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13-Sep-23 |
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Henri Kessler (1935 - 2023) |
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It
is with deep sadness that we learned of the passing of Henri Kessler,
our colleague, on August 23, 2023. Henri was born in Saint-Amarin, at
the bottom of the Thann Valley, a small Alsatian town at the foot of
the Vosges Mountains, on May 5, 1935. Graduated as a chemical engineer
from the National Higher School of Chemistry in Mulhouse in 1959, Henri
Kessler joined CNRS (the French National Center for Scientific
Research) as a research assistant. And became a Research Director in
1982. In 1983, he joined Professor Raymond Wey's Laboratory of General
Mineral Chemistry where he took on the responsibility of the
microporous non-siliceous framework solids group, which achieved
remarkable results with the synthesis of numerous new structures. A
sound example of his work is the synthesis of a gallophosphate known as
"Cloverite," which was the crystalline microporous solid with the
largest pore openings (13.2 × 6 Å). Dr. Kessler was a Council member of
the executive board of International Zeolite Association (IZA),
Vice-President of the IZA Synthesis Commission, and a Member of the
Editorial Board of the journal "Microporous Materials." In 1992, he,
along with Jean-Louis Guth, received the Solid-State Chemistry Division
Prize from the French Chemical Society.He assumed the leadership of the
Laboratory in 1996, with the goal of ensuring its continued development
until his retirement in 1999. He left an indelible mark on the
community of researchers in the field of crystalline porous solids.
Many people knew Henri as an exceptional mountaineer. One had to "hang
on" to follow him into the Vosges or the Alps. He was accustomed to
participating in endurance races (24 hours) on the Vosges ridges. He
was a well-rounded athlete who also enjoyed swimming and skiing. He was
also a man of nature with a deep ecological consciousness for its
preservation. He had his house built at the base of the mountain, on
the edge of the forest, where he collected deadwood for heating. With
the help of his wife, Rose-Marie, he created a terraced garden where
vegetable plants coexisted with mountain flowers.
On behalf of all the people who had the privilege and honor of working with Henri,
Jean-Louis Guth and Jean-Louis Paillaud
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1-Sep-23
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Gregor Mali (1971 - 2023) |
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After
a battle with a serious illness, our dear colleague, friend and
researcher Prof. Dr. Gregor Mali has passed away. He was part of the
zeolite research community for more than 25 years and was also active
in the Slovenian Zeolite Association. We will cherish the memory of our
esteemed colleague.
Prof. Dr. Gregor Mali has been employed at the National Institute of
Chemistry in Ljubljana in the Department of Inorganic Chemistry and
Technology since 1997. Since 2007, he has been habilitated in the field
of Physics at the University of Nova Gorica and since 2019 also at the
Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of the University of Ljubljana.
Prof. Mali's research work was devoted to the development and
application of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods and
computational methods for the study of the structure of solids.
Research areas to which Prof. Mali paid the most attention were the
development of new porous catalysts and adsorbents for environmental
and energy applications, and the development of batteries.
In recent years, Prof. Mali has become one of the world's most
prominent scientists in the field of NMR research on porous materials.
He has authored or co-authored more than 130 scientific articles in
prestigious journals, including Science and Nature group. The
importance and excellence of his research is evidenced by the two
prestigious awards he received in 2017, namely the Pregl Award for
outstanding achievements in the field of chemistry and related sciences
and the Zois Prize for significant scientific achievements in the field
of nuclear magnetic resonance of materials.
Prof. Mali's research work was excellent, dedicated and responsible to
his colleagues and students. We admired and appreciated him for his
exceptional approachability, kindness, respectful attitude and
brilliant thinking. We will miss him sorely.
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7-Apr-23
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Sigmund M. Csicsery (1929 - 2022)
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We
received the very sad news that Dr. Sigmund M. Csicsery,
one of the big pioneers of shape selective catalysis, passed away in
his home at Moraga (California) on December 18, 2022. Sigmund is
mourned by his family, as well as many friends, colleagues, and
acquaintances with whom he made connections throughout the world. His
remains will be laid to rest at the Tahy family crypt in Balatonszemes,
Hungary. Sigmund was a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and
was awarded the prestigious Gábor Dénes Award in 2020–2021. He had over
50 publications and 27 patents to his name.
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6-Jan-23 |
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Petr Nachtigall (1963 - 2022)
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It
is with great sadness that we have to communicate the passing of Prof.
RNDr. Petr Nachtigall, Ph.D. on 28 December 2022. He was an
internationally recognized expert in computational material science
with particular emphasis on porous materials. He received his Ph.D. at
the University of Pittsburgh. After returning to Prague, he worked at
the J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, later at the
Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of
Sciences, and since 2009 at the Faculty of Science of Charles
University. Here he made a major contribution to the establishment and
development of the top scientific center "CHARLES UNIVERSITY CENTRE OF
ADVANCED MATERIALS" and introduced a new PhD and MSc program "Modelling
of chemical properties of nano and biostructures". Recently, he has
conceived and organized the establishment of a new Bachelor of Science
program "Science". Prof. Nachtigall has regularly published in the most
prestigious scientific journals; he is the author of 181 publications
with 8,289 citations and an h-index of 54 (as of 1 January 2023).
He is well known for his studies of adsorption complexes and reaction
mechanisms in zeolites and analogous materials, which significantly
contributed to the understanding of the behavior of zeolites for
practical applications. Moreover, the has contributed significantly to
the discovery and theoretical explanation of a new method of synthesis
of zeolites ADOR, thanks to which more than 10 new types of zeolites
have already been synthesized.
Prof. Nachtigall was awarded the Bedřich Hrozný Prize for Basic
Research (2015), the Prize of the Minister of Education, Youth and
Sports for significant results of basic research in natural sciences
(2019) and the Donatio Universitatis Carolinae (2021).
In Peter Nachtigall we lose not only an outstanding scientist, teacher
and mentor, but also a great person and friend. Our thoughts are with
his wife Gabriela and his family.
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18-Jul-22 |
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Seven new council members were elected:
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Rob Ameloot (Belgium)
Roger Glaeser (Germany)
Tina Nenoff (USA)
Sibele Pergher (Brazil)
Domenico Caputo (Italy)
Manuel Molinar (Spain)
Natasa Z. Logar (Slovenia)
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The new executive committee of the IZA council is: |
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Svetlana Mintova, President
Michael Stockenhuber, Vice-President Natasa Z. Logar, Secretary
Jeffrey
Rimer, Treasurer
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International Zeolite Conference (IZC) |
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At
a
Business Meeting, the IZA Board selected the venue for the 22nd IZC in
2028: Philadelphia, USA
The next
21st IZC will be held in 2025 in Dalian, China.
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IZA Awards
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The 2022 Don Breck Award has been attributed to:
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The new IZA Ambassador, the recepient of the 2022 IZA award is: |
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Valentin Valtchev (CNRS, France)
for his important contributions to the fundamental understanding of zeolite
synthesis and post-synthesis modification of industrially-important
zeolites.
Prof. Valtchev will act as the IZA Ambassador from now until the next IZC in 2025.
Valentin Valtchev (left) with the president of the IZA Martin Hartmann (right).
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The 2022 Young Researcher Award (YRA) of the Iinteranational Zeolite Association has been attributed to: |
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Michiel Dusselier (KU Leuven, Belgium)
for his achievements in the knowledge-based development of catalyst for innovative catalytic conversion processes.
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IZA Honorary Membeship Awards |
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Jean-Pierre Gilson (LCS, ENSICAEN, France)
for his outstanding contribution to zeolite science and technology and
for the great service in the organization IZA-related events.
Avelino Corma (ITQ-Valencia, Spain)
for his outstanding contributions to zeolite science and technology and his great service as chairman of IZC2022.
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10-Mar-22
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News from FEZA
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The
Federation of European Zeolite Associations (FEZA) created in January
1996, consisting of 17 National Zeolite Associations (Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech
Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, The Netherlands, Italy, Poland, Portugal,
Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, UK) has taken the following
decision in strong
support of Ukraine and all people suffering from the horrible war.
National Zeolite Associations within the FEZA wholehertedly approved the measure to
suspend Russia from FEZA, and to promote other activities of the scientific
community in support of Ukraine.
Our
resolution is taken to support the peace, and in opposition to war and the
suffering of the people in Ukraine.
We hope for an immediate stop to this war and
a peaceful future for Europe. Let us stand together for a peaceful worldwide
community and for the
sake of our future generations.
We do
believe that Russian people are also victims of their government and our action is not against them.
The
Russian scientists are not responsible for this war but we as a European
research community express our opinion now. The aggression against Ukraine
decided by the government of Russia reflects on all of us!
The
objectives of FEZA are to improve communication and collaboration between
researchers in Europe for the benefit of the public and therefore we decided to:
1. Suspend the membership of Russia from FEZA.
2. Become a promoter for other European initiatives
reflecting the opinion of other European scientific communities by:
- official statement on the FEZA website
- state our strong support in papers currently in
press
- express our support during meetings, conferences.
3. A FEZA solidarity scholarship will be provided to a Ukrainian early career researcher to attend
a conference in the field of porous materials. |
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9-Feb-22 |
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Karl Seff (1938 - 1921) |
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We were saddened to hear that Prof. Karl Seff, known for his colorful
Hawaiian shirts and ready smile at zeolite conferences, passed away at
the age of 84 on September 11 last year.
Karl started his career in zeolite crystallography with David P.
Shoemaker at MIT, where he received his PhD in 1964. After a
post-doc with Kenneth N. Trueblood at UCLA, he joined the Chemistry
Department at the University of Hawaii in 1967, and remained there
until his retirement 40 years later. He is probably best known
for his pioneering research using tiny zeolite A crystals, modified in
various ways, to collect single-crystal X-ray diffraction data for
structure analysis. This allowed him to elucidate intriguing zeolite
chemistry at the atomic level. As instrumentation and computing power
improved, he expanded this research, along with colleagues in South
Korea, to include zeolites X and Y. Although he retired officially in
2007, he continued his research activity until just six weeks before
his death. He will be remembered fondly by all those students who were
fortunate enough to have him as an advisor. He took great interest in
following his students' careers and personal lives long after
graduation. A student of Karl’s was a student and friend for life. His
infectious enthusiasm
for science and life in general made every encounter an experience
worth remembering.
He will be missed not only by his zeolite colleagues and his students,
but also by his fellow cactus enthusiasts and his vegan friends.
Aloha Karl
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18-Jan-22 |
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The Young Researcher Award (YRA) committee invites applications for the 2022 YRA. |
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The
Young Researcher Award will be given to an individual for outstanding
contribution to the Science and Technology of zeolites and related
nanoporous materials, since January 1st of the year of the last IZC to
the December 31st of the year before the IZC where the award will be
given. For more information visit the YRA page.
The applications should be sent by March 3, 2022 to the IZA secretary:
Prof. Heloise Pastore E-mail:
lolly@unicamp.br
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12-Jan-22 |
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Nominations for the 2022 Donald W. Breck Award invited
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The Breck
Award nomination committee invites nominations for the 2022 Donald W.
Breck Award. This award is for the most significant contribution to
Molecular Sieve Science and Technology made between January 1, 2017 and
December 31, 2021 and the winner will be announced on July 7, 2022 at
the 20th IZC in Valencia, Spain.
The award may be given to an individual or to a group.
The nomination should be accompanied by a list of maximum 5 references and a 2
page summary outlining in detail the novel findings and their
scientific merit. It should includes supporting letters from three established zeolite
scientists. For more Information visit the Breck Award page.
Nominations should be sent by April 3, 2022 to the Chair of the Breck Award Committee:
Dr. Valentin Valtchev
CNRS, France
E-mail: valentin.valtchev@ensicaen.fr
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5-Nov-21 |
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Proposals for the organization of the 22nd
International Zeolite Conference |
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The IZA
Executive Council is soliciting proposals for organizing the 22nd IZC
to be held in 2028. A proposal should contain sufficient detail,
including the specific proposed conference location, to permit a
reasonable evaluation of its merits, and must contain the name of a
person who agrees to become the Conference Organizer, if the IZA
council would select the proposal. The time schedule for this process
is shown schematically below.
Selection of the venue for the 22 IZC:
A
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B
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C
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20th IZC
July 3-8
2022
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6 months
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2
months
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2
months
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2 months
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Letter of
Interest
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Applicants
fill in questionnaire
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Council
preselects best bids
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Applicants
prepare presentation
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A: Those who plan to submit a bid for the 22nd IZC should send a letter
of intent to the IZA President (martin.hartmann@ecrc.uni-erlangen.de)
or the IZA Secretary (lolly@unicamp.br) at least six months before the 20th
IZC. It should contain the name of the Chairman of the Organizing
Committee, the Members of the Organizing Committee and the envisaged
venue and date for the 22nd IZC. The Organizing Committee is
expected to include well-established academics in the field of
zeolite-type materials. Upon receipt of the letter of intent, the
Secretary shall send the detailed questionnaire "Proposal for the
Organization of the 22nd IZC to be held in 2028” to the applicant.
B: This questionnaire, properly filled in and signed, must be received
by the President and Secretary at least four months before the 20th
IZC. All bids received by this date are distributed to the IZA Council
members.
C: The Council will finalize the pre-selection two months before the
20th IZC. The IZA President will notify all those who submitted bid(s)
of the outcome of the pre-selection and the date for the presentation
to the IZA Council. This gives the successful applicants two months to
prepare their presentations for the Business Meeting at the 20th IZC.
At the IZA Council meeting, after the presentations of the pre-selected
proposals, the IZA Council will vote for the selection of the final
winner. The winner will be announced at the closing Business Meeting at
the 20th IZC.
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24-Oct-21 |
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ENI award
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Two
zeolite scientists, Jörg Kärger (Leipzig) and Jürgen Caro (Hannover),
received the prestigious ENI award in the category “Advanced
Environmental Solutions” for their research on “mass transfer in
nanoporous materials: paradigm shift and technological use for advanced
environmental solutions” during the Eni Award ceremony at the Palazzo
del Qirinale in Rome in the presence of the President of the Italian
Republic. Their work was dedicated to the development of novel
techniques for measuring intrinsic diffusion, with the knowledge gained
being highly efficient for the fabrication of transport-optimized
membranes. Caro began his career as Kärger's first doctoral student in
the Physics Institute of Leipzig University (photograph) with a thesis
that in some ways already laid the foundation for today's success. In
the section “Recognition of Innovation at Eni” section, which
recognizes the most innovative projects developed by Eni’s researchers
and technical experts, at the same event past-IZA president Giuseppe
Bellussi and colleagues were awarded for their patent “Process for the
mineralisation of CO2 with natural mineral phases and the use of these
products in the formulation of cements”.

Prof. Jörg Kärger (left) and Jürgen Caro (right).
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19-Oct-21 |
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Douglas Morris Ruthven (2038 - 2021)
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It
is with great sadness that we have to communicate the passing of
Professor Douglas Morris Ruthven on September 23, 2021 at the age of
eighty-two. We mourn the loss of a brilliant scientist, a truly gifted
university teacher, a wonderful human being, and a good, reliable
friend.
Born in Ernakulum, India, on October 9, 1938, he was educated at
Christ’s Hospital school and at the University of Cambridge. After
receiving his first degree, he worked in industry for two years before
his inquisitiveness and investigative drive led him back to the
university, where he received his PhD from Cambridge in 1966.
Eventually, in 1988 the University of Cambridge awarded him a Doctor of
Science degree for “distinction by some original contribution to the
advancement of science or learning”.
Right after receiving his PhD, Doug accepted a professorship in
Chemical Engineering at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton,
Canada. Here he became a key figure for many generations of students,
as well as for countless guest researchers coming to Fredericton from
all over the world. Many followed him when, in the new millennium, he
moved from Fredericton to the University of Maine in the US.
Before long, Doug was one of the most renowned researchers worldwide in
the field of adsorption. An important part of this reputation is due to
his book Principles of Adsorption and Adsorption Processes, published
in 1984, which became a classic. He was awarded recognition as
one of the top twenty achievers in Chemical Engineering in the
Twentieth Century by the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering and
the Max Planck Research Award by the German Humboldt Foundation and
Max-Planck Society.
Doug was one of the leading pioneers in adsorption science and
engineering and, accordingly, among the founders of both the
International Zeolite Association and the International Adsorption
Society, once serving as its president. His best memories were the
personal contacts he made; he made his students and guests feel like
part of a family. We mourn the loss of a cherished friend; our thoughts
are with his wife Patricia and daughter Fiona.
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6-Oct-21 |
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Alan Dyer (1934 - 2021)
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Professor
Alan Dyer, known for his brilliant work on ion exchange in zeolites,
passed away of age of 87. Alan was born on 29th March 1934 in Salford,
the son of Colin and Florence Dyer. He gained his BSc with honours at
the University of Sheffield (1954) and his PhD at Kings College, London
(1958), finally being awarded a DSc by the University of Salford
(1981). His academic life started in teaching at Wardley Grammar
School, Worsley, Lancashire from 1957-1959. This was followed by
an appointment as Lecturer at the Royal Technology College, Salford
from 1959-1961. In 1961 he took the post of Senior Lecturer at the
Royal College of Advanced Technology, Salford until 1964, when the
college was made a University. He remained a Lecturer at the
University of Salford until 1970, when he was promoted to Senior
Lecturer and in 1985 he was promoted to Reader. Alan became
Professor of Chemistry at Salford in 1997 and remained in this post
until he retired; he was also a visiting Professor for Loughbourgh
University. Alan was a consultant to numerous companies including BNFL,
Alcan Chemicals, SDS BioTech, ICI and of course Laporte.
Alan married Dilys Patricia Groves on the 30th August 1958, and had
four children, Andrew, Fiona, Jennifer and Christopher. He died
peacefully, in the early hours of 7th September 2021; he will be very
sadly missed by all who knew him.
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9-Aug-21 |
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9th International Zeolite Membrane Meeting (IZMM) - Postponed
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The
9th International Zeolite Membrane Meeting (IZMM) will be held in
Nanjing, China but was postponed from 2022 to 2023. The decision was
made due to the current covid-19 pandemic situation and the rules of
travelling around the world which are, currently, uncertain. The
organizers evaluate that because IZMM is a very specialized conference,
a face-to-face meeting would be better for communication. The
situation will be re-evaluated by the middle of 2022. IZMM2023 will be
virtual if the restriction on travelling is still operative at that
time.
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1-Mar-21 |
| The natural counterpart of zeolite A (LTA-type) discovered |
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team of Colombian, Spanish and British scientists led by Carlos Alberto
Ríos-Reyes has described the first occurrence of zeolite A in nature
(Crystals, https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11020218). According
to the authors, Na–A zeolite and associated mineral phases such as
sodalite were formed by high diagenesis processes, temperatures around
80-100 °C and weathering contributions. These conditions allowed the
geochemical remobilization and/or recrystallization of pre-existing
silica, muscovite, kaolinite minerals group, salts, carbonates, oxides
and peroxides. Scanning electron micrographs show the typical cubic
morphology of Na–A zeolite with a particle size of approximately 0.45
µm. A literature review shows that this is an unusual example for the
occurrence of natural zeolites in sedimentary marine rocks recognized
around the world.
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1-Mar-21 |
| Michael Stöcker becomes a Member of the Slovenian Academy of Engineering Sciences |
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General Assembly of the Slovenian Academy of Engineering Sciences has
elected Michael Stöcker as an International Member of the Academy on
February 23, 2021, following the nominations passed on by the Section
for Scientific Research as well as the Section for International
Relations. The solemn inauguration ceremony is scheduled for autumn
this year in Brdo pri Kranju (close to Ljubljana), Slovenia. Congratulations
for this great honor go to Michael Stöcker, who has served the
international zeolite community for many years particularly as
Editor-in-Chief of our journal Microporous and Mesoporous Materials and
has been elected as honorary member of IZA. |
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4-Dec-20 |
| Herman van Bekkum (1932 - 2020) |
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We
received the very sad news that Em. Prof. Dr. ir. Herman van Bekkum,
who was one of the founders of the Dutch Zeolite Association (DZA) and
the first President of the Federation of European Zeolite Associations
(FEZA), passed away on November 30, 2020. Herman
van Bekkum was born in 1932 in Rotterdam. He graduated in chemical
technology (1956) with Prof. Verkade and then obtained his Ph.D. (1959)
with Prof. Wepster at the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft,
back then TH Delft). After working for two years as a researcher at
Shell, he returned to the TU Delft in 1961 with a position as Lecturer.
In 1971, he was appointed as Professor in Organic Chemistry and
Catalysis. From 1975 to 1976 he served as Rector Magnificus of the TU
Delft. Through the years he covered other important positions,
including Chairman of the KNCV (Royal Netherlands Chemical Society) and
Chairman of the Innovative Carbohydrates Research Program. In 1995 he
was elected Member of the KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and
Sciences). In 1991 he was appointed Knight in the Order of the
Netherlands Lion and in 2007 Officer in the Order of Orange-Nassau. His
research focused on two main topics: zeolites and carbohydrate
chemistry, with an overarching interest for catalytic conversion of
organic compounds. We all remember him for his scientific qualities and
his liveliness and enthusiasm in participating in scientific
discussions, also for many years after his official retirement in 1998.
People who met him at the TU Delft would certainly remember his
availability in providing useful scientific advice to young researchers
that knocked at the door of his office, which had a table covered with
books, papers and models of zeolite structures that proved his
never-ending enthusiasm for his research. He was also a familiar and
welcome presence at the Netherlands’ Catalysis and Chemistry
Conference, which he regularly attended until recent years. People that
met him and talked with him would remember not only the brilliant
scientist but also a person with many other passions and with whom the
conversation was always enriching, regardless whether the topic was a
zeolite framework, his Alfa Romeo or playing chess. In
this sad moment our thoughts go out to the family of Prof. Herman van
Bekkum. His memory will remain with us and hopefully we will be able to
pass what we learnt from him to the next generations. On behalf of the Dutch Zeolite Association and of the Dutch Catalysis Society, Prof. Dr. Paolo P. Pescarmona
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16-Oct-20 |
| Klaus Unger (1936 – 2020) |
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Our
friend and colleague Klaus Unger passed away after a short illness on
October 7th 2020. We have lost an excellent scientist, a wonderful
mentor, a dear friend, in short: a true “Mensch”. Klaus
was highly successful in two rather separate fields of science, in
zeolite science and in chromatography, both connected by his deep
interest in porous materials. His early work on innovative silica-based
stationary phases for chromatography led him to broaden his interest to
zeolites and later on to ordered mesoporous materials. His science was
always characterized by the combination of a deep understanding of the
fundamentals of the materials he worked on and a keen eye for practical
applications. He was therefore always a sought-after partner for
industrial companies, and his many decade long relationships to Merck
at Darmstadt, only a few kilometres away from his home in
Seeheim-Jugenheim, testifies of the importance of his research also for
industry. Klaus loved the area, with the vineyards of the Rheingau, the
Odenwald, and the Spessart close by for extended hikes. So after his
habilitation inrmstadt, he only moved across the Rhine to Mainz to
become a professor for Analytical Chemistry, and stayed with Mainz
University until his retirement in 2001. Klaus
had colleagues and friends basically anywhere in the world, and all of
them enjoyed him as a partner for scientific collaborations and beyond.
He has served on IUPAC committees for the characterization of porous
solids, he co-initiated a number of high profile conference series, and
he was always active in various scientific organization, such as the
IZA, the German Fachgruppe Zeolithe (DECHEMA), or the Arbeitskreis
Chromatographie of the Fachgruppe Analytische Chemie of the German
Society for Chemistry (GDCh). He was one of the founding members of
Federation of European Zeolite Associations (FEZA) as the chairman of
the German Zeolite Association at that time, and served as the first
treasurer. Born in Zwickau, which was for about 40 years part of East
Germany, he always kept links to the colleagues in the former GDR also
during the separation of the two countries, and after Germany’s
reunification, he played a very active role in helping to re-integrate
the science between East and West Germany in the field of porous
materials and separation science. Prof.
Unger was loved by his students and coworkers. They enjoyed scientific
freedom, support wherever it was needed, and the overall very warm,
welcoming and extremely friendly atmosphere in the group. Within hours
after the news of his passing away spread, there were dozens of emails
expressing the sadness of his former co-workers, and one quote from the
mails stands for all of them: “one of a kind with the biggest generous
heart”. This is how we all feel – it was a privilege to have known
Klaus, and the zeolite community will miss him dearly from now on.
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14-Sep-19 |
| Jens Weitkamp (1942
- 2019) |
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Professor
Dr.-Ing. Jens Weitkamp, the former director of the Institute of
Chemical Technology of the University of Stuttgart passed away in Paris
on August 25, 2019, the same town in which he was born on June 5, 1942.
Jens Weitkamp studied chemistry at the Universities of Berlin and
Karlsruhe. In 1971 he completed his doctoral studies under the
supervision of Professor Dr. H. Pichler and his habilitation a few
years later at the Engler-Bunte Institute of the University of
Karlsruhe with Prof. Dr. K. Hedden. In 1986, Jens Weitkamp became
Professor of Chemical Technology at the University of Oldenburg. In
1988 he took over a Full Professor position for Chemical Technology at
the University of Stuttgart.
High quality research on upgrading of crude oil and natural gas as well
as petrochemistry has determined the scientific life of Jens Weitkamp
and he has advanced these fields to a very large extent. Examples are
refinery processes like cracking, hydrocracking, isomerisation,
alkylation, reforming and demetallization as well as petrochemical
reactions like alkylation of aromatics, transalkylation and
epoxidation. Jens Weitkamp has advanced our understanding of zeolites
and porous materials significantly.
In his service to the International Zeolite Association, he served on
the IZA council from 1994 till 2001 acting as the vice-president from
1994 to 1997 and the president from 1997 to 2001. He also served as the
Chairman of the 10th International Zeolite Conference (IZC), held in
Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1994. In 1993, Jens Weitkamp founded the
scientific journal “Microporous Materials”, which he edited until the
merger with “Zeolites” in 1997. From 1998 to 2003 he edited the new
scientific journal “Microporous and Mesoporous Materials” as
Editor-in-Chief, which became the leading journal within the field of
zeolites and porous materials. Jens Weitkamp received a number of
highly ranked recognitions among them are the Alwin-Mittasch-Prize of
the DECHEMA (2010) and the Carl-Engler Medal (2002) of the German
Society for Petroleum and Coal Science and Technology (DGMK). He became
Corresponding Member of the Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities in
2003.
The scientific community devoted to the research of zeolites, porous
materials and heterogeneous catalysis shows great respect for the
lifetime achievement of Jens Weitkamp and we regret the loss of this
excellent scientist, teacher and human being. We will keep him in our
memories. Our thoughts go to Sophie, his companion for the last ten
years.
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24-Aug-19 |
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Michael Stöcker received the Award of National Institute of Chemistry (Slovenia) |
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Dr.
Michael Stöcker received the Award of National Institute of Chemistry
(Ljubljana, Slovenia) for his contribution to the research in Slovenia
during the last 25 years. The Award was given during a solemn prize
ceremony with the presence of the Secretary of State for Science and
Research - Slovenia (Dr. Jerney Strmayer), the Rector of the University
of Ljubljana (Prof. Igor Papic), the Director of the National Institute
of Chemistry - Slovenia (Prof. Gregor Anderluh), the President of the
Scientific Council of the National Institute of Chemistry - Slovenia
(Prof. Miran Gaberscek) as well as the German Vice-Ambassador to
Slovenia (Hon Peter Lange).
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31-Jul-19 |
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Seven new Council members were elected:
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Tina
Düren (UK)
Zhongmin
Liu (China)
Svetlana
Mintova (France)
Masaru Ogura (Japan)
Yong Ki Park (Korea)
Jeffrey Rimer (USA)
Michael Stockenhuber (Australia)
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The new executive committee of the IZA council is:
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Martin
Hartmann, President
Zhongmin
Liu, Vice-President
Heloise
Pastore, Secretary
Jeffery
Rimer, Treasurer
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International Zeolite Conference (IZC) |
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At
a
Business Meeting, the IZA Board selected the venue for the 21st IZC in
2025:
Dalian,
China
The next
IZC will be held in 2022 in Valencia, Spain.
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IZA Honorary Membeship Awards |
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IZA Honorary Memberships were given to:
Christian
Baerlocher
of the
ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
for the
renowned contribution to the structural chemistry of zeolites and for the devoted service to the design and
maintenance of the Database of Zeolite Structure.
Giuseppe
Bellussi
Eni SpA, Italy
for the
outstanding contribution to zeolite science and technology and for the
great
service as President of the IZA.
Takashi
Tatsumi
of the
Tokyo University of Technology, Tokyo, Japan
for the
outstanding contribution to zeolite synthesis and catalysis and for the
dissemination of zeolite science.
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The new IZA Ambassador, the recepient of the 2019 IZA award is: |
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Wilhelm
Schwieger
of the University of
Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
for
important contributions to zeolite science and technology resulting in
commercial applications of zeolites.
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The first Young Researcher Award (YRA) of the Iinteranational Zeolite Association has been attributed to: |
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Manuel
Moliner
of the
Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ), Valencia, Spain
for
novel synthesis methods to obtain nanosized zeolites and to control
active
sites distribution in zeolite catalysts.
The
award is sponsored by ExxonMobil
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The 2019 Don Breck Award has been
attributed to the team: |
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Stephen K.
Brand, Joel E. Schmidt, Michael W. Deem,
Frits Daeyaer, Yanhang Ma, Osamu Terasaki, Marat Orazov, Mark E. Davis
for the
discovery of enantiomerically enriched STW zeolite.

The IZA
president Valentin Valtchev (middle) with Manuel Moliner (left)
recipient of the Yong researcher award and Mark Davis (right) recipient of the 2019
Don Breck Award.
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20-Jun-19 |
| Alberto Alberti (1938 - 2019) |
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Alberto
Alberti suddenly passed away on June 7th, 2019, two days from his 81st
birthday. Alberto has been a major pillar of the community of natural
zeolites and of crystallography of zeolites. Called by Glauco Gottardi
to the Institute of Mineralogy of the University of Modena in 1966, he
was an early developer of modern treatment of crystallographic data. He
moved in 1986 to the University of Sassari and in 1989 to the
University of Ferrara, where he started a successful school of
crystallography.
In the field of natural
zeolites, his name is connected to the discovery and structural
refinement of a number of new minerals, from barrerite to gottardiite,
terranovaite and mutinaite. Throughout his career, he built bridges
between the communities of natural and synthetic zeolites, showing the
structural identity of many synthetic zeolites and their natural
analogs. He brought fundamental contributions to the crystallochemistry
of zeolites, shedding new light on the mechanisms of reconstructive
phase transitions and of mobility of cations and acidic protons,
improving the understanding of the properties of zeolites and
aluminophosphates.
His dedication to the
zeolite community motivated his active participation to the instances
of the International Zeolite Association, the International
Mineralogical Association and the Associazione Italiana Zeoliti. The
number of students who have been induced by his example to endeavour
careers in research and teaching is the best witness of his capacity of
transmitting his passionate love for science. The colleagues and
students of Alberto will fondly remember his kindness, his human warmth
and his commitment to help alleviating any human suffering.
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7-Feb-19 |
| Harry
Edwin Robson (1927 - 2019) |
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It
is with great sadness that we must report that Dr. Robson, a
former employee of Exxon and renowned expert in zeolite synthesis,
passed away on January 18, 2019. Harry Edwin Robson was born on
19, 1927 near Burlington, USA. He earned a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry
in Kansas University. He moved to Baton Rouge in 1957 to join the
research lab at Esso (later Exxon), remaining there until his first
retirement in 1986. He spent the next six years consulting in the
chemical industry and teaching at LSU. He was a pioneer in the field of
zeolite synthesis, and he was instrumental in the formation of the
International Zeolite Association. With his colleagues, he compiled and
edited three books on zeolite synthesis. The zeolite community and in particular the synthetic chemists will continue to enjoy his legacy for many years to come. |
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4-Feb-19 |
| Stefan Ernst (1960 - 2019) |
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It
is with great sadness that we report the passing of Professor Stefan
Ernst. This is truly a loss for the worldwide community of chemical
technology and zeolite science in particular. Stefan Ernst studied
Chemical Engineering in Karlsruhe, obtained his Ph.D. in Oldenburg with
Jens Weitkamp and finished his habilitation at the University of
Stuttgart. Since 1997, he has been Professor of Chemical
Technology at TU Kaiserslautern. Stefan
Ernst is known as one of the pioneers of zeolite science in Germany. He
has made outstanding contributions to the synthesis of zeolites and
their application in industrial catalysis. A landmark example is the
synthesis of phase-pure ZSM-20 in 1987. Moreover, he introduced the
spaciousness index to characterize the effective pore width of
bifunctional zeolites via a catalytic test reaction. Stefan published
more than 150 papers in particular on zeolite-based ship in the bottle
catalysts as well as hydrocarbon isomerization and cracking. He
established ethylbenzene disproportionation as a standard reaction for
the characterization of acid zeolites. Moreover,
Stefan was closely connected with scientific organizations such as
DECHEMA, the German Zeolite Association and the German Catalysis
Society. He served on the board of the International Zeolite
Association (IZA) und was chair of its catalysis commission. He
organized and contributed to many national and international
conferences in the fields of zeolites and petrochemistry. Whenever
we met him, we could feel his passion for zeolites and catalysis. His
large profound knowledge and friendly encouragement made him a
well-respected advisor for students, co-workers, colleagues and
industrial partners. We will certainly memorize his ability of
networking and connecting people across regions, cultures, faculties
and generations. His unselfishness, kindness, strong support and
knowledgeable advice will surely be missed by the zeolite community. |
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17-Dec-18 |
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News from the IZA board: a Young
Researcher Award established |
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The
IZA established a Young Researcher Award with the objective to
recognize the young active researcher for outstanding contribution to
the Science and Technology of zeolites and related nanoporous
materials.
The award, a
plaque, will be given to an individual not a group, during the banquet
of the International Zeolite Conference. The sponsorship, in the amount
of $ 10000, is assumed by ExxonMobil and presented at each IZC
conference. A representative of ExxonMobil will personally hand over
the award and congratulate the winner.
The first award Young Researcher Award will be given during the 19th IZC in Perth, Australia.
More information can be found in the IZA protocole for the Young Researcher Award.
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22-Nov-18 |
| Nominations
for the 2019 Donald W. Breck Award invited |
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The
Breck Award nomination committee invites nominations for the 2019
Donald W. Breck Award. This award is for the most significant
contribution to Molecular Sieve Science and Technology made between
January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2018 and the winner will be announced
on July 11, 2019 at the 19th IZC in Perth, Australia.
The award may be given to an individual or to a group.
The
nomination should be accompanied by a list of references and a 2 page
summary outlining in detail the novel findings and their scientific
merit. It must be endorsed by five established zeolite scientists.
Nominations should be sent by March 1, 2019 to the Chair of the Breck Award Committee: Dr. Stacey Zones Chevron Energy Technology Company E-mail: SIZO@chevron.com |
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1-Nov-18 |
| News from the MOF commission |
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We
are soliciting nominations for at least four new positions on the
International Zeolite Association Commission on Metal-Organic
Frameworks (http://www.iza-online.org/MOF/).
A vote will be held amongst delegates at the MOF2018 conference, and
the successful candidates announced at this meeting. If you are
interested in this role, or know a colleague who may be interested,
please email the Commission chair Russell Morris
(rem1@st-andrews.ac.uk). Russell may also be contacted for further
information about the process or the role.
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6-Oct-18 |
| Proposals for the organization of the 21st
International Zeolite Conference |
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The
IZA Executive Council is soliciting proposals for organizing the 21st
IZC to be held in 2025. A proposal should contain sufficient detail,
including the specific proposed conference location, to permit a
reasonable evaluation of its merits, and must contain the name of a
person who agrees to become the Conference Organizer, if the IZA
council would select the proposal. The time schedule for this process
is shown schematically below.
Selection of the venue for the 21st IZC:
A
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B
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C
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19th IZC
July 7-12
2019
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6 months
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2
months
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2
months
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2 months
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Letter of
Interest
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Applicants
fill in questionnaire
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Council
preselects best bids
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Applicants
prepare presentation
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A: Those who plan to submit a bid for the 21st IZC should send a letter
of intent to the IZA President (valentin.valtchev@ensicaen.fr) or the
IZA Secretary (lolly@iqm.unicamp.br) at least six months before the
19th IZC. It should contain the name of the Chairman of the Organizing
Committee, the Members of the Organizing Committee and the envisaged
venue and date for the 21st IZC. The Organizing Committee
is expected to include well-established academics in the field of
zeolite-type materials. Upon receipt of the letter of intent, the
Secretary shall send the detailed questionnaire "Proposal for the
Organization of the 21st IZC to be held in 2025” to the applicant.
B: This questionnaire, properly filled in and signed, must be received
by the President and Secretary at least four months before the 19th
IZC. All bids received by this date are distributed to the IZA Council
members.
C: The Council will finalize the pre-selection two months before the
19th IZC. The IZA President will notify all those who submitted bid(s)
of the outcome of the pre-selection and the date for the presentation
to the IZA Council. This gives the successful applicants two months to
prepare their presentations for the Business Meeting at the 19th IZC.
At the IZA Council meeting, after the presentations of the pre-selected
proposals, the IZA Council will vote for the selection of the final
winner. The winner will be announced at the closing Business Meeting at
the 19th IZC.
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13-Apr-18 |
| Garcia
Martinez receives the Kathyrin Hach Award (ACS entrepreneurship award)
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The
2018 entrepreneurship ward of the American Chemical Society was
attributed to Prof. Javier Garcia-Martinez (Rive Technology) for the
commercialization of mesoporous zeolites.
Congratulations from the IZA to our esteemed colleague! |
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9-Apr-18 |
| Jiři Čejka receives the Werner von
Siemens Award |
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Prof.
Jiři Čejka and his group received the prestigious Werner von Siemens
Award (Czech Republic) for their work on the ADOR chemistry.
Congratulations from the IZA to Jiři Čejka and his group!
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23-Dec-17 |
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News from the MOF Commission |
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The MOF commission of the IZA would like to solicit bids to
host the 7th International MOF meeting, which is scheduled to take place in
2020. The deadline for bids will be October 1st, 2018 and the decision will be
made during the 6th International MOF meeting to be held in December 2018 in
Auckland, New Zealand. Further information on what is required for a bid can be
found by clicking here. The required documentation should be e-mailed to
Russell Morris (rem1@st-andrews.ac.uk) by the above date. |
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17-Nov-17 |
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News from the Natural Zeolites Commission |
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A comprehensive report on the sedimentary zeolites of Cuba is posted on the Natural Zeolite Commission website.
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