estonia.
, where he considered one of the foremost experts, and is one of the most widely published chemists in the United States. Examples of his published papers include:
Mercury (element)
Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...
porosimetry
Porosimetry
Porosimetry is an analytical technique used to determine various quantifiable aspects of a material's porous nature, such as pore diameter, total pore volume, surface area, and bulk and absolute densities....
, high pressure liquid chromatography, and formulation of the Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
The Rootare-Prenzlow Equation is named for Estonian-American scientist Hillar Rootare and American scientist Carl Prenzlow, first published in their 1967 paper, "Surface Areas from Mercury Porosimetry Measurements," Rootare, H.M. , and Prenzlow, C.F., 71 J. Phys. Chem. p. 2733...
.
Biography
Rootare was born and raised in TallinnTallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, emigrated from Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
to Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, in 1944, and later to Visby
Visby
-See also:* Battle of Visby* Gotland University College* List of governors of Gotland County-External links:* - Visby*...
, on the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
island of Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
, and immigrated to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in the United States from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in 1946. He attended Wagner College
Wagner College
Wagner College is a private, co-educational, national liberal arts college with an enrollment of approximately 2,400 total students located atop Grymes Hill in New York City's borough of Staten Island...
on Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and received his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1973. Although he was displaced several times during and after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, as a result he speaks several languages, including English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
, Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
, Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
, as well as, to a lesser degree, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
. Hillar Rootare is the nephew of Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n chess player
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
Vidrik Rootare
Vidrik Rootare
Vidrik "Frits" Rootare was an Estonian chess player. His wife, Salme Rootare, was also an Estonian chess player, 15-time Estonian Champion and a Women's International Master ....
, several of whose games against the world-renowned International Grand Master Paul Keres
Paul Keres
Paul Keres , was an Estonian chess grandmaster, and a renowned chess writer. He was among the world's top players from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s....
are published among Keres's most interesting games, and of Salme Rootare
Salme Rootare
Salme Rootare was an Estonian chess master.She was fifteen times Estonian Champion ....
, a Women's International Master in chess, and 15-time Estonian women's chess champion, who once finished third in the world chess championship competition (1959). Hillar's middle name, Muidar, is radium
Radium
Radium is a chemical element with atomic number 88, represented by the symbol Ra. Radium is an almost pure-white alkaline earth metal, but it readily oxidizes on exposure to air, becoming black in color. All isotopes of radium are highly radioactive, with the most stable isotope being radium-226,...
spelled backwards—he was given the name because his father, Karl Johannes Rootare, also a chemist, was conducting some early experiments with radium and other radioactive materials around the time Hillar was born in 1928. Hillar's mother, Karin (Kangas) Rootare, was born in Narva
Narva
Narva is the third largest city in Estonia. It is located at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, by the Russian border, on the Narva River which drains Lake Peipus.-Early history:...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, and is of Ingrian
Ingrian
Ingrian can refer to:*Of or pertaining to the region of Ingria*The Ingrians, which can refer to:**Ingrian Finns, descendants of Finnish immigrants to Ingria in the 17th century**Izhorians, an indigenous people of Ingria...
-Finnish as well as Estonian descent. Rootare and Carl Prenzlow came up with the Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
Rootare-Prenzlow Equation
The Rootare-Prenzlow Equation is named for Estonian-American scientist Hillar Rootare and American scientist Carl Prenzlow, first published in their 1967 paper, "Surface Areas from Mercury Porosimetry Measurements," Rootare, H.M. , and Prenzlow, C.F., 71 J. Phys. Chem. p. 2733...
while in graduate school at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, in typical Estonian fashion over a late-night beer after working in the laboratory, working it out on cocktail napkins at Metzger's bar in Ann Arbor. Hillar, a former faculty member of the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
as well as a former student, is also a former president of the American Fine Particle Society (physics). He was an officer in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
, and served in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
as a navigator
Navigator
A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
aboard a B-17 converted for reconnaissance. He has been married to Norene (Kindstrand) Rootare since 1959. They live in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States, and have six children, Laura, Paul, Niel, Eva Marie, Lennart, and Margrethe
Margrethe
Margrete is an alternate spelling of Margaret. It is commonly used to identify several famous persons.* Margrete I of Denmark * Margrethe II of Denmark * Margrethe of Savoy , Queen of Italy...
. They also have relatives in Sweden and Estonia.
Publications
Rootare is highly regarded in several areas, having published more than 100 papers and cited in hundreds more, but particularly so in the field of porosimetryPorosimetry
Porosimetry is an analytical technique used to determine various quantifiable aspects of a material's porous nature, such as pore diameter, total pore volume, surface area, and bulk and absolute densities....
, where he considered one of the foremost experts, and is one of the most widely published chemists in the United States. Examples of his published papers include:
- Solubility-Product Phenomena in Hydroxyapatite-Water Systems, H.M. Rootare, V.R. Deitz, & F.G. Carpenter, 17 Journal of Colloid Science p. 179 (1962).
- Surface Areas from Mercury Porosimetry Measurements, Rootare, H.M., and Prenzlow, C.F., 71 Journal of Physical Chemistry p. 2733 (1967).
- A Review of Mercury Porosimetry, H.M. Rootare, 5 Perspectives in Powder Metallurgy 225, Advanced Experimental Techniques in Powder Metallurgy, Plenum Press (New York, London 1970).
- A Computer Program for Pore Volume and Pore Area Distribution, Rootare & Spencer, 6 Powder Technology, p. 17 (1972)
- Characterization of the Compaction and Sintering of Hydroxyapatite Powders by Mercury Porosimetry, H.M. Rootare, R.G. Craig, 9 Powder Technology p. 199 (1974).
- Thermal Analysis of Experimental and Commercial Gutta-Percha, H.M. Rootare, J.M. Powers, & R.L. Smith, 2 J. Endod. p. 244 (Aug. 1976).
- Vapor Phase Adsorption of Water on Hydroxyapatite, H.M. Rootare, R.G. Craig, 56 J. Dent Res. p. 1437 (Dec. 1977).
- Preparation of Ag/AgCl Electrodes, H.M. Rootare & J.M. Powers, 11 Journal of Biomedical Materials Research p. 633 (1977)
- Free Surface Energy Change for Water Adsorbed on Hydroxyapatite, H.M. Rootare, R.G. Craig, 56 J. Dent Res. p. 744 (Jul. 1977).
- Determination of Phase Transitions in Gutta-Percha by Differential Thermal Analysis, H.M. Rootare & J.M. Powers, 56 J. Dent. Res. 1453 (Dec. 1977).
- Sintered Hydroxyapatite Ceramic for Wear studies, H.M. Rootare, J.M. Powers, and R.G. Craig, 57 J. Dent. Res. p. 777 (1978).
- Characterization of Hydroxyapatite Powders and Compacts at Room Temperature and After Sintering at 1200 Degrees C., H.M. Rootare, R.G. Craig, 5 J. Or. Reh. p. 293 (1978).
- Wear of Composites by Abrasives of Varying Hardness, H.M. Rootare, J.M. Powers, and R.G. Craig, 58 J. Dent Res. p. 1097 (Mar. 1979).