Klaus Krug

Klaus Krug (2014)

Klaus Krug (born March 10, 1941 in Trusen / Thuringia ) is a German chemist , science historian and professor . He is one of the pioneers in the history of technology in the field of process engineering and material conversion processes in Germany.

Career

Klaus Krug was born in Trusen in Thuringia as the son of the tailor Paul Krug and his wife Ida and attended elementary school in Trusetal from 1947 to 1955 . Then he went through a skilled worker training to become a miner . He then attended the Workers and Farmers Faculty (ABF) at the Bergakademie Freiberg , where he passed his Abitur in 1960.

His studies led him in 1960 to the Technical University of Leuna-Merseburg , where he study chemistry in 1965 with a thesis on Rolf Landsberg on elektrodenkinetischem area as a chemist graduated.

Immediately afterwards, he began his work as a scientific assistant at the chair for physical chemistry (head: Hans-Joachim Bittrich ), who at that time began to set up a school of mixed-phase thermodynamics at the TH Leuna-Merseburg.

The topic of his dissertation , completed in 1969 in the field of mixed phase thermodynamics, is: “On the systematics of mixing functions of binary liquid non-electrolyte mixtures”. This work was characterized by a high degree of generalization and therefore met with widespread interest among specialists and students. This work was completed at the time of the Third University Reform in 1968, which led to a special situation when the doctoral process was completed in 1969. As a result of this university reform, the existing institutes and faculties were completely dissolved. New scientific areas were created, several of which were brought together in a newly founded section under the direction of a director. Furthermore, new directorates and vice-rectors were created as structural units. This centrally controlled reform was carried out at short notice in the summer vacation of 1968 at all colleges and universities in the GDR, in order to channel and institutionalize such critical developments as they have been taking place in the Federal Republic since the spring of 1968.

From 1969 to 1973, Krug was initially the scientific secretary of the Director for Research and later the Vice-Rector for Forecasting and Scientific Development (Vice-Rector: Wolfgang Fratzscher ), which were closely related in terms of content. Through this work, he was able to expand his overview of the natural and technical sciences, including mathematics and computing technology as well as the scientific library, and to gain a comprehensive insight into the organization of science. During this time, he also worked on scientific theoretical and profiling problems.

From 1973 to 1979 he was a senior assistant in the process engineering section and specifically involved in the system process engineering / energy industry. At a central level, Krug held the position of secretary for the main research area process engineering (head: Wolfgang Fratzscher) in the chemistry research program headed by the Academy of Sciences for several years . The main concern was the planning and management of the centrally financed basic research for all procedural institutions in the GDR.

Noteworthy for the further development of Krug were his work on the relationship between process engineering and chemical technology and on scientific schools in the field of technical sciences. While studies on this already existed for the areas of the natural sciences and humanities, Krug's work was the first scientific contribution to school education in the technical sciences. However, since he was not a professional historian, he took the opportunity between 1979 and 1983 to study additional four semesters at the Technical University of Dresden with Rolf Sonnemann and Gisela Buchheim at the Center for the History of Technical Sciences. He completed this aspirant with his extensive habilitation thesis “On the history of the development of process engineering from the sources to their emancipation” at the TU Dresden in 1984. With this font he made himself known in East and West and became a pioneer of this discipline. From 1983 to 1990 he was head of the science design department at the TH Leuna-Merseburg.

Krug was therefore appointed as a university professor at the TH Leuna-Merseburg: in 1984 as a university lecturer and in 1986 as a professor for the history of technical sciences. In this capacity, he continued his lectures on general history of science, which he began in 1979, until 1996. From 1981 until his retirement in 2005 he held lectures on the history of technical sciences / process engineering at the TH Leuna-Merseburg, at the process engineering and biotechnology sections at the TH Köthen (Anhalt) and at the Center for the History of Technical Sciences at the TU Dresden and at the Merseburg University of Applied Sciences .

Before that, in 1983 he took over the vacant position of library director at the TH Leuna-Merseburg. During his additional studies at the TU Dresden he got to know the library director there, Helmut Felke, as an interesting and stimulating personality. This studied physicist had worked in nuclear physics and finally received his doctorate in philosophy of science with Hermann Ley at the Humboldt University in Berlin and was appointed professor in the field of economics. Through him, Krug was not only introduced to many internals of library work. Both shared the view that a technical-science university library must be the information point for the latest publications and findings. With this modern view they deliberately set themselves apart from the older generation of library directors, who often viewed their libraries as archives of bibliophile treasures and first editions. These contacts with Felke shaped Krug's mindset throughout his time as library director from 1983 to 1993 at the TH Leuna-Merseburg and then from 1993 to his retirement in 2005 at the University of Merseburg.

In 1984 the university library in Merseburg was named the "central specialist library of the GDR for chemistry and process engineering". In doing so, she assumed the lead role for chemistry-relevant literature in the university libraries, the Academy of Sciences and the chemical industry. After several years of efforts, in January 1989 the library became the first university library in the GDR to be connected to the databases of the specialist information center in Karlsruhe via Radio Austria. As a result of this cooperation, shortly after German reunification on October 23, 1990 , the Merseburg library was the first university library from the new federal states to be connected to the science network of the old federal states.

Krug has been working with part designer Anita Krug, geb. Petzold married. The couple have two daughters and three grandchildren.

German Chemistry Museum Merseburg

Since 1993 Krug has been the chairman of the association “Sachzeugen der chemical Industrie e. V. “(SCI) at the University of Merseburg , which was founded in 1993. The SCI association aims to promote science, tradition and the future in technology and culture in the Central German chemical region through projects and measures. In particular, it supports the German Chemistry Museum Merseburg (dchm), its construction and expansion as well as its conceptual development and design. It was founded in 1993 to present the development of the chemical industry in the region (large traditional companies: Leuna-Werke and Buna-Werke ) using original plants, apparatus and equipment from the chemical industry. The association “Sachzeugen der chemical Industrie e. V. (SCI) ”museum works closely with the University of Merseburg.

German Chemistry Museum Merseburg, ammonia synthesis chamber (2014)

The collection created under the direction of Krug consists of approx. 5000 objects, of which more than 300 can be viewed in a technology park. The most important original exhibits are the ammonia synthesis chamber and the associated functional high-pressure circulation pump, both from the early years of large-scale ammonia synthesis since 1917 in the Leuna plant using the Haber-Bosch process (later Nobel Prizes for the chemist Fritz Haber in 1919 and the chemist , Technician and industrialist Carl Bosch in 1931).

Krug has conceptually ensured that this museum combines the features of a science center , a museum and a collection of original plants and apparatus from the chemical industry of the 20th century in one technology park . Since 1996, the student projects “Chemistry you can touch” and “Understand technology” have been implemented in the Science Center together with the Merseburg University of Applied Sciences. In addition to the technology park, these projects are the second pillar of the museum.

After Thomas Martin , professor at the Merseburg University of Applied Sciences, took over the position of chairman of the board , Krug has been a member of the board of the SCI association since 2010.

Scientific activities

His scientific publications include approx. 120 specialist lectures at national and international scientific conferences, more than 100 publications as monographs and edited volumes, proceedings and articles in books and specialist journals. There are also around 100 reviews and reports. About 40 doctoral candidates were supervised by Krug and more than 150 colloquia were organized and directed. Krug was also involved in the textbook "Verfahrenstechnik", which with 30 volumes, some of which were published in 3rd and 4th editions, reached a total circulation of over 200,000. Krug retired in March 2005.

Participation in scientific committees

From 1985 to 1990, Krug was a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for the History of Science at the Ministry of Higher and Technical Education (MHF). At the same time he was a member of the national group of the International Committee of History of Technology (ICOHTEC).

From 1986 to 1990 he was a member of the board of the expert committee for the history of science at the Historiker-Gesellschaft der DDR. From 1988 to 1993 he was a member of the Council for Science Research at the Academy of Sciences of the GDR . From 1990 to 1993 he was chairman of the senate commission for the history of higher education and science at the TH Leuna-Merseburg.

From 1990 to 1995 he was a member of the Advisory Board of the Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe. At VDI Düsseldorf , he was a member and deputy chairman of the “Knowledge Processing” specialist committee from 1993 to 2000. As chairman of the German Library Association, State Association of Saxony-Anhalt, he was effective from 1998 to 2001. From 2000 to 2002 he was chairman of the advisory board for academic libraries in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. In 2001 Krug became a member of the Leibniz Society of Sciences in Berlin .

Fonts

• with Günter Gruhn and Wolfgang Fratzscher : Introduction to process engineering. Deutscher Verlag für Grundstoffindustrie, Leipzig 1979, 2nd edition 1980, 3rd edition 1982, 4th edition 1986.
• Edited with Rolf Sonnemann: Technology and technical Sciences in History. German Science Publishing House, Berlin 1987.
• with Heidrun Rainer and Heinz Hoffmann: Chemical technology for chemical professions. German publishing house for basic industry, Leipzig 1988, ISBN 3-342-00265-4 .
• with Klaus-Peter Meinicke: Entrepreneur biographies . Verlag Volk und Wissen, Berlin 1991.
• Edited with Klaus-Peter Meinicke: Science and technology transfer between industrial and scientific-technical revolution. Proceedings. Publishing house for the history of science and technology, Stuttgart 1992.
• with Jürgen Jankowski: witnesses to the chemical industry Leuna-Buna-Merseburg. Merseburg 1993.
• Edited with Hans-Wilhelm Marquart: Contemporary witness reports - chemical industry. GDCh-Monograph, Frankfurt / Main, Vol. 10: 1998, Vol. 16: 1999, Vol. 19: 2000, Vol. 22: 2000, Vol. 26: 2003, Vol. 30: 2004, Vol. 33: 2005, Vol. 38: 2007, Vol. 40: 2009, Vol. 43: 2011.
• with Klaus-Peter Wendlandt: Museum guide through the technology park of the German Chemistry Museum. Merseburg 2002, 2nd edition 2009.
• Edited with Klaus-Peter Meinicke and Uwe Gert Müller: Industrial and environmental history of the Saxony-Anhalt region. UZU series of publications by the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, vol. 5, 2003.
• Edited with Hans-Joachim Hörig and Dieter Schnurpfeil: Journal "Merseburg Contributions to the History of the Chemical Industry of Central Germany". Merseburg 1986 ff.
• For the development of process engineering. In: Martin Guntau and Hubert Laitko (eds.): The origin of the sciences. The emergence of modern scientific disciplines in history. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1986.
• The Prussian reforms and the emancipation of the chemical-technological disciplines. In: G. Schubring (Ed.): "Loneliness and Freedom" revisited, university reforms and discipline formation in Prussia as a model for science policy in Europe in the 19th century. Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart 1991.
• Preservation of testimonials from the chemical industry in Central Germany. In: Th. Häuseroth (ed.): Technology and science as productive forces in history. Rolf Sonnemann on his 70th birthday. Dresden 1998.
• Technology and chemical engineering from a historical perspective. In: Gerhard Banse and Ernst-Otto Reher (Ed.): General technology. Past present Future. Meeting reports of the Leibniz Society of Sciences in Berlin, Volume 50, Berlin 2002.
• Contribution in: Dieter Hoffmann, Hubert Laitko and Staffan Müller-Wille (ed.): Lexicon of important natural scientists. Elsevier, Heidelberg 2004.
• The development of process engineering into a scientific discipline. In: Wolfgang Fratzscher and Klaus-Peter Meinicke (eds.): Process engineering and reunification. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1997.
• The university library of the Merseburg University of Applied Sciences. In: Ministry of Culture of the State of Saxony-Anhalt (Ed.): University Libraries of the State of Saxony-Anhalt. Magdeburg 2001.
• with Wolfgang Fratzscher : 70 years of process engineering - a look back. Chemie-Ingenieur-Technik, Vol. 70, H. 6, 1998, pp. 634-646.
• The chemical industry of Central Germany and the German Chemistry Museum Merseburg. Wirtschaftsspiegel special, 2003, pp. 5–10.

literature

• Dietrich Werner, D. Herrmann: msr presents: Technical University "Carl Schorlemmer" Leuna-Merseburg - Process Engineering Section, Automation Engineering Science Area. In: measure, control, regulate, Berlin. Vol. 27, No. 5, 1984, pp. 231-235.
• Heinz Töpfer : Prof. Dr. sc. techn. Georg Brack - 60 years. In: measure, control, regulate, Berlin. Vol. 34, No. 1, 1991, p. 2.
• Werner Kriesel ; Hans Rohr; Andreas Koch: History and future of measurement and automation technology. VDI-Verlag, Düsseldorf 1995, ISBN 3-18-150047-X .
• Klaus Krug, Hans-Joachim Hörig, Dieter Schnurpfeil (editor): 50 years of the university in Merseburg. Merseburg contributions to the history of the chemical industry in Central Germany, publisher: Förderverein "Sachzeugen der chemical Industrie e. V. ", Merseburg, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2004.
• Jürgen Heeg and Jens Lazarus: "Chemistry brings bread, prosperity, beauty" - Festschrift for Klaus Krug to say goodbye to retirement on March 31, 2005. University of Merseburg, Library, Merseburg 2005.
• Wolfgang Fratzscher : Encounters and contacts. Book factory Halle, Halle (Saale) no year (www.buchfabrik-halle.de).
• Frank Fuchs-Kittowski, Werner Kriesel (Ed.): Computer science and society. Festschrift for the 80th birthday of Klaus Fuchs-Kittowski . Frankfurt a. M., Bern, Bruxelles, New York, Oxford, Warszawa, Vienna: Peter Lang Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften, PL Academic Research 2016, ISBN 978-3-631-66719-4 (print), E- ISBN 978-3-653 -06277-9 (e-book).

Web links

• Literature by and about Klaus Krug in the catalog of the German National Library