el's findings. Now a staff scientist at Genetics Institute in Cambridge, Mass., she says the panel "threw out all the evidence and then said that I wasn't credible. It was never my credibility that led anyone to their conclusion, it was the evidence/' In the decade since the case began, thinking about fraud in science has been evolving, OToole notes. Scientists have begun to surrender control of policing to lawyers, she says. "In fact, they demanded that lawyers be the final adjudicators. Scientists have abdicated their responsibility to uphold the traditions of science to lawyers who have no history of loyalty or commitment to science." Youngner sees it differently. The two nonscientist panel members "were extremely diligent in educating themselves and allowing me to educate them in the scientific aspects of the case," he says. But he is troubled by the process for dealing with scientific misconduct. "This case dragged on for 10 years and cost millions of dollars. And it was only through this adversarial hearing that the decision could be made. Scientists really deserve due process as much as anybody else in the justice system, and they don't get it until the appeals process." Rebecca Rawls
Engineering academy ousts its president The tumultuous events of the last few months at the National Academy of Engineering reached a climax last week when NAE members voted—1,179 to 179—to remove President Harold Liebowitz from office. Under a new chairman, Alan M. Lovelace, a former vice president of General Dynamics, the NAE council will select an interim president charged with healing the institutional wounds and setting the stage for a new presidential election, probably early next year. For now, NAE Vice President Morris Tanenbaum will oversee the academy. At the October annual meeting, NAE leaders also will ask their members what reforms they want in NAE— seeking to clarify and act upon the divisive issues that carried Liebowitz into office in the first place. Liebowitz, 72, a materials engineer and former engineering dean at George
heed Corp., felt forced to ask the membership to approve a bylaw change to provide for removal of officers. That change led to last week's vote. So what now? On apparent advice of counsel, Liebowitz wouldn't speak to the press last week, although he met with Lovelace and Augustine to work out a departure settlement. Liebowitz has repeatedly threatened to contest his removal in court and to involve NAE and council members in extended litigation, say NAE sources. One source says he is demanding a full six-year salary and an honorary title as the price for leaving quietly. Nothing was yet agreed Liebowitz: tragedy and embarrassment upon at press time. The bottom line, however, is the tragWashington University, took office in April 1995. He was elected as a petition edy and embarrassment the furor has candidate on a reform ticket, promising caused. "It's been an unfortunate and to involve engineers more prominently tragic soap opera," says Martin A. Apin advising the government on nation- ple, executive secretary of the Council of al issues. An equal goal was ending Scientific Society Presidents, which is control of NAE policies by what he working to mobilize scientists and ensaw as a coterie of Washington, D.C., gineers to fight cuts in the federal R&D budget. "Under incredible national and eastern seaboard "insiders." In particular, he sought to overturn stress," he says, "leaders of our science the organizational remnants and mem- and technology communities, with their ory of his predecessor and nemesis, wagons circled by political events, have Robert M. White, who Liebowitz sup- pointed their guns and shot inward." That may be an overstatement. NAE porters felt had removed NAE from its member William J. Harris, emeritus probasic engineering roots. But Liebowitz went too far in his zeal, fessor of engineering at Texas A&M say knowledgeable observers. He at- University and a Liebowitz friend, says tempted to remove much of NAE's se- relations between engineers and sciennior staff, starting with a top White tists in NRC's work were unaffected by holdover, Executive Officer William the events. 'We all feel enormously sad Salmon—who was quickly reinstated by for Hal," he adds. "He really wanted to the council. Morale at NAE headquar- be successful in what was a capping caters plummeted, and officials of the Na- reer element for him. But from the tional Academy of Sciences (NAS) began standpoint of the academy, there was objecting to Liebowitz's attempts to raise nothing else for us to do." Wil Lepkowski funds from the federal government for independent NAE studies. NAE, NAS, and the Institute of Medicine are sister institutions that join under the chairmanship of NAS President Bruce Alberts to run the National Research Council (NRC), their operating arm, with a $180 million annual bud- BP Chemicals last week introduced its get. Stories streamed from the academy new Cativa catalyst system for making complex describing bizarre, unpredict- acetic acid, which it says enables faster able behavior by Liebowitz as he at- and more efficient production. In a commercial test, the system was tempted to divorce NAE from estabfitted in December into a 792 millionlished NRC practices. Friction between Liebowitz and the lb-per-year acetic acid plant in Texas NRC staff became so intense that Alberts City, Texas, that Sterling Chemicals removed Liebowitz from his position as owns and operates in an exclusive arvice chairman of the NRC governing rangement for BP. The test indicates board. And the NAE council, under the that the system makes possible design leadership of then-chairman Norman R. refinements that can increase capacity Augustine, chairman of Martin Lock- relatively easily.
BP launches catalyst for making acetic acid
JULY 1,1996 C&EN
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NEWS OF THE WEEK The resulting process is also more efficient, cutting energy and purification costs. Savings can be "significant," says Graham Hunt, chief executive for BP's acetyls business. Production economics vary widely from plant to plant, he notes, but cost savings of 10 to 30% are possible. BP will eventually offer the Cativa system for licensing. The system—designed for use in the methanol carbonylation process— features an iridium acetate catalyst enhanced with proprietary promoters. Current methanol carbonylation uses a rhodium catalyst. Hunt points out that iridium as a carbonylation catalyst "has been around for a long time. But we think we've found something that others have missed, as well as developing some new things of our own." The methanol carbonylation process for acetic acid was developed by Monsanto in 1970 as an alternative to oxidation of naphtha or butane, or oxidation of acetaldehyde. Most new acetic acid plants built since 1970 have featured the Monsanto process. BP bought the rights to the process in 1986. At that time, the process was used to produce 37% of worldwide acetic acid output. Now, it accounts for 59%, and by the end of this decade, that percentage will rise to 67%, BP predicts. BP will retrofit its 682 million-lb-peryear acetic acid plant in Hull, in northern England, with the Cativa system— increasing capacity by 220 million lb per year by 1998. And it plans to install the technology in a joint-venture facility it operates with Samsung in Ulsan, South Korea, boosting capacity to 770 million lb from 440 million lb per year by the end of 1997. BP's acetic acid joint venture with Sinopec (China Petro-Chemical Corp.) in Chongqing, in southwest China, was formed before the Cativa system was ready, but it will likely be worked into that plant eventually, as well. BP is evaluating sites for another acetic acid plant in Southeast Asia. Hunt notes that demand for acetic acid—which is growing 3% per year worldwide—is rising even faster in that region, particularly for derivatives vinyl acetate and terephthalic acid. "We will build in that region by 2000," he adds. BP expects to decide where by the end of the year. Patricia Layman 8
JULY 1,1996 C&EN
U.S. team selected for 1996 Chemistry Olympiad This month—while the world's top athletes compete for gold, silver, and bronze medals at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta—the world's top high school chemistry students from 45 nations will vie in Moscow from July 14 to 23 for similar medals in chemistry. Representing the U.S. at the 28th International Chemistry Olympiad are (from left): Henry Fu, Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School, Broadview Heights, Ohio; G. Michael Sawka Jr., Gunn High School, Palo Alto, Calif.; Alex MeVay, Groton School, Groton, Mass.; and Jason Chen, Claremont High School, Claremont, Calif. Accompanying the team to Moscow for the week of exams, lectures, recreation, and tours will be mentors Thomas W. Adams, a high school teacher at Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics & Humanities in Muncie; and Lt. Col. Michael O. Killpack, an associate professor of chemistry at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. The team was selected from 20 finalists—culled from a pool of about 10,000—who spent two weeks at a training camp at the Air Force Academy, where they participated in lectures, problem-solving exercises, lab work, and tests. The team is sponsored by the American Chemical Society. Mairin Brennan
More industries may have to list emissions The Clinton Administration took the opportunity offered by last week's annual release of Toxics Release Inventory data to propose new regulations that would subject thousands more facilities to right-to-know reporting requirements. The proposed regulations, which were announced at a press briefing in Washington, D.C., by Vice President Al Gore, add seven new industrial categories to the right-to-know program. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 6,400 additional facilities will be required to report TRI data. The added industries are metal mining, coal mining, electric utilities, commercial hazardous waste treatment plants, petroleum bulk ter-
minals, chemical wholesalers, and solvent recovery processors. Iterating the Administration's desire to expand right-to-know rules, Gore said: "Putting information about local pollution into the hands of the public is the single most effective, commonsense tool available for protecting human health and the environment." EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner signed off on the proposed regulations last week, saying the goal is to have them in place by the end of this year. That would compel the newly added facilities to report their 1997 emissions data by June 1998. EPA estimates that, annually, compliance will cost them a total of about $120 million and require a combined 2 million hours of work to analyze operations and fill out the forms. The 1994 Toxics Release Inventory data show a continued downward
