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People
Malcolm M. Renfrew
by Susan J. Ainsworth
November 11, 2013
| A version of this story appeared in
Volume 91, Issue 45
Malcolm M. Renfrew, who aided the commercial development of Teflon and was a professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Idaho, died in Moscow, Idaho, on Oct. 12, his 103rd birthday.
Born in Spokane, Wash., Renfrew received a B.S. in 1932 and an M.S. in 1934 from the University of Idaho and a Ph.D. in 1938 from the University of Minnesota, all in chemistry.
He then moved to New Jersey, where he conducted research on new plastics for DuPont. He was involved in the commercial development of Teflon, presenting the material to the public for the first time at the 1946 ACS national meeting in Atlantic City, N.J.
Later, Renfrew became director of chemical research and development for General Mills in Minneapolis and for Spencer Kellogg & Sons in Buffalo, N.Y.
He returned to the University of Idaho in 1959 to become head of its physical sciences department. He developed the university’s doctoral programs in chemistry and physics and subsequently chaired the chemistry department before retiring in 1976.
In retirement, Renfrew served as the university’s patent director and executive vice president of the Idaho Research Foundation.
Renfrew authored many papers on plastics, chemical safety, and molecular spectroscopy and was coeditor of “Safe Laboratories: Principles and Practices for Design and Remodeling.”
Renfrew was an emeritus member of ACS, joining in 1937. He was active in several ACS technical divisions and served as councilor for the Washington-Idaho Border Section for 20 years.
He received numerous awards, including several from ACS: the James Flack Norris Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Teaching of Chemistry, the Global Salute to Polymers Award, and the Howard Fawcett Chemical Health & Safety Award. He was named an ACS Fellow in 2010.
In 1985, to mark his 75th birthday, the University of Idaho physical sciences building was named Malcolm M. Renfrew Hall.
Renfrew was a gifted watercolorist, a world traveler, and a lifelong trombonist. He was also a member of the Moscow First Presbyterian Church.
His wife, Carol, whom he married in 1938, died in 2010. He is survived by two nieces.
Obituary notices of no more than 300 words may be sent to Susan J. Ainsworth at s_ainsworth@acs.org and should include an educational and professional history.
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