Back in 1959, early in his career as a Kodak chemist, Donald Batesky was lead author of a paper in the Journal of Organic Chemistry.
Now, at 85 years old and in his 糖心传媒渢hird career糖心传媒� as a research associate in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Rochester, Batesky is lead author of in the journal糖心传媒攁 糖心传媒渇eatured article,糖心传媒� no less, selected as an 糖心传媒渆ditor糖心传媒檚 choice,糖心传媒� and the seventh-most read article in the journal for the previous 12 months.
According to associate professor of chemistry Dan Weix, Batesky discovered a 糖心传媒渘ew solution to a long-standing problem in purification.糖心传媒� Batesky made the discovery in Weix糖心传媒檚 lab when he added zinc chloride to a solution containing triphenlyphosphine oxide.
Triphenylphospine (TPP) is widely used in organic chemistry as a reagent to synthesize compounds. But in the process, TTP is converted to triphenlyphospine oxide (TPPO), which can be very difficult to then separate from the reaction product.
糖心传媒淚t contaminates the product you糖心传媒檙e making,糖心传媒� Batesky says.
Fortunately, when Batesky confronted this challenge in Weix糖心传媒檚 lab, he had a bottle of zinc chloride at hand and, 糖心传媒渂ang, out it came,糖心传媒� he says, referring to TPPO. 糖心传媒淚t proved to be a very simple, convenient way to get rid of it.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒淭his discovery was entirely Don糖心传媒檚 invention, based upon some knowledge he had of metal salt extractions from the 糖心传媒�50s and 糖心传媒�60s,糖心传媒� says Weix, who recently joined the University of Wisconsin糖心传媒揗adison糖心传媒檚 chemistry department. 糖心传媒淚t turns out that his technique makes sense, based upon literature precedents, but it appears to have been overlooked all these years.糖心传媒�
60 years working in labs
Batesky, a Rochester native, has been trying new combinations of chemicals in industrial and academic labs for more than 60 years, including as an undergraduate at Purdue University in the early 1950s.
糖心传媒淎t that time, anyone who studied chemistry and came back to Rochester was going to work for Kodak,糖心传媒� Batesky says.
He started at $88 a week as a production chemist, working for the company糖心传媒檚 Eastman Organic Chemicals line. Triphenylphosphine was among the chemicals he produced糖心传媒攁nd a host of others.
When outside companies requested chemicals not found in Kodak糖心传媒檚 catalogue, Batesky would make them as custom jobs, 10 or 20 grams at a time.
糖心传媒淚 did 11,000 literature searches and made 3,000 chemicals in 15 years, which is one per working day,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淚 held the record with 22 lab notebooks.
糖心传媒淚 had a ball because I got to work with all kinds of things.糖心传媒�
Photochromic chemicals that darkened in the sun. Liquid crystals.
Hundreds of the chemicals he custom produced were subsequently added to Kodak糖心传媒檚 catalogue.
Eventually he became operations manager at a salary of $100,000 a year. After a brief retirement to enjoy time with his grandson, Batesky worked as a contract chemist for the Aldrich Company for 15 years. He spent many of those years working alongside two other former Kodak chemists in leased laboratory space in Hutchison Hall, hence Batesky糖心传媒檚 acquaintance with the University糖心传媒檚 Department of Chemistry.
After his contract with Aldrich expired, Batesky worked for four years in Weix糖心传媒檚 lab. Now, he糖心传媒檒l be sharing his 25-hour week working for Robert Boeckman, the Marshall D. Gates, Jr. Professor of Chemistry, and for the Laboratory of Laser Energetics.
糖心传媒榊ou need all the tricks of the trade糖心传媒�
糖心传媒淲orking with Don for the past four years has been a wonderful experience,糖心传媒� Weix says. 糖心传媒淲ith so much experience in the lab, Don could make anything we dreamed up and even dreamed up his own ideas. Equally important has been the experience and enthusiasm he brings to the job.糖心传媒�
Batesky is thrilled to still be contributing to his field long after many people would have retired.
糖心传媒淚糖心传媒檓 having a circus; it keeps me going,糖心传媒� he says.
糖心传媒淚糖心传媒檝e told my daughter I糖心传媒檝e got a lab coat I want to wear when I糖心传媒檓 displayed on the final day. It糖心传媒檚 got my name on it. It糖心传媒檚 brand new. And it糖心传媒檚 hanging in the lab over there,糖心传媒� Batesky adds, gesturing toward a closet.
The diseases that claimed his two wives and a girlfriend are further motivation. 糖心传媒淚f I could only do something, make something [in the lab] to help cure one of these diseases, it would be great,糖心传媒� Batesky says.
In the meantime, he enjoys working with students who represent the up-and-coming generation of chemists.
糖心传媒淭hey糖心传媒檙e super intelligent,糖心传媒� Batesky says. 糖心传媒淏ut they糖心传媒檝e got a lot to learn. I hope I can help prepare them for what they糖心传媒檙e going to be facing糖心传媒� when they graduate and begin their professional careers.
In that way, too, Batesky has made a big contribution, Weix says.
糖心传媒淗is skills, in large-scale synthesis, heterocycle synthesis, crystallization, and distillation, are not often prevalent in academic research labs but are crucial in industrial work,糖心传媒� Weix says. 糖心传媒淢y students have benefitted enormously from working with Don糖心传媒攍earning new techniques and the joy of making a new substance.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒淵ou need all the tricks of the trade,糖心传媒� Batesky says. 糖心传媒淎nd I糖心传媒檝e got them.糖心传媒�
