Joseph Mellor

The Mellor Building on Staffordshire University’s Stoke-on-Trent campus is named after Joseph Mellor who became the world’s leading ceramic scientist. Born in Huddersfield during 1869, he was educated at Otago University (New Zealand) and at Manchester University, where he undertook research into organic and inorganic chemistry.

Awarded the degree of doctor of science in 1902, Joseph came to North Staffordshire to teach chemistry at Newcastle-under-Lyme High School. Fascinated by clay technology and the technical problems faced by pottery manufacturers, he left Newcastle High in 1904 and became head of the Pottery School in Tunstall which provided technical and scientific training for managers in the pottery industry.

Shortly afterwards, the school moved to temporary premises in Victoria Road (now College Road), Stoke. In 1913 it became the Central School of Science and Technology’s ceramics department.  Appointed head of the department, Joseph established courses leading to degree level qualifications and organised research projects to help manufacturers produce better quality ware.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Britain’s small refractory industry used raw materials imported from Europe to make fire bricks and furnace linings. The steel industry lined its furnaces with Austrian made magnesite bricks and the inside walls of coke ovens were lined with fire bricks manufactured in Germany.

All trade with Germany and Austria ceased when the First World War started in August, 1914. Unable to obtain Austrian furnace linings and German fire bricks, the British steel industry faced a major crisis. It had to have fire bricks to reline existing furnaces and to build new ones to increase output. Unless alternative sources of furnace linings could be found quickly, steel production in the United Kingdom would cease. Deprived of steel, Britain’s shipbuilding, engineering and munitions industries could not produce the weapons the allies needed to fight the war.

Geological research at Liverpool University showed that with the exception of magnesite the United Kingdom had enough raw materials to manufacture furnace linings and fire bricks for the steel industry.

Greece agreed to supply Britain with magnesite but Greek magnesite had a different chemical composition from Austrian. Before it could be used to make fire bricks, Greek magnesite had to be synthesised.  Aware of the problems the country was facing, Joseph approached the government and offered to use his expertise to create a fire brick  for the steel industry. The government accepted his offer. Working with his students in the ceramics laboratory at the Central School of Science and Technology (Staffordshire University’s Cadman Building)  he developed a furnace lining that enabled steel production to continue without interruption. Although offered a peerage for his contribution towards the war effort, Joseph turned it down saying that he had freely given his scientific knowledge to help his country because ill-health prevented him joining the army and fighting in France.

(Copyright Betty Cooper/ David Martin – The Phoenix Trust 2010)