US: Loren Neil Peterson, the co-founder of Vortex, has died at the age of 87. After starting working with dry bulk solids at Salina Manufacturing in the 1950s, Peterson founded Vortex with his son-in-law Lee Young in 1977. His inventions included a type of slide gate called an Orifice Gate that was patented in 1980 and which received the John C Vaalar Award by Chemical Processing Magazine judging it ‘a major contributor toward more efficient and effective operation of plants in the chemical processing industry’. His other innovations included the Wye Line Diverter, Roller Gate and Fill Pass Diverter. He was awarded his last patent for the Clear Action Gate in 1990, a year after he retired in 1989.
“Neil was great. Nobody worked harder than him. When I left Salina, I looked everywhere for the same calibre of engineer. Unfortunately for me, he was one of a kind,” said Joe Walton, former chief executive officer and president of Walton/Stout.
