In November 2008 it was 125 years since the birth of the famous scientist and metallurgist of international renown, Hero of Socialist Labor, Lenin`s chevalier of 7 orders and other awards, the winner of the Lenin and State Awards of the USSR, the organizer and the leader of many steel mills, TsNDIchermetu, the Institute of metallurgy in the SA USSR, academician in the SA USSR, also graduated from KPI Ivan P. Bardin.
Ivan P. was born in November 13, 1883 in the village Wide ledge Atkarskoho district of the Saratov province in the family of a village shoemaker. In 1891 the family moved to Saratov where in 1892 he studied at the municipal primary and trade schools and in 1896-1902 he was a student of the Mariinskyi agricultural school.
In 1903 I. Bardin joined the Novo-Alexander Institute for Agriculture and Forestry from which he was expelled for participation in student unrest. In 1906 he enrolled to the Faculty of Agriculture in KPI. Due to financial difficulties I.P. Bardin had to study and work at the same time. The job was found at the laboratory of physical chemistry and it captured the student so he changed the faculty into chemical with the intent to specialize in the field of chemical engineering. Accidentally hitting the lecture in industry of professor Vasil P. Izhevsk, the young "agriculturist" Ivan Bardin finally defined his life path. I. Bardin was a lucky as the fate brought him to a man of a great heart and an experienced teacher. Master's words: "... History of Metallurgy indissolubly intertwines with common History of Science and Culture,...blast-furnace process fantastically beautiful, though very difficult ..." was consonant with the enthusiasm of technical disciplines` student. "I will be a blast-furnace operator"-repeatedly Bardin repeats to himself.
V.P. Izhevsk has seen in a young Ivan Bardin a great potential, a premonition of his future accomplishments as a metallurgist. January 31, 1910 Ivan B. successfully defended his thesis project and received a diploma of an engineer specializing in "Metallurgy". In March 1910 he conducted research work and in April filed a petition for leave then a trip "on a tour of the steel mills of the south in Russia" to search for work. When this failed he left for the United States.
In 1910-1911 he worked as a laborer at American plants. After returning to Kyiv he began to work on the recommendation of V.P. Izhevsk on Yuzovskyi Ironworks led by great masters blast case M.K. Kurako whom Ivan B. proudly called his second teacher. In 1916-1923 I.P. Bardin worked on Yenakiiev Ironworks: a chief engineer and director of the plant and mines. In the years 1924-1929 he was a chief engineer of Makeevskyi plant and then Dzerzhinskyi plant in Kamensk (Dnipropetrovsk). In 1929 he was asked to guide the construction of the huge at the time of the Kuznetsk Metallurgical Combine. Now you can realize the cherished dream of enthusiastic M.K. Kurako to build on the basis of being coked coal of high quality metallurgical plant with a large blast furnaces, unknown at that time in Europe. Huge-scale construction was carried out in record time of three years.
In 1932 I.P. Bardin was elected as a member of the Science Academy USSR and in 1939 he was appointed as a deputy commissar of ferrous metallurgy of the USSR, chairman of the presidium of the Ural Branch of the SA USSR, he led the Institute of Metallurgy of the USSR established by his initiative. In 1942 he was a scholar elected by Vice-President of the USSR. From 1943 to 1960 he headed the Faculty of Economics and the steel industry at the Moscow Institute of Steel and Alloys.
During World War I.P. Bardin led the commission of the presidium of the SA USSR resource mobilization from eastern regions of the state for defense. In the postwar years a lot of his works and efforts were given to the restoration and reconstruction of war destroyed the steel industry. On the initiative and with the participation of I.P. Bardin was created North Magnitogorsk - Cherepovets Iron and Steel Plant.
The most important problems of the steel industry I.P. Bardin considered preparation of raw, fuel and ore materials, the widespread the usage of oxygen in the industry improving the oxygen-converter process, comprehensive automation of metallurgical processes, creating units of continuous casting of steel, the development of new production technologies iron and steel.
As a scientist of world renown I.P. Bardin was elected as the academician of Academy of Sciences of Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Romania.
I.P. Bardin never lost ties with his alma mater Kiev Polytechnic Institute. In 1944 he helped to organize the metallurgical institute faculty of four departments headed by famous scholars in the SA USSR Academician M.M. Dobrokhotov, V.M. Svyechnikov, cor. USSR Academy of Sciences V. Vasiliev and the first dean professor K.I. Vashchenko. Later in that department worked the famous academician V.N. Gridnev, cor. SA USSR G.V. Samsonov, prof. V.I. Yavoyskyy, V.S. Kocho, V.G. Permyakov etc. For years from the faculty graduated more than 8,000 professionals including 22 elected academicians and Members of National Academy Sciences of Ukraine V.I. Trefilov and O.M. Duhne awarded the title of Academician of RAS.
The substantial contribution was made by Ivan Bardin to the education of scientists and metallurgists. Around him talented young people were combined imitating his deep and comprehensive scientific approach to problem solving high integrity and commitment to industry. In August 1952 being in Kiev as a part of the State Committee on Construction of main pipelines, I.P. Bardin attended KPI, visited classrooms, laboratories, kindly mentioned about V.P. Izhevsk. In 1954 Ivan B. sent to students of metallurgical faculty in KPI the letter "About creative and "scholastic" approach to studying of the metallurgy theory". In that letter Ivan B. recalled years of college paid special attention to the specialty of engineering and the acquisition of engineering experience. The text of that letter was published in the Faculty wall newspaper "Metallurg" and later in the newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda".
In NTUU "KPI" teachers with a great respect mentioned about I.P. Bardin activities during the lectures on metallurgy. In 1983 the EPF (so called previous Faculty of Metallurgy) held a scientific conference devoted to the 100th anniversary of the I.P. Bardin birth, and on the facade of the chemical corps was opened the memorial board. In January 1984 the Council of Ministers of the USSR adopted a resolution on the establishment of two scholarships named after eminent metallurgist, Hero of Socialist Labor, academician I.P. Bardin for the most talented students from EPF in Kiev Polytechnic Institute.
On the scientific readings in May 2003 dedicated to the 140th anniversary of the metallurgical school founder birth of the KPI prof. V.P. Izhevskyi, a presentation on " Memories of I.P. Bardin" cor. NAS Ukraine made by G.G. Iefimenko. The press of Ukraine and a large circulation newspaper in KPI repeatedly published articles about the life, scientific and industrial achievements of the legendary graduated student from KPI I.P. Bardin. Information on his research and way of life is represented in the State Polytechnic Museum at NTUU "KPI" included in the collection "Famous Names of KPI".