EDUCATION
Need For Analytical Chemistry Courses Argued Analytical chemists at 11th Detroit Anachem Conference hear opposing views from industrialists and teachers How should college students prepare for a career in modern analytical chemistry? Analytical chemists at the 11th Detroit Anachem Conference heard opposing viewpoints: one from a leading industrialist, and the other from an eminent teacher. The industrialist, Dr. H. A. Liebhafsky of the General Electric research laboratory, Schenectady, N.Y., advocates that specialized courses in analytical chemistry be abolished. He suggests that the techniques of analytical chemistry be taught in the appropriate lab portions of other courses. "Not at all," says Dr. I. M. Kolthoff of the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. "For obvious reasons, we need chemists with a major interest in analytical chemistry to teach the theoretical and experimental principles of analytical chemistry just as we need inorganic chemists to teach inorganic chemistry," he adds. Dr. Kolthoff points out that in the past 25 years, analytical chemistry has gained prestige as a research activity, thanks to fundamental contributions by both academic and industrial chemists. To a large extent, the empiricism has gone out of analytical chemistry, he says. New Methods. Where does analytical chemistry stand today? Dr. Kolthoff sees academic analytical chemistry as the science concerned with the study and interpretation of all existing methods and the development of new methods of analysis. To Dr. Liebhafsky, modern analytical chemistry is the characterization and control of materials—"no more, and certainly no less." The chemistry is going out of analytical chemistry, Dr. Liebhafsky says. Instrumentation and automation are moving in, and "determinations are being made with less and less sample preparation. The important laws and generalizations that constitute analytical chemistry don't come from analytical chemistry itself, according to Dr. Lieb50
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INDUSTRIALISTS AND TEACHERS. The panelists agree that analytical chemistry is important, but they suggest varied methods of training college students
hafsky. It isn't unusual to find physical chemists or physicists among those responsible for such techniques as infrared, x-ray emission and diffraction, and resonance methods of all kinds. "Clearly, physical chemistry can't be bad training for the characterization and control of materials," he adds. Analytical chemists realize the importance of instrumentation techniques in analytical chemistry, Dr. Kolthoff answers. Since instruments are needed for the measurement of chemical and physical properties, instruction in instrumentation is now a recognized subject in analytical chemistry. Many instrumental techniques originate with physical chemists or physicists, but analytical chemists play an important part in further development of the techniques. Modern instrumentation has made it possible to measure readily classical properties of materials. This has expanded the use of modern instruments in analytical chemistry. Undergraduate. What, then, should be taught to prepare a student for a career in modern analytical chemistry? According to Dr. Liebhafsky, the best college or university preparation consists of learning mathematics, .physics, and chemistry, with emphasis on physical chemistry. This is because these fields will always contain the laws and generalizations that the analytical chemist needs in his later work.
Learning techniques for future use is futile. "There are too many techniques, and they change rapidly in importance," he says. The usual analytical chemistry courses aren't a necessary prerequisite or even effective preparation for work in the analytical section of General Electric's research lab. Dr. Liebhafsky says that analytical chemistry performs a service function, but he "opposes any idea that this function is minor." It should be recognized that few analytical chemists will do research on chemical methods of analysis for very long, and some graduates will eventually change careers, Dr. Liebhafsky says. According to the GE scientist, with the modern equipment that is available today, properly selected supporting personnel with two years of college can be trained to carry out all the manipulations taught in the undergraduate courses. Majors. If the present education of Ph.D.'s in analytical chemistry doesn't provide adequate background for the industrial analytical chemist, Dr. Kolthoff suggests that institutions of higher learning could well consider the introduction of new courses in "materials characterization and control" for majors in analytical chemistry. In order to introduce the theoretical and experimental fundamentals of physico-chemical methods of analysis to all chemistry students, the scope
of gravimetric and titrimetric analysis, and particularly the lab work, has to be severely curtailed. However, Dr. Kolthoff emphasizes that training in elementary gravimetric and titrimetric analysis should remain in the cur riculum for all chemists. The methods and techniques are applied often in all fields of chemistry, he adds. Edu cation should remain fundamental in nature and give such background that the Ph.D. can later become a specialist in a particular field. Research dealing with theoretical fundamentals in analytical chemistry often overlaps some phases of re search carried out by physical or ganic or inorganic chemists. Dr. Kolt hoff cites several examples where such overlap occurs and says that it is a fortunate situation because all disci plines of chemistry profit from each other's contributions. "Together we can fill the gaps in our understanding of the fundamentals of chemistry," he says. Panel Discussion. Dr. Louis Gor don of Case Institute of Technology, Cleveland, Ohio, and Dr. W. A. Kirklin of Hercules Experiment Station, Wilmington, Del., then joined Dr. Liebhafsky and Dr. Kolthoff in a panel discussion and added their com ments to what analytical chemistry means from industrial and academic viewpoints. Dr. Gordon echoes the views of Dr. Kolthoff and says that analytical chem istry is on the threshold of a most promising future. There is a tremen dous challenge for analytical chemists in such newly developing fields as space technology, molecular biology, and materials science. Experimental scientists working in rigid disciplines are needed to make future advances. It is not the function of a university to train people to perform a service, Dr. Gordon says. It is our aim to turn out resourceful, intelligent, and in formed people who will be able to think independently. Dr. Kirklin feels that much more thought should be given to what ana lytical chemistry actually is. He sees analytical chemistry as divided into two sections: control and re search. In established processes, con trol work can be routine, end industry can't afford to pay analytical chem ists for routine work. But an analyti cal research chemist must know the objectives of research and must be in a position to do analytical develop ment work.
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