Commentary and News

Electrochemistry at PittCon 2005

I missed attending PittCon this year, so I missed the Waters Symposium on the History of Electrochemistry. From the report in C&EN, I missed a great session. It was the 70's revisited, with Pete Kissinger (of BAS), Jud Flato (at PAR until the mid 80's), Wayne Matson (of ESA) and Allen Bard (winner of every award known, except Miss America). A summary is to be published in J. Chem. Ed.

Kissinger became interested in electrochemistry after hearing a talk by Lou Meites (my Ph.D. advisor) at Brooklyn Polytech. Brooklyn Poly is my Alma Mater. Flato is also a Brooklyn Poly alumnus.

Also, Alan Bond was awarded the 2005 Reilly Award from SEAC at PittCon. Congratulations, Alan!

 ( April 2005 )

Fuel Cell Seminar, 2004

San Antonio, TX. Nov 1-5, 2004

This was the first time I attended the Fuel Cell Seminar. In the preface to the book of abstracts, the chair of the Seminar raised the "old joke ...fuel cells are 'only 5 years away -- for the 35th straight year' ", validating my suspicions. Fuel cell powered scooters, wheel chairs, and a Segway roamed the show floor, but only one exhibit booth was fuel cell powered! There was a chance to test drive several manufacturer's fuel cell powered cars, but I missed it.

The high school band, "Protium" from Ponaganset High School (Rhode Island) performed at the manufacturer's reception.  "Protium" was fuel cell powered, loud, and pretty good. It was their second appearance at the seminar! 

 ( November 2004 )

Robert A Osteryoung Dies

Electrochemistry and Analytical Chemistry have lost a giant.

I received the news through SEAC that Bob Osteryoung has passed away. Bob was a leader in 'Electroanalytical' chemistry and a hell of a nice guy.  In the mid 1960's he was one of the first to computerize an electrochemical experiment.  He was a pioneer in pulse voltammetry (Differential Pulse, Normal Pulse, and Square Wave) and in determining reaction mechanisms and rate constants via curve fitting. He was a winner of the Reilley Award (1987) and the ACS Analytical Division Award in Electrochemistry (1991). There are several remembrances in the SEAC Newsletter (one from Fred Anson), and an obit from News and Observer, Aug 16, 2004. I'm sure we'll hear more about Bob's history through the ACS

I'll miss him. 

( August 2004 )

Award in Honor of 'Buzz' Adams 

There will be another award named after a legendry electrochemist at PittCon 2005!  The Ralph N. Adams Award in Bioanalytical Chemistry will be presented at the upcoming meeting.  Nominations closed July 15, and I'm quite interested to find out who will receive the award.

Buzz pioneered bioanalytical and neuro- electrochemistry and the carbon paste electrode. He remained active and enthusiastic even after his official 'retirement.'  A few years ago I visited another electrochemist at Kansas, and Buzz burst in the lab looking for something, as bright-eyed as a second year grad student. The winner of the award has a lot to live up to. More info in the SEAC Newsletter.

( July 2004 )

The Significance of Electrochemistry

The ACS journal Analytical Chemistry is celebrating it's 75th anniversary with two retrospective lists: 10 Seminal Papers and the 75 Most Cited Publications.

Not surprisingly, the first Nicholson and Shain paper [ "Theory of Stationary Electrode Polarography", Anal. Chem. 36 (1964) 706 ] is #4 on the "Seminal Paper" list. Papers from the Shain group on the theory of voltammetry are numbers 5, 22, and 51 in the top 75 list.

( July 2004 )

Electrochemistry is Ubiquitous

I just had to pass along Royce Murray's editorial comments in a recent Analytical Chemistry (Anal. Chem., 75, 325A (2003).

If a chemist were ever so brash as to claim to be poised to "discover the secrets of the universe," I would wager that she or he is an electrochemist.

Royce makes the point that the applications of electrochemistry are quite broad - ranging from brain chemistry to quantum dots.  I heartily agree!

If you are an ACS member, you can read the entire editorial here

( 2003 )