W. Albert Noyes Jr.

William Albert Noyes Jr. (April 18, 1898 – November 25, 1980), commonly known as W. Albert Noyes Jr., was an American chemist known for his contributions to photochemistry. During World War II, he was a leader in U.S. defense research efforts. He chaired the chemistry department at the University of Rochester, edited several important chemistry journals, and throughout his career was a prominent voice for international scientific cooperation. He was the son of the renowned chemist William A. Noyes; they became the first father-son pair to win the Priestley Medal, the highest honor given by the American Chemical Society.

Early life

William Albert Noyes Jr. was born on April 18, 1898, in Terre Haute, Indiana, the son of American chemist William A. Noyes, who was then a professor at the

Noyes began his scientific and academic career at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was a teaching fellow under Joel Henry Hildebrand. In 1921, he joined the faculty of the University of Chicago, where he remained for seven years.^[4] In 1925, he participated in a conference of the Faraday Society in Oxford, which has been called "the most important photochemistry meeting ever held." There, he delivered a paper called "The Formation of Polar Compounds by Photochemical Reactions."^[5] In 1929, he joined the faculty of Brown University, where he continued to build a reputation as a leading expert in photochemistry. During this period, he collaborated with Philip Leighton of Stanford University to write an influential textbook, The Photochemistry of Gases, which appeared in 1941.^[6]

In 1938, Noyes accepted an offer to join the University of Rochester as chair of the chemistry department. By 1940, he became involved in efforts to help the United States prepare for its entry into World War II by meeting regularly with the

In 1963, Noyes joined the faculty of the University of Texas at Austin, where he continued to teach and conduct research until his retirement in 1973.^[15]

Family

Noyes's father was the American chemist

• American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Elected Member (1931)^[16]
• National Academy of Sciences, Elected Member (1943)^[17]
• Honorary doctorate, Grinnell College (1946)^[18]
• American Philosophical Society, Elected Member (1947)^[19]
• Honorary doctorate, University of Rhode Island (1953)^[20]
• Priestley Medal (1954)^[21]
• Willard Gibbs Award (1956)^[22]
• Honorary doctorate, Indiana University (1958)^[23]
• Honorary doctorate, University of Illinois (1964)^[24]
• Honorary doctorate, University of Rochester (1965)^[25]
• Charles Lathrop Parsons Award (1970)^[26]
• French Academy of Sciences, Elected Member (1975)^[27]

By winning the Priestley Medal, Noyes and his father became the first father-son pair to win that prestigious award. His father won it in 1935.^[28]

In addition, the University of Rochester has a distinguished lecture series named in Noyes' honor.^[29]

References

External links

• National Academy of Sciences, Memoirs, William Albert Noyes Jr., 1898–1980, A Biographical Memoir by John M. White and Pamela J. Cook, 1994

This biographical article about an American chemist is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

• v
• t
• e