Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, is sponsoring the 15th Desty Memorial Lecture for Innovation in Separation Science, which will take place at the Royal Institution of Great Britain on the 6th October 2010. The theme for this year is ‘Innovation in Chromatography'. As a distinguished scientist and inventor, Denis Henry Desty could transform his visions into reality by solving challenging problems in a practical and creative manner. During a distinguished career in research chemistry that spanned 33 years, he devised practical techniques for analytical hydrocarbon separations, combustion, gas-flares, the treatment of oil spills, and a variety of applications in capillary gas chromatography. In commemoration of his work, Tony Edge, technical manager, Chromatography Consumables and Specialty Products for Thermo Fisher Scientific will present the lecture ‘Seeing the Unseen in Sample Preparation'. At the event an award will be presented to a young scientist, judged to have demonstrated great innovation in separation science.  

The Royal Institution of Great Britain has been at the centre of scientific research and its popularisation for the last 200 years, and was a venue where Desty enjoyed learning of the latest advances in science. Major scientific discoveries that have been announced in the Royal Institution over the last two centuries include the discovery of sodium and potassium by Humphry Davy, electro-magnetic induction by Michael Faraday, ‘why the sky is blue' by John Tyndall, the liquefaction of hydrogen by James Dewar, the structure of benzene by Kathleen Lonsdale under William Henry Bragg and the first enzyme to have its structure determined by David Chilton Phillips under William Lawrence Bragg. Many of Desty's innovations have had widespread application, including the flare systems that he devised, which have been estimated to now be worth a gross value of 150 million pounds sterling. 

For more information and to obtain tickets to this year's Desty Memorial Lecture, please contact Professor Peter Myers, Department of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, L69 7ZD, peterm@desty.org.uk. 

For more information on Thermo Scientific chromatography products visit www.thermoscientific.com/chromatography. 

Thermo Scientific is part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving science.