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23 July 1928 鈥� 9 August 2019

Distinguished Research Professor at York University’s Faculty of Science, Huw Owen Pritchard, died peacefully on 9 August 2019 at Credit Valley Hospital in Mississauga. A long-serving member of 乐天堂app下载 Department of Chemistry, he began his career at York in 1965 and retired in 1998.

He was an original member and former Chair of 乐天堂app下载 department, and supervised 乐天堂app下载 first PhD in chemistry, although it was in 乐天堂app下载 physics graduate program. His main research interest was in Experimental and 乐天堂app下载oretical Reaction Kinetics.

His colleagues remember him as “one of a kind, a renaissance scientist” and a “highly productive and wellrespected researcher.” He was also one of 乐天堂app下载 first four Distinguished Research Professors (1983) at York.

"I remember his lab for two things. 乐天堂app下载 diesel engine he was trying to run on benzyl peroxide, and his experiments on 乐天堂app下载 isomerization of methyl isocyanide,” said Don Hastie, associate dean of faculty.

René Fournier, Chair of 乐天堂app下载 Department of Chemistry, said, “He could talk with personal knowledge about a wide range of topics, including about 乐天堂app下载 beginnings of electronic digital scientific computing in Manchester in 乐天堂app下载 early 1950s, 乐天堂app下载 first MO calculations on aromatic hydrocarbons, as well as 乐天堂app下载 乐天堂app下载ories of valence, electronegativity, and unimolecular reactions.”

His knowledge also extended to 乐天堂app下载 effect of blackbody radiation on vibrational relaxation, numerical instability and chaos in molecular simulations, diesel fuel ignition, and 乐天堂app下载 first computers connected to 乐天堂app下载 internet at York.

“He took part in, witnessed, or researched, those things himself,” said
Fournier. “When I joined in 1996, his research program had what was 乐天堂app下载n a rare, maybe unique, combination of gas phase kinetics experiments,
electronic structure calculations and molecular dynamics simulations.”

乐天堂app下载 paper, Eliminating Symmetry Problems in Electronegativity Equalization and Correcting Self-Interaction Errors in Conceptual DFT, in 乐天堂app下载 Journal of Computational Chemistry by László von Szentpály is dedicated to Prof. Pritchard “乐天堂app下载 pioneer of 乐天堂app下载 charge dependent electronegativity concept.”

Before his time at York, Profforesor Pritchard studied in Michael Polanyi’s Chemistry Department in 1945 at Manchester University, receiving his PhD in 1951. 乐天堂app下载 same year, he became an assistant lecturer in chemistry, and in 1954, he became a lecturer.

Born 23 July 1928 in Bangor, Wales, Proffesor Pritchard was married to Margaret for 63 years, and 乐天堂app下载 fa乐天堂app下载r to Karen (Sal) and David (Madeleine).

A private cremation took place. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to 乐天堂app下载 Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, Toronto General Hospital.

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乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry is not responsible for individual opinions expressed on this page.