German scientist whose studies of chemical reactions on solid surfaces have affected fields as diverse as agriculture, manufacturing and climatology won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry yesterday.
Gerhard Ertl, an emeritus professor at the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society in Berlin, received the $1.5 million prize for pioneering work in surface chemistry, a specialty that helps explain the processes in making fertilizer and computer chips, and sheds light on the activity inside the catalytic converter of a car and on the surface of ice crystals in the stratosphere.
The prize was announced by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Dr. Ertl’s 71st birthday. In remarks made via speakerphone that were broadcast from Stockholm, Dr. Ertl told reporters that when he heard he had won, he was “really speechless.” Winning the prize, he said, “is the best birthday present that you can give to somebody.”
Dr. Ertl was born in 1936 in Bad Cannstadt, Germany. His work focuses on the encounter between gases and the surfaces of solids.
When gas molecules bump up against a surface, they might simply bounce off or be adsorbed, meaning they remain on the surface. Dr. Ertl focused on the ways that the gases might, say, break apart or interact with other captured molecules.
Dr. Ertl and colleagues conducted sophisticated experiments over the decades into surfaces, gases and the catalysts that can boost interactions between them. Those experiments helped shed light on processes like the manufacture of nitrogen-rich artificial fertilizers or the functioning of fuel cells. The research has led to a better understanding of how corrosion works in everything from a rusty gate to a containment vessel in a nuclear power plant.
In a statement released early today, Catherine T. Hunt, the president of the American Chemical Society, congratulated Dr. Ertl, calling him a “spectacular scientist” working in a field “that often receives little public attention, and yet has transformed lives in so many ways.” She said, “In the future, this research will help us tap new sources of renewable fuels, for instance, and produce smaller, more powerful electronics products.”
Praise flowed from others in the field. Gabor A. Somorjai, a renowned expert in surface chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, said, simply: “Gerhard Ertl has been a colleague and a friend. He’s deserving of the prize.”
A professor of chemical engineering at Princeton University who has worked closely with Dr. Ertl over the years, Ioannis G. Kevrekidis, held up Dr. Ertl as an example of a great mentor. “In addition to being a good scientist, he’s one of the most wonderful and inspiring people one could work with,” Dr. Kevrekidis said.
In a follow-up e-mail message, he added that Dr. Ertl is “somebody who can bring out the best in people quietly and with grace.” The research, Dr. Kevrekidis said, allowed scientists to actually see surface reactions at the micron level and below — “actually see it in real time, as opposed to guessing.” The research also informed work in mathematical and computational modeling, he said.
Besides, Dr. Kevrekidis said, “Many of the images and movies this technology allowed us to see possess intense physical beauty, beyond the scientific information they embody.”
The Nobel prizes, which are to be handed out by King Carl XVI Gustaf at a ceremony in Stockholm on Dec. 10, are being announced this week. On Monday, the prize that recognizes achievement in “physiology or medicine” went to Mario R. Capecchi, of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City; Oliver Smithies of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill; and Sir Martin J. Evans of Cardiff University in Wales, for their work that led to the technique of manipulating the genes of mice.
Tuesday’s award, in the field of physics, went to Albert Fert, of the Université Paris-Sud in Orsay, France, and Peter Grünberg, of the Institute of Solid State Research at the Jülich Research Center in Germany, whose work in magnetics led to the development of the kinds of hard drives that have allowed computers and music players to shrink to tiny dimensions.
During the news conference, Dr. Ertl admitted that when he heard that a German had won the physics Nobel on Tuesday, he figured another German would not win the chemistry prize, and so he was certain he would not win.
When asked how he thought the prize would change his life, Dr. Ertl said, “I hope it will not change it very much, but everybody who got it before told me it will be changing your life.” He said he simply wanted to continue doing his work.
As for how he planned to spend his big day, he told the assembled reporters that he would be attending a birthday party with his family in the evening, but at the moment, “I am waiting for my wife,” he said. “She picks me up for lunch.”
The prize was announced by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Dr. Ertl’s 71st birthday. In remarks made via speakerphone that were broadcast from Stockholm, Dr. Ertl told reporters that when he heard he had won, he was “really speechless.” Winning the prize, he said, “is the best birthday present that you can give to somebody.”
Dr. Ertl was born in 1936 in Bad Cannstadt, Germany. His work focuses on the encounter between gases and the surfaces of solids.
When gas molecules bump up against a surface, they might simply bounce off or be adsorbed, meaning they remain on the surface. Dr. Ertl focused on the ways that the gases might, say, break apart or interact with other captured molecules.
Dr. Ertl and colleagues conducted sophisticated experiments over the decades into surfaces, gases and the catalysts that can boost interactions between them. Those experiments helped shed light on processes like the manufacture of nitrogen-rich artificial fertilizers or the functioning of fuel cells. The research has led to a better understanding of how corrosion works in everything from a rusty gate to a containment vessel in a nuclear power plant.
In a statement released early today, Catherine T. Hunt, the president of the American Chemical Society, congratulated Dr. Ertl, calling him a “spectacular scientist” working in a field “that often receives little public attention, and yet has transformed lives in so many ways.” She said, “In the future, this research will help us tap new sources of renewable fuels, for instance, and produce smaller, more powerful electronics products.”
Praise flowed from others in the field. Gabor A. Somorjai, a renowned expert in surface chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, said, simply: “Gerhard Ertl has been a colleague and a friend. He’s deserving of the prize.”
A professor of chemical engineering at Princeton University who has worked closely with Dr. Ertl over the years, Ioannis G. Kevrekidis, held up Dr. Ertl as an example of a great mentor. “In addition to being a good scientist, he’s one of the most wonderful and inspiring people one could work with,” Dr. Kevrekidis said.
In a follow-up e-mail message, he added that Dr. Ertl is “somebody who can bring out the best in people quietly and with grace.” The research, Dr. Kevrekidis said, allowed scientists to actually see surface reactions at the micron level and below — “actually see it in real time, as opposed to guessing.” The research also informed work in mathematical and computational modeling, he said.
Besides, Dr. Kevrekidis said, “Many of the images and movies this technology allowed us to see possess intense physical beauty, beyond the scientific information they embody.”
The Nobel prizes, which are to be handed out by King Carl XVI Gustaf at a ceremony in Stockholm on Dec. 10, are being announced this week. On Monday, the prize that recognizes achievement in “physiology or medicine” went to Mario R. Capecchi, of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City; Oliver Smithies of the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill; and Sir Martin J. Evans of Cardiff University in Wales, for their work that led to the technique of manipulating the genes of mice.
Tuesday’s award, in the field of physics, went to Albert Fert, of the Université Paris-Sud in Orsay, France, and Peter Grünberg, of the Institute of Solid State Research at the Jülich Research Center in Germany, whose work in magnetics led to the development of the kinds of hard drives that have allowed computers and music players to shrink to tiny dimensions.
During the news conference, Dr. Ertl admitted that when he heard that a German had won the physics Nobel on Tuesday, he figured another German would not win the chemistry prize, and so he was certain he would not win.
When asked how he thought the prize would change his life, Dr. Ertl said, “I hope it will not change it very much, but everybody who got it before told me it will be changing your life.” He said he simply wanted to continue doing his work.
As for how he planned to spend his big day, he told the assembled reporters that he would be attending a birthday party with his family in the evening, but at the moment, “I am waiting for my wife,” he said. “She picks me up for lunch.”
No hay comentarios.:
Publicar un comentario