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Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Recent Work Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Recent Work Title MATERIALS AND MOLECULAR RESEARCH DIVISION NEWSLETTER Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9vg7w5vq Author Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Publication Date 2018-01-04 eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California DISCLAIMER This document was prepared as an account of work sponsored by the United States Government. While this document is believed to contain correct information, neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor the Regents of the University of California, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by its trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof, or the Regents of the University of California. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof or the Regents of the University of California. L"'-1~·--·~ILA--.<LJ_ILALI .... d M o Ie c u Ia r Re sea rc h D ivis io n For Reference e"WSJette~~~~ _]) NoJ to be taken from this room LBL LIBRARY April1980 Volume 4, No.3 BULLETIN ALAN SEARCY is the new Head of MMRD. Congratulations, ALAN! * * * GARETH THOMAS receives 1980 Distinguished Award for Physical Sciences from Electron Microscopy Society of America! David A. Shirley RESEARCH PROFILE DIVISION HEAD MOVES UP! PHOTOCHEMISTRY AND DAVID SHIRLEY NEW LBL DIRECTOR REACTION KINETICS by Harold S. Johnston DAVID SHIRLEY has been named Director of the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Chemical Reactions and Theories succeeding ANDREW SESSLER in that of Reaction Kinetics demanding, yet challenging, position. A chemical reaction encountered in SHIRLEY was once described in a everyday life, in an industrial Laboratory publication as a "young process, or in the atmosphere typi­ man in a hurry." The expression is cally consists of a complex set of apt. Beginning with an inveterate molecular steps, some acting in curiosity about how things work and an series and some in parallel. These early interest in chemistry, he quickly molecular processes include elementary exha.usted the experiments in the manual physical reactions involving energy accompanying a Gilbert chemistry set exchange and elementary chemical and then obtained permission to sit reactions involving the making and in on chemistry lectures at Kansas breaking of molecular bonds. Theories State University. He was then eleven! of chemical kinetics concern the rates of elementary chemical reactions. The He earned a B.S. in chemistry from the classic theories of gas-phase chemical University of Maine, a Ph.D. studying kinetics as developed in the 1930s and under Prof. W. F. GIAUQUE at UCB, and (continued on page 3) (continued on page 2) SHIRLEY (continued) HVEM INSTALLATION BEGINS shortly afterwards joined the UCB faculty. By 1967 he was a professor The installation phase of the High­ and four years later he became Chair­ Voltage Electron Microscope Project man of the Chemistry Department of has begun with the arrival of the the University. In 1975, DAVE was remaining parts of the instrument. appointed Head of a Division of the The temporary south side of the Laboratory - the Materials and Molecu­ Building 72 silo has been removed to lar Research Division, newly created allow the large pressure tanks that from elements of three former groups will house the high voltage genera­ on the Hill. After five strong years tor and electron accelerator to be as MMRD Head, SHIRLEY now moves to placed in position. The 3.5-ton leadership of the entire laboratory. viewing chamber and the accelerator support platform will be installed, followed by the tanks. In his introduction to the 1979 MMRD Annual Report, SHIRLEY notes with LBL personnel are helping the manu­ satisfaction some current projects facturer's engineers assemble and initiated in the Division during his install the accelerator and micro­ tenure, which are now moving toward scope column. Once the equipment is fruition: funding for construction of inside, construction personnel will a chemical and materials sciences complete installation of the perman­ laboratory devoted to atomic resolution ent south wall. microscopy and research in surface science and catalysis; a prdgram in By late May or early June a recogniz­ electrochemical synthesis and energy able electron microscope silo will storage with investigators from both add a new feature to the Berkeley MMRD and E&E; and joint sponsorship by skyline--but time-consuming subsystem DOE's Fossil Energy Division and the electronic testing will continue for Chemical Sciences Division of the Basic several additional months before Energy Sciences of a vigorous collabora­ final instrument acceptance tests and tive program in coal chemistry and mor­ calibration are completed. phology. This latter project represents a new approach for DOE in which basic --KEN WESTMACOTT researchers focus their talents on problems of specific interest in energy technologies. There are other reasons for pride as well: the 1.5 MeV High Voltage Elec­ GERBER REPLACES WEBB tron Microscope is nearing completion, the Division staff has been strengthened, Steve Gerber of the Technical Information the annual budget has increased, and Department is the new coordinating several other large interactive programs editor with MMRD. He replaces Cathy of great promise have been set in motion. Webb, who has left LBL. Steve has been with LBL since 1962 and In his final introduction to an MMRD will offer a combination of skills in annual, SHIRLEY expressed his apprecia­ publications and visual communications. tion to the scientific, technical, During his first 14 years at the Lab he administrative and support staff and was a photographer. added, "I shall enjoy stepping aside and watching the new ideas and develop­ Since 1977, Steve has worked at TID in ments that will be brought in by the a combined role as a technical editor, next Division Head. I have served with associate audio-visual producer, and pleasure and I look forward to partici­ cinematographer. You may contact Steve pating in the Division's future at Bldg 62, Rm 249, Ext. 5842 on activities." Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Welcome, STEVE. 2 RESEARCH PROFILE (continued) ozone and haze and eye irritation. I was attracted to this problem and tried 1940s were tested against the rates of to figure out a set of elementary reactions measured up to that time, chemical reactions that would be suffi­ and it is a droll fact that most of cient to explain his results. At first these test cases were complex chemical it seemed that the process might be reactions, unsuitable for direct explained by 10 or so reactions. As theoretical analysis. As late as time went on, hundreds of elementary 1950 there were few tests of these reactions were implicated. At present theories against valid experimental there appear to be thousands of elemen­ data. tary reactions involved, rate constants are known for only a small fraction of During the 1950s and 1960s my field them, and complete modeling of photo­ was searching out elementary chemical chemical smog seems out of reach at this reactions in the gas phase to measure time. their rates in the laboratory and to subject these measurements to the theories of reaction kinetics. In The National Bureau of Standards the early 1950s reliable rate constants published successful and useful books had been measured for only a few of critically evaluated thermodynamic elementary reactions, but this situa­ data in the 1950s. With this work as tion changed rapidly with the intro­ a model, NBS set out to do a similar duction of flash photolysis, shock service for the field of chemical waves in chemical reactors, fast-flow kinetics. Experts in various fields systems, and improved optical and mass were urged to collaborate with NBS in spectrometers. My graduate students producing a series of monographs, each and I studied elementary unimolecular a critical evaluation for a portion of reactions for several years; we the field. I agreed to produce a review branched out to study elementary of the chemical kinetics of the oxides bimolecular reactions. For a time we of nitrogen and of ozone. As part of were interested in the phenomenon of this agreement, NBS sent me Xerox copies reaction rates at high temperatures, of all publications since 1900 in English, and we became especially interested in French, and German that concerned the kinetic isotope effects, which are kinetics of ozone and the nitrogen primarily of quantum mechanical origin. oxides. I spent two summers and many It didn't really matter to us what weekends in the mid-1960s going through substances were used to test :r-eaction­ this material, recalculating the data rate theories for these various types wherever possible, and putting all of reactions. However, we got in the studies in the same units. The job habit of following reactions of the was such a large one that NBS and I oxides of nitrogen because of the great agreed to do it as two books, one on variety of processes they exemplify, ozone and one on nitrogen oxides. The and we studied reactions of ozone, monograph on ozone and atomic oxygen fluorine, chlorine, and some simple was published in 1968, and although organic molecules. The systematic much work was devoted to it the book on testing of reaction rate theories nitrogen oxides was never completed. against appropriate laboratory data was summarized in a book, Gas Phase Reaction Rate Theory, published in Although the final book on ozone gave 1966.
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