Friedrich Wolf (chemist)

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Friedrich Wolf

Friedrich Wolf (born February 9, 1920 in Leipzig , † January 20, 1986 in Halle (Saale) ) was a German chemist.

Since 1965 he was a professor at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg in Halle (Saale). His main areas of research were interface chemistry and adsorption technology .

Life

After completing his Abitur in 1938, Reich labor service and military service, F. Wolf began his chemistry studies in 1943 at the University of Leipzig, which was interrupted by the war in 1944 and continued at the University of Halle in 1946. In 1949 he went to the diploma as an industrial chemist and collaborator of Robert Grießbach in the paint factory Wolfen (1969 with the establishment VEB chemistry Bitterfeld incorporated into this Combine).

Wolf received his doctorate in 1953 at the University of Halle, but stayed in Wolfen, where he became head of the research area Inorganic Chemistry and Wofatite in 1955 and head of the inorganic laboratory in 1958. He completed his habilitation in 1961 at the University of Halle and in the same year became director for research and development in the paint factory and at the same time lecturer for technical chemistry at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU). At Grießbach, Wolf worked on questions relating to the synthesis and characterization of ion exchange resins. He first examined their catalytic properties. During his habilitation he dealt with molecular adsorption on such resins and with adsorption techniques. 1961–1963 Wolf was involved in building up the large-scale synthesis of ion exchange resins.

In the 1960s, the large-scale production of zeolitic adsorbents and catalysts began to develop rapidly . Friedrich Wolf's working group at the Martin Luther University in Halle succeeded in synthesizing the first zeolites on German soil and in making a manufacturing process ready for production in the Bitterfeld Chemical Combine (use of the industrially manufactured zeolites in the PAREX process for the production of straight-chain alkanes ).

In 1963 Wolf was appointed professor with a full teaching position for technical chemistry at the University of Halle. There he received the chair for technical chemistry in 1965. In the same year, Wolf was elected rector of the MLU and held this position until 1971. During his work at the university, he created a close connection to industry and its problems, which was reflected in practical training for students. Wolf paved the way to a doctorate for a large number of young chemists without a selection of staff. Incidentally, like no other university professor in the chemistry section, he recognized the economic shortcomings of the GDR and also said it publicly in an inimitable way in Leipzig mother joke (“How many dollars?”).

In his research, Wolf concentrated primarily on the synthesis and application of silicate materials, the great importance of which he recognized early on. He continued his research on synthetic resin ion exchangers. In addition, physicochemical methods for industrial practice were worked on.

Wolf was also a respected scientist outside of the university. From 1963 to 1970 he was chairman of the Chemical Society of the GDR and from 1971 a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR and a full member of the Saxon Academy of Sciences . In 1959 and 1966 he received the National Prize and numerous other awards for his scientific work .

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