.
Collection Overview
Abstract
Professor of chemistry at Calvin College. The collection details his research work in the field of electrochemistry (development of high power density batteries, the silver-zinc alkaline cell) with research materials, articles, references, evaluations, manuscripts, reports, papers, books, correspondence, and bibliography.
Biographical Note
Thedford (Ted) P. Dirkse was born on January 5, 1915 in Holland Michigan. Dirkse attended Calvin College, graduating in 1936. He furthered his education at Indiana University, earning his masters and doctorate degrees. In 1939, Iowa State University hired him as an instructor. After two years in Iowa, he spent another two as an assistant professor at Hamline University in St. Paul Minnesota.
From 1942 to 1946, Dirkse worked on battery research for the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington D.C. Once World War II ended, he returned Hamline University for a year. In 1947, Dirkse got the opportunity to return to Calvin College, not as a student, but rather as a faculty member. For 33 years, Dirkse served as a chemistry professor at Calvin, where he taught courses in analytical and physical chemistry as well as general and nursing chemistry. He was involved in many college committees such as educational policy, long-range planning, and academic standards committee. Dirkse also kept busy by writing articles in scientific journals like the Journal of the Electrochemical Society. Dirkse retired from Calvin College in 1980.
Dirkse’s research topic of choice was battery chemistry. In 1962, he even earned the prestigious Research Award from the Battery Division of the Electrochemical Society. Dirkse later became the chairman of the Battery Division in 1964. Much of his research in battery technology was sponsored by the U.S. Office of Naval Research. One time even NASA depended on professor Dirkse’s extensive knowledge of electrochemistry when the Apollo 13 was in trouble. NASA sought Dirkse’s advice on how to get the most performance out the zinc batteries on the space shuttle for the astronauts to return safely home.
Dirkse also faced hardship in his life as well. His first wife was Frances Miller and together they had two daughters. Sadly, Frances passed away during childbirth, and their twin sons died soon after as well. Dirkse was remarried to Ruth Imanse and together they had another two daughters. After 43 years of marriage, Ruth passed as well due to breast cancer. He then married Theresa Vroon in 1995. Dirkse was a member of the Mayfair Christian Reformed Church where he served as an elder and deacon. At the age of 91, Ted Dirkse passed away on October 23, 2006.
Box and Folder Listing
Browse by Series:
[
Series 1: [General Materials]],
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- Series 1: [General Materials]
- Box 1
- Folder 1: Research material on zinc --- 1901-1920
- Folder 2: Research material on zinc --- 1921-1929
- Folder 3: Research material on zinc thru --- 1952
- Folder 4: Research material on zinc --- 1953-1962
- Box 2
- Folder 1: Research material on zinc --- 1963-1967
- Folder 2: Research material on zinc --- 1968-1972, 1977
- Folder 3: Research material on zinc --- 1980s
- Folder 4: Research material on silver --- 1800-1900
- Box 3
- Folder 1: Research material on silver --- 1930-1949
- Folder 2: Research material on silver --- 1950-1959
- Folder 3: Research material on silver --- 1960-1962
- Folder 4: Research material on silver --- 1963-1966
- Box 4
- Folder 1: Research material on silver --- 1967-1968
- Folder 2: Research material on silver --- 1969-1975
- Folder 3: Research material on silver --- 1976-1986
- Folder 4: Research material on silver --- 1987-1991
- Box 5
- Folder 1: Research material on copper
- Folder 2: Research material on copper
- Folder 3: Research material on copper
- Folder 4: Research material on conductance
- Folder 5: Research material on ion hydration
- Folder 6: Ion hydration references
- Folder 7: Research material on silver oxides
- Box 6
- Folder 1: Research project on metal formates, pages 1-170
- Folder 2: Research project on metal formates, pages 171-326
- Folder 3: Articles on alchemy --- 1931-2002
- Folder 4: Articles on copper --- 1901-1928
- Folder 5: Articles on copper --- 1929-1942
- Folder 6: Articles on copper --- 1942-1998
- Box 7
- Folder 1: Articles on conductance --- 1979-1990
- Folder 2: Articles on cadmium --- 1964-1982
- Folder 3: Articles on cadmium1928-1962
- Folder 4: Cadmium evaluations --- 1982-1991
- Folder 5: Articles on gold --- 1924-1985
- Folder 6: Articles on mercury --- 1897-1951
- Folder 7: Articles on mercury --- 1942-1971
- Folder 8: Articles on silver oxides --- 1949-1989
- Folder 9: Articles on zinc --- 1927-1949
- Box 8
- Folder 1: Articles on zinc --- 1899-1925
- Folder 2: Articles on zinc --- 1950-1964
- Folder 3: Articles on zinc --- 1964-1981
- Folder 4: Silver evaluation material --- 1985-1988
- Folder 5: Mercury evaluation material --- 1981-1986
- Folder 6: Copper evaluation material --- 1989-1990
- Folder 7: Metal Formates manuscript, pages 1-60
- Folder 8: Metal Formates manuscript, pages 61-326
- Box 9
- Folder 1: Report of committee on battery additives
- Folder 2: Technology Reports: Battery Zinc Electrode Kinetics Investigation Zinc Electrode Kinetics Research
- Folder 3: Technology Report: Silver Migration and Transport Mechanism Studies in Silver Oxide Batteries
- Folder 4: Unidentified manuscript, pages 1-190
- Folder 5: Unidentified manuscript, pages333 --- 191-
- Folder 6: Conductance data
- Folder 7: Paper: The Use of AgO as a Cathode in Aqueous Salt Solutions --- 1965
- Folder 8: Paper: Evidence for Trivalent Silver --- 1970
- Folder 9: Alcohol impairment tests conducted with the Grand Rapids Police Department
- Folder 10: Correspondence --- 1967-1969
- Folder 11: Correspondence --- 1970-1977
- Folder 12: Correspondence --- 1980-1989
- Folder 13: Correspondence --- 1990-1991
- Folder 14: Correspondence with N. Jonas and Co. --- 1993
- Box 10
- Folder 1: Biographical sketch of the Dirkses - --- 1989, 1999
- Folder 2: Class notes - Indiana University --- 1938
- Folder 3: What Does the Bible Say? by Thedford Dirkse --- 1990
- Folder 4: Papers by Thedford Dirkse --- 1938-1991
- Folder 5: List of papers/publications by Thedford Dirkse --- 1978
- Folder 6: American Chemical Society Certificate --- 1989
- Box 11
- Folder 1: Articles published in the Journal of the Electrochemical Society --- 1950-1970
- Folder 2: Calvin Forum articles --- 1954
- Folder 3: Paper, The Conductance of Salts in Monethanolamine [partial fulfillment of PhD requirement] --- 1939
- Folder 4: Miscellaneous published articles --- 1946-1977
- Folder 5: Articles published in Electrochimica Acta --- 1971-1991
- Folder 6: The Society of Sigma XI --- 1937
- Folder 7: Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data, vol. 27, no. 6, pp. 1289-1470: "IUPAC -NIST Solubility Data Series 66. Ammonium Phosphates"
- Folder 8
- Item 1: Lyts Frysk Wirdboek --- 1934
- Item 2: Frysk Rymsnoer --- 1925
- Item 3: Ta Nocht en Nut in Sangboekje --- 1939
- Item 4: Us Fryske Psalmen
- Item 5: De Fryske Husfrneon --- 1904
- Box 12
- Folder 1: Solubility Data Series (volume 23): Copper, Silver, Gold and Zinc,Cadmium, Mercury Oxides and Hydroxides, edited by T.P. Dirkse, et al [HERH QD543.S66 V.23] --- 1986
- Folder 2: Solubility Data Series (volume 30):Alkali Metal Halates, Ammonium Iodate and Iodic Acid, edited by T. P. Dirkse [HERH QD543.S66 V.30] --- 1987
- Folder 3: Solubility Data Series (volume 31): Alkali Metal Orthophosphates, edited by T. P. Dirkse, et al [HERH QD543.S66 V.31] --- 1988
- Folder 4: Zinc-silver Oxide Batteries (contributor: T. P. Dirkse) [HERH TK2921 .S95 1968] --- 1970
- Folder 5: The Primary Battery (contributor: T. P. Dirkse) [HERH TK2921 .P75 V.1] --- 1971
- Box 13
- Folder 1: Research Material and Progress Reports for Investigation of the Silver Oxide-Zinc-Alkali Primary Cell --- 1947-1955
- Folder 2: Clippings and Photographs
- Folder 3: Misc. Research Papers
Browse by Series:
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Series 1: [General Materials]],
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