Donald S. Trent passed away peacefully, surrounded by those he loved, on October 25, 2017, in Richland, Washington.

Don was born on March 29, 1935 to James and Emma (Bauer) Trent on their coastal dairy farm in Cloverdale, Oregon. Growing up on a farm inspired him to study agricultural sciences and engineering, so after graduating from Nestucca High School in 1953, Don enrolled in Oregon State College to pursue a degree in agricultural engineering. He took a brief hiatus after his sophomore year to work as a draftsman for Douglas Aircraft in Southern California, where his scuba diving adventures along the coast helped cultivate his interest in fluid and deep sea mechanics.

During this hiatus, he was also drafted into the United States Army and served in an anti-aircraft missile battery at Camp Hanford. Upon completion of his tour of duty, he promptly finished his undergraduate degree in Agricultural Engineering and immediately proceeded to attain a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, both from Oregon State. He began his His professional career with General Electric at the Hanford Site, and later transferred to the newly formed Pacific Northwest Laboratories (Battelle), where he remained until his retirement in 1996. During his initial years at Battelle, he obtained a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering with minors in Physical Oceanography and Applied Mathematics, again from Oregon State University.

His career at Battelle proved illustrious; he served first as the manager of the Fluid and Thermal Engineering Department and was later elevated to Lab Fellow in the Analytical Sciences Department of the Applied Physics Center. Career highlights included the development of the internationally recognized TEMPEST Computational Fluid Dynamics software and leadership on the modeling of Hanford’s infamous “Burping tank.” Additionally, between 1987 and 1991, he served as a visiting professor and lecturer at Oregon State University and Washington State University, respectively. In the years following his retirement from Battelle, Don remained a Senior Staff Scientist Emeritus and functioned as a consultant on a variety of technical projects for PNNL and the Department of Energy. 

Don is survived by his son, Steve Trent; daughter, Lynn Wooldridge; and six grandchildren, Sam Trent, Lauren Best, Lena Wooldridge, Emily Trent, Erik Wooldridge, and Gunnar Wooldridge. Don was preceded in death by his son, Gregory Trent, and his wife, Alta. A memorial service will be held  on November 4th at Einan’s Event Center, 1451 Cemetery Road in Richland, at 10 o’clock AM with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Fisher Alzheimer’s Research Foundation: 110 East 42nd St, 16th Floor, New York NY 10017.