Obituary - Dr Peter Edwin John Flewitt FREng FIMMM
Dr Peter Flewitt was a beloved and respected academic, whose contributions to materials science and to IOM3 will be greatly missed.
Dr Peter Edwin John Flewitt FREng FIMMM
6 January 1941 - 21 September 2024
It was with a sense of sadness and loss, that IOM3 learnt the news of the death of Professor Peter Flewitt on 21 September 2024. As my PhD supervisor in the 1980s and later when I joined the electricity supply industry, Peter impressed on me the importance of our work, keeping the lights on, and upholding the highest professional standards.
Peter was born on 6 January 1941 in London. Peter's early career was at the University of Sheffield after which he worked for the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) and its successor companies and, from 1993, the University of Bristol as an Honorary Professor in the Interface Analysis Centre. Peter has supported many PhD students, undergraduates and postdoctoral researchers there in research into nuclear materials. He held this position until he died, and contributed to hundreds of research publications after his official retirement.
Peter was distinguished by his technical contributions to materials science and structural integrity and his generosity and support of his colleagues. Peter was a prominent contributor to the Light Water Reactor Study Group under Sir Walter Marshall and then Sir Peter Hirsch providing the CEGB's input on materials performance and irradiation effects on pressure vessel steels. He continued providing valuable practical and fundamental insights on a range of materials performance in nuclear power plants through the Technical Advisory Group on Structural Integrity (TAGSI), a UK committee providing advice to the industry. Peter’s research interests were wide-ranging including microscopy and microanalysis, the measurement and the role of residual stresses in the deformation and fracture of materials (including steels, several other alloys and nuclear graphite). Peter published more than 350 papers and co-authored three books. His awards include DSc (1980) via Imperial College London; Colclough Medal & Prize from the Institute of Materials (1997); Plowden Award from the British Nuclear Energy Society (1993); and election to the Royal Academy of Engineering (1999). Peter was Honorary Professor at Beihang University, China, Honorary Professor at Harbin University, China, Director of the Forum for Engineering Structural Integrity (FESI), Honorary Professor at the University of Surrey & Senior Fellow in the Department of Materials at Oxford University.
Peter was consistently generous in his encouragement and support for his colleagues. He was an active contributor to the IOM3, writing articles, organising seminars and conferences. In addition to the specialist knowledge that Peter brought to his profession, Peter saw the bigger picture; he appreciated the breadth of the challenges of the transition to low carbon energy and the importance of a mix of technologies, a key theme of a pivotal IOM3 webinar on 'Nuclear and renewables' in 2021. Peter contributed to the IOM3 Energy Materials Group (EMG) & his local materials society, the West of England Materials Association (WEMMA) which he chaired very effectively. Peter was always helpful, open to different views and considerate. Peter was a diligent and supportive academic supervisor who challenged and developed his junior colleagues (as I remember with affection).
Within the materials community, we appreciate Peter's support, particularly for new members, and his remarkable talents. Peter's death is a huge loss to the IOM3, nuclear research and academia; he will be greatly missed.
-Martin Lamb
