Dr. Hiroaki Okamoto (1941–2022)

J. Phase Equilib. Diffus. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11669-022-01002-2 IN MEMORIAM Dr. Hiroaki Okamoto (1941–2022) Mary Anne Fleming1 Ó ASM International 2022 Hiroaki Okamoto obtained his master’s degree in applied physics from Nagoya University in 1965, and his doctorate in metallurgy from the University of Illinois in 1971. Early in his career, he worked on the evaluation of binary gold systems at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh and on the evaluation of beryllium alloy systems at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in California. Dr. Okamoto (‘‘Hiro’’) was senior technical editor, Alloy Phase Diagram Program, ASM International, from 1987 through 1993. In that position, he served as ASM’s ‘‘expert’’ in binary phase diagrams. He was co-editor of ASM’s primary binary phase diagrams reference work, the 3-volume set Binary Alloys Phase Diagrams, Second Edition [Massalski2], and the electronic edition of this work, Binary Alloy Phase Diagrams, Second Edition, Plus Updates, on CD-ROM. During his lifetime, he had personally evaluated and published phase diagrams and related data for more systems than any other living professional, completing 505 evaluations. He was editor of Phase Diagrams of Binary Iron Alloys (ASM International, 1993), and co-editor of Phase Diagrams of Binary Gold Alloys, Phase Diagrams of Binary Beryllium Alloys, and Phase Diagrams of Binary Indium Alloys and Their Engineering Applications (ASM International, 1987, 1987, and 1991, respectively). He was also a co-editor of the 10-volume Handbook of Ternary Alloy Phase Diagrams (ASM International, 1995). He published classic articles on common mistakes made in drawing phase diagrams, including ‘‘Thermodynamically Improbable Phase Diagrams,’’ ‘‘Reevaluation of Thermodynamic Models for Phase Diagram Evaluation,’’ and ‘‘Guidelines for Binary Phase Diagram Assessment’’ (Journal of Phase Equilibria, 12(2), 12(6), and 14(3), respectively). He had been Supplemental Literature Review Editor for Journal of Phase Equilibria and Journal of Phase Equilibria and Diffusion since 1991. Hiro led the effort to revise Volume 3 of the ASM Handbook: Alloy Phase Diagrams, which was published in 2016. He knew the 1992 edition could be improved upon significantly, because of his experience reviewing the literature and finding incorrectly drawn binary diagrams, based on thermodynamic arguments. His decades of experience and his recent role as Editor of ASM International’s Desk Handbook: Phase Diagrams for Binary Alloys, Second Ed., prepared him for the laborious redrawing and updating of numerous binary and ternary diagrams for the new Volume. Having at that point been involved with ASM publications for more than 35 years, he was the perfect choice for the job. 123 J. Phase Equilib. Diffus. Editors of the Handbook of Ternary Phase Diagrams, (left to right) Dr. Hiroaki Okamoto, Prof. Alan Prince, and Dr. Pierre Villars, met with Dr. William W. Scott, Jr., at the time ASM Technical Director, in January 1992. The four gathered at Villars’ home office in Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, to discuss progress of the exhaustive project. Hiro in his office at ASM International (1989) Hiro and Noriko Okamoto with the father of one of Hiro’s graduate students during their trip to Kashgar in 2012 Hiro with his co-editor and mentor, Professor Thaddeus ‘‘Ted’’ Massalski at a dinner to celebrate the publication of the 3-volume set Binary Alloys Phase Diagrams, Second Edition (1991) 123 Following his return to Japan, he was professor, Department of Information Management, Asahi University, Hozumi-cho, Gifu, later becoming Professor Emeritus. Hiro and his wife Noriko, who survives, enjoyed traveling, and in particular their trip to Kashgar in 2012 (see accompanying photo). During his years in the U.S., the family traveled throughout the country, camping and hiking many of the National Parks. In their later years, they enjoyed going on cruises with friends and family. In addition to his wife Noriko, Hiro is survived by his daughters, Akiko (Bill) Wall and Yukiko (Kevin) Halpin, as well as a grandson, Liam Halpin. Publisher’s Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.  (...truncated)