He is considered a founder of modern chemical engineering practice and lectured widely around the world.
He received numerous awards, including an honorary doctorate and the President's Certificate of Merit.
[1] He attended Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, where he heard an employee of Thomas Edison explain how to make synthetic phonograph records.
[1] Chilton attended the University of Alabama for two semesters, quitting to earn money for tuition.
[1] In 1925, he joined DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware, beginning what became a 35-year career leading its chemical research.
At the invitation of his colleague and friend, Enrico Fermi,[citation needed] Chilton was among the select group of scientists to witness the first self-sustaining nuclear reaction at Stagg Field on December 2, 1942.
[1] He also lectured at the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in Pilani, India and the University of Natal in South Africa.
[1] In 1948, he received the President's Certificate of Merit for his contributions to the National Defense Research Committee.
[1] His first wife was Cherridah McLemore and after her death, he married Elizabeth C. Rinehart, who, along with her late husband, had been friends of the Chiltons for decades.