Charles William Kauffman

Charles William (Bill) Kauffman, retired Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Michigan, died on May 25, 2016 at St. Joseph’s Mercy Hospital. Born in 1939 to Charles and Florence Kauffman, he spent his early years in Waynesboro, PA. He earned Bachelor and Masters degrees in Physics from the Pennsylvania State University and a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan in 1971.

Bill taught and did research for 6 years in the Aerospace Engineering Department at the University of Cincinnati and worked at NASA Lewis Research Center in the summertime. He returned to the University of Michigan in 1977 where he had an active research program in combustion and taught on that topic and aircraft design.

His interest in combustion processes led to subsequent work on the causes and prevention of dust explosions that occur in grain elevators, coal mines, and manufacturing plants. His investigations of major grain elevator explosions ultimately led to the development of new standards by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) that reduced dust contamination and subsequent risk of explosions in grain elevators and had a direct bearing on the prevention of explosions related to fine dust particles in other manufacturing processes, such as sugar refining and pharmaceutical production. His extensive international collaborations included helping colleagues in Poland solve problems with dust explosions in the coal mining industry.

Professor Kauffman’s knowledge and expertise in aircraft design made him the “go-to” person for local television and radio stations when aircraft disasters occurred. He had the ability to simplify complex processes and explain how such disasters could happen and how they might be prevented. He worked with the Federal Aviation Administration to prevent fuel-vapor explosions on board aircraft; after retirement, he collaborated frequently with colleagues in the aerospace industry in Russia.

Bill is survived by his wife, Carol, a Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School and Chief of the Infectious Diseases Section at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System. His brother, Roger, and sister-in-law, Renee, live in Hayden Lake, Idaho.

Cremation has taken place, and a memorial tribute to celebrate Bill’s life will occur at a later time. Bill loved animals, from the many cats he protected and took into his home to the endangered species of sea and land that he worked so hard to save. Gifts in memory of Bill can be made to the Huron Valley Humane Society 3100 Cherry Hill Rd. Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105.