Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering and one of the most influential tribologists of the 20th century, Frederick Fongsun Ling died on November 8, 2014 in New York City at the age of 87. Born in Qingdao, China, F. F. Ling received a B.S. in civil engineering from St. John's University in Shanghai in 1947 and left soon; thereafter, for the U.S. on a Ford International Scholarship to Bucknell University, where he received his B.S. in mechanical engineering in 1949. He continued his studies at Carnegie Institute of Technology for a M.S. mechanical engineering (1951), followed by a D.Sc. in mechanical engineering. He began his deep involvement in research on surface mechanics and tribology during his graduate studies; his doctoral dissertation entitled, “An Investigation of Sliding Friction and Interface Temperature Between Two Dry Metallic Surfaces” was completed in 1954. That year he was appointed Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Carnegie Tech. Two years later, Dr. Ling joined the Department of Mechanics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he served as Chairman from 1967–1974 and as Chairman, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering & Mechanics from 1974–1986. In 1990, Dr. Ling was named William Howard Hart Professor Emeritus. Following his distinguished career at Rensselaer, during which he introduced many graduate students to the field of tribology, Dr. Ling taught mechanical engineering at Columbia University for four years. While at Columbia he served as Director, Columbia Engineering Productivity Center and was President, Institute of Productivity Research in New York. In 1992, Dr. Ling began a ten-year tenure at the University of Texas at Austin, where he held the Earnest F. Gloyna Regents Chair in Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, and the position of Associate Director for Engineering, Center of Manufacturing Systems. In 2002, he became the Earnest F. Gloyna Regents Chair Emeritus in Engineering. He retired in New York City where he continued to serve as Editor-in-Chief of Springer-Verlag's Mechanical Engineering Series until 2011.
Author of the seminal texts Surface Mechanics (1973) and Fundamentals of Surface Mechanics with Applications (2002, with W. M. Lai and D. A. Lucca), Dr. Ling wrote or edited more than 100 scientific publications and numerous books. He lectured widely on friction, lubrication, and wear in manufacturing and materials systems, and led research teams on projects for Government Agencies such as the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, NASA, and the National Science Foundation and for such companies as Ford Motor Company, General Electric, and IBM. He established research collaborations with tribologists in many universities, government laboratories and companies, both in the United States and around the world. Among his numerous honors and awards, Dr. Ling won the coveted Senior Postdoctoral Fellow Award of the National Science Foundation in 1970, the ASME Mayo D. Hersey Award in 1984, and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering at the age of 50. In 1998, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers recognized his lifetime service to engineering with its Honorary Membership for “advancing the field of tribology through engineering research and applications in machine systems.”
A modest, patient, and optimistic man, nothing delighted Dr. Ling more than helping his students and colleagues advance their careers. He established a strong tradition of leadership and service in the tribology and mechanical engineering communities; that tradition is being carried on by the large number of former students and colleagues whose careers were greatly influenced by Professor F. F. Ling. Surviving Dr. Ling are his devoted wife of 60 years, the former Linda Kwok, three children, and four grandchildren.
