Nov. 8--Gordon Gronhovd, director in the 1970s of what became UND's Energy and Environmental Research Center and a pioneer researcher in the better use of "low-rank" coal such as North Dakota's lignite, died Friday in 4000 Valley Square, Woodside Village, in Grand Forks.

He was 82.

Born on Jan. 26, 1927, in Grand Forks, he earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering at UND in 1950.

He married Dee Hylden, of Park River, N.D,, on June 19, 1949, and they soon moved to Racine, Wis., where he was an engineer for J.I. Case Tractor Co.

From 1951 to 1953, he was a project engineer for General Motors in Milwaukee.

He came back to his hometown in 1953 to work for the new Grand Forks Energy Technology Center, directing research on better ways to use lignite, including turning it into cleaner, better-burning gas.

Some of that work led to the nation's largest commercial coal gasification plant near Beulah, N.D., built in the early 1980s, to turn the nearby lignite coal into natural gas, which is piped to the eastern part of the nation.

For 20 years, he led research at the GFETC, which later would become the EERC, into ways of using lignite, including building a pilot plant at UND and finding ways to scrub pollutants out of the byproducts of burning coal. One of his collaborative works was titled "Production of Crude Ammonia-Synthesis Gas from North Dakota Lignite ... ," published in 1957.

In 1973, he was named director of the GFETC, in charge of millions of dollars of federal research money, a position he held until he retired in 1980.

Under his directorship, the GFETC, which had begun in 1951 as the Bureau of Mines lignite laboratory, became an arm of the federal Department of Energy in 1977.

In 1983, the Center was "de-federalized" and became UND's Energy Research Center. In 1989, it took its current name, UND's EERC, according to a timeline on EERC's Web site.

During his time as director of the GFETC, Gronhovd co-chaired the annual Lignite Symposium held at UND every year. He was author or co-author of 25 publications on lignite research

He lectured around the world on the technology of using lignite coal, including representing the U.S. in 1976 at the European Low-Rank Coal Conference in Varna, Bulgaria.

Gronhovd was given the U.S. Department of Energy's Distinguished Career Service Award in 1980.

In retirement, he continued working in the industry as a consultant for several years.

He remained interested in all sorts of energy development in his home state. Two years ago, he said of the large windmill farm built near Langdon, N.D., including a turbine on his property: "I'm really happy to see this wind energy project going forward. I expect FPL (Energy) to be a good neighbor in Cavalier County."

He and his wife were active in supporting Wycliffe Bible Translators, including trips to remote areas of South America and hosting families attending the Summer Institute of Linguistics at UND.

He and his son, Paul, began restoring antique cars and trucks in the 1980s, and their work in making a 1931 Chevy pickup truck just like it was first built won them top honors at a meeting of the Antique Automobile Club of America several years ago.

Gronhovd's wife, Dee, died March 30.

His survivors include their three sons: Paul, who is a graphic designer at EERC, Allen and Keith, both of Minneapolis.

Arrangements with Stennes Funeral Home in East Grand Forks are pending.

Reach Lee at (701) 780-1237; (800) 477-6572, ext. 237; or send e-mail to slee@gfherald.com.

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