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THURSTON E. LARSON
1910-1984
BY RICHARD S. ENGELBRECHT
AND WILLIAM C. ACKERMANN
DR THURSTON E LARSON noted engineer and leader in
water quality research, cried on March 2l, 1984, in Urbana,
Illinois. He left behind a rich heritage of published research
finclings, major contributions to the fielct of water technol-
ogy, and a research foundation.
Thurston Larson was born in Chicago, Illinois, on March
3, 1910. He earned a B.S. in chemical engineering in 1932
and a Ph.D. in sanitary chemistry in 1937 from the Univer-
sity of Illinois. He was a registered professional engineer i
Illinois.
Dr. Larson's principal work was carried out for the Illinois
State Water Survey, where he began his career as an assistant
chemist in 1932. By 1937 he hac! risen to the position of
chemist; he became heacI of the Chemistry Section in 1948.
In 1956 he was appointed assistant chief of the Water Survey,
a position he helc} until his retirement in 1977.
After retiring, he was awarclec! the title of assistant chief
emeritus. Yet Dr. Larson's "first love" was research, and al-
though he held an administrative position at the Water Sur-
vey after 1948, until he retired he continued to be active in
bench-level research and to develop new water quality stud-
ies. As an administrator, he was instrumental in identifying
and developing new programs for assessing the quality of the
Illinois ground water and surface waters, programs that not
237
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238
MEMORIAL TRIBUTES
only depicted temporal changes in mineral constituents but
also identified potential water quality problems.
From 1962 onward, Dr. Larson was also professor of en-
vironmental engineering in the Department of Civil Engi-
neering at the University of Illinois. In that capacity he sig-
nificantly enriched the clepartment's graduate program in
environmental engineering by presenting seminars, advising
graduate students on research problems involving water
chemistry, and serving on thesis committees.
Dr. Larson made numerous outstanding contributions to
environmental engineering through his research in the areas
of water quality assessment ant! control. He was one of the
first to recognize the problems associates! with the corrosion
of water pipes and, as a result, was a pioneer in corrosion
research. In fact, he was the first to recognize the measure-
ment of nondestructive corrosion by polarization resistance.
His research on the tuberculation phenomenon associated
with the corrosion of metal pipes is particularly noteworthy.
Thurston Larson also cleveloped a method anct apparatus
that have been wiclely adopted in industry for the accurate
and sensitive measurement of steam purity. Three of the
four patents that he held were related to this measurement.
Dr. Larson's research interest was not limited to corrosion,
however, but instead! spanned several areas involving water
quality considerations. He was active in developing analytical
methods for improved sensitivity in measuring chemical con-
stituents in water. He was also recognized for his research in
water treatment processes in particular, water softening
processes ant! in the use ant! measurement of various clis-
infectants that are applied to treat water supplies. His long
and productive periods of active research are duly reported
through his scholarly publications in technical literature.
Although he was an internationally recognized researcher,
Dr. Larson was also a practitioner. Those responsible for
water supply utilities and others in the water technology field
frequently sought his advice in analyzing and solving water
quality problems. From the beginning of his professional ca-
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THURSTON E. LARSON
239
reer, he maintained a deep interest in the operation and
management of water treatment and distribution systems. As
a result, he was well aware of the problems, both technical
and managerial, that confronted the operators and manag-
ers of water supply utilities.
This awareness resulted in his establishing the Annual
Water Works Management Short Course in 1952. This pro-
gram, which has been held annually at the University of Illi-
nois Allerton Park Conference Center since 1952, was the
first of its kind. Dr. Larson served as its general chairman for
many years.
Thurston Larson was perhaps most prominent as a protes-
sional leader in the American Water Works Association
(AWWA). Within AWWA,s Illinois Section, he chaired nu-
merous committees and held many offices, both before and
after being elected! chairman of the section in 1959. At the
national level, he was on the board of directors anct for many
years was chairman of the association's research committee.
He represented AWWA on the Standard Methods for the
Examination of Water and Wastewater Committee; during
his tenure, the committee published the tenth, eleventh, and
twelfth editions of Standard Methods for the Examination of
Water and Wastewater.
In ~ 970 Dr. Larson was elected national president of
AWWA. He was instrumental in establishing the AWWA Re-
search Foundation and served on its board of trustees for
many years; the foundation continues to have an active and
prominent role in sponsoring water quality research. AWWA
honoree! Dr. Larson with a number of awards the Gooclell
Prize (1957), the George Warren Fuller Award (1961), the
Diven Mecial for outstanding service (1966), the Research
Award (1972), and an honorary membership award (1974~.
Thurston Larson was also prominent in the affairs of the
American Chemical Society (ACS) and its Division of Envi-
ronmental Chemistry (formerly the Division of Water, Air,
and Waste Chemistry); he was chairman of the division for a
number of years. In aciclition, he represented ACS on the
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MEMORIAL TRIBUTES
U.S. Public Health Service Drinking Water Stanciards Advis-
ory Committee. In 1971 he received a citation from ACS's
board of directors for his role as chairman of the twenty-six-
member task force that developed the report, "Cleaning Our
Environment—A Chemical Basis for Action." This report,
which was translatec! into Arabic and Japanese, had a very
positive impact cluring the environmental movement of the
early 1970s.
Dr. Larson actively participated in the affairs of numerous
other professional organizations through committee assign-
ments ant! his publications. He was a fellow of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science and the Ameri-
can Institute of Chemists, a diplomate of the American
Academy of Environmental Engineers, and a member of the
National Association of Corrosion Engineers, the Water Pol-
lution Control Federation, the international Water Supply
Association, the International Association on Water Pollution
Research and Control, ant! the United Kingclom's Institution
of Water Engineers and Scientists.
He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in
1978 for his leaclership in water supply research and those
of his contributions to the fielcI of environmental engineer-
ing that were related to water quality criteria and standarcls.
Among his many activities was his participation as a member
of various committees of the National Research Council. Dr.
Larson was a member of the Subcommittee on Water Sup-
plies of the Committee on Sanitary Engineering anct the En-
vironment from 1958 to 1964; chairman of the Pane} on
Public Water Supplies of the Committee on Water Quality
Criteria in 1972; a member of the Committee on Nitrate Ac-
cumulation in 1971; a member of the Subcommittee on Spe-
cial Tons of the Safe Drinking Water Committee from 1976
to 1977; and a member of the Committee on the Potomac
River from 1976 to 1977.
Dr. Larson also actively participated in committees of the
U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) and the U.S. Environ-
mental Protection Agency (EPA). From 1960 to 1966, he was
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THURSTON E. LARSON
241
a member of the USPHS Environmental Science and Engi-
neering Stucly Section; he was chairman of the section from
1963 through 1966. He was a member of the EPA Advisory
Committee on Drinking Water Standards in 1973. In acicti-
tion, he frequently servect as a consultant on special matters
to these two agencies anc! to the U.S. Army Environmental
Hygiene Agency.
Dr. Larson married Vecla E. Taylor in 1938. He is survived
by his wife anct two sons Byron of Taipei, Taiwan, anct
Bruce of New York City.
Thurston Larson was wiclely admirer! not only by his
professional associates but also by a wicie circle of practition-
ers in the water supply industry, people who recognized his
leadership in achieving the high level of water quality this
country continues to enjoy. He was blessed with a congenial
personality, which led to his being liked, as well as acimirecI.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
water supply
