# Harmen Blok > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Harmen_Blok > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Harmen_Blok.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmen_Blok > Source revision: 1342417906 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Dutch mechanical engineer Harmen Blok Born (1910-09-08)8 September 1910 Amsterdam Died 16 August 2000(2000-08-16) (aged 89) The Hague, Netherlands Education Delft University of Technology Parent(s) Pieter Engel Johannes Blok and Wikje Harmina Poort Engineering career Discipline Mechanical Engineering, Tribology Institutions Delft University of Technology Employer Royal Dutch Shell Group Significant advance Prediction of flash temperature rise in rubbing contacts; Co-development of the four-ball wear tester Awards Tribology Gold Medal (1973) **Harmen Blok** was a [Dutch](/source/Dutch_people) [mechanical engineer](/source/Mechanical_engineering). He was best known for his work in the field of [tribology](/source/Tribology).[1] ## Early life and education Blok was born on 8 September 1910 in Amsterdam. He was the son of Pieter Engel Johannes Blok and Wikje Harmina Poort.[\[1\]](https://www.myheritage.nl/names/harmen_blok) He graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from [Delft University of Technology](/source/Delft_University_of_Technology) in 1932.[1] He died on 16 August 2000 in The Hague. [*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] ## Research After graduating from the [Delft University of Technology](/source/Delft_University_of_Technology), and a short period as research assistant, Harmen Blok joined the Delft Laboratory of the [Royal Dutch Shell](/source/Royal_Dutch_Shell) Group in 1933, to work on the fundamentals of [lubrication](/source/Lubrication). He left Shell in 1951 to take up a position as [Professor](/source/Professor) of Mechanical Engineering at [Delft University of Technology](/source/Delft_University_of_Technology).[1] Here, along with Professor Boerlage, he developed the now ubiquitous four-ball [wear](/source/Wear) tester.[1] One of his key contributions was the prediction of flash temperature rise inside rubbing contacts.[2] He also worked on thin-film fluid lubrication[3] and gear tribology.[4][5] He was a Fellow of the [American Society Mechanical Engineers](/source/American_Society_of_Mechanical_Engineers) and the [Institution of Mechanical Engineers](/source/Institution_of_Mechanical_Engineers).[1] In 1973, he was awarded the Tribology Gold Medal from the [Institution of Mechanical Engineers](/source/Institution_of_Mechanical_Engineers).[1] He was a founding member of the International Tribology Council (ITC).[6] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:1_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:1_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:1_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:1_1-5) ["1973 Tribology Gold Medal"](https://www.imeche.org/careers-education/scholarships-and-awards/DGs/tribology/tribology-gold-medal/gold-medal-laureates/Imeche-tribology-gold-medal-laureates/1973TGM). *www.imeche.org*. Retrieved 3 February 2021. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Blok, H. (1 November 1963). ["The flash temperature concept"](https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0043-1648%2863%2990283-7). *Wear*. **6** (6): 483–494. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1016/0043-1648(63)90283-7](https://doi.org/10.1016%2F0043-1648%2863%2990283-7). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0043-1648](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0043-1648). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Blok, Harmen (1951). ["Fundamental Mechanical Aspects of Thin-Film Lubrication"](https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1951.tb54238.x). *Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences*. **53** (4): 779–804. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[1951NYASA..53..779B](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1951NYASA..53..779B). [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1111/j.1749-6632.1951.tb54238.x](https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1749-6632.1951.tb54238.x). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0077-8923](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0077-8923). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [97083140](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:97083140). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Blok, H. (1 September 1969). ["Paper 3: Recent Developments in Gear Tribology"](https://doi.org/10.1243/PIME_CONF_1969_184_438_02). *Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Conference Proceedings*. **184** (15): 21–29. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1243/PIME_CONF_1969_184_438_02](https://doi.org/10.1243%2FPIME_CONF_1969_184_438_02). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0367-8849](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0367-8849). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** DeWinter, A.; Blok, H. (1 February 1974). ["Fling-Off Cooling of Gear Teeth"](https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/manufacturingscience/article/96/1/60/427504/Fling-Off-Cooling-of-Gear-Teeth). *Journal of Engineering for Industry*. **96** (1): 60–70. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1115/1.3438331](https://doi.org/10.1115%2F1.3438331). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0022-0817](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0022-0817). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["History - About ITC - ITC"](https://itctribology.net/en/about-itc/history/). *itctribology.net*. Retrieved 15 March 2021. This article about a Dutch engineer, inventor or industrial designer is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information. - [v](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Netherlands-engineer-stub) - [t](/source/Template_talk%3ANetherlands-engineer-stub) - [e](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Netherlands-engineer-stub) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Harmen Blok](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmen_Blok) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmen_Blok?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.