Obituaries

Conard K. Donnell, 88, a chemist formerly with Sun Oil Co., died on March 14.

He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Temple University. During the 1940s, Donnell worked on the development of high-octane aviation fuel. He subsequently designed in-line process analyzers for refinery installations. After retirement, he worked as a technical services engineer for Fluid Data in Merrimack, N.Y.

In addition to Donnell's scientific and environmental interests, he served as a volunteer guide with the Docent Council at the Philadelphia Zoo for more than 20 years and was one of the founding members of the Zoofari Travel Club.

An emeritus member, Donnell joined ACS in 1941. He is survived by his wife, Anne, who is also an emeritus member.

George T. Furukawa, 84, a physical chemist devoted to perfecting thermometers, died on March 31.

After receiving his Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Wisconsin in 1948, Furukawa spent 57 years at what is now the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST).

He measured the thermal properties of numerous scientifically important chemical compounds and developed new measurement and analysis methods until 1970.

During the second half of his career, Furukawa worked on the accurate calibration and characterization of precision thermometers. Many of the technical methods that Furukawa developed for thermometry have been adopted by labs worldwide.

Furukawa received the Department of Commerce Silver Medal in 1973 and was selected for the NIST Portrait Gallery of Distinguished Scientists, Engineers & Administrators in 2003.

Furukawa actively participated in developing written standards for the American Society of Testing & Materials, which guides the industrial practice of thermometry.

Furukawa was preceded in death by his wife, Sally, and is survived by two children and three grandchildren. An emeritus member, he joined ACS in 1949.

Lester Kieft, 93, professor emeritus at Bucknell University, died on April 14.

Born in Grand Haven, Mich., he attended Hope College and received an A.B. degree in chemistry in 1934. He received his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from Pennsylvania State University in 1939.

Kieft served as an assistant professor of chemistry at Penn State, Hazleton, until he accepted a position at Bucknell in 1942. Kieft taught at Bucknell for 39 years, serving as chair of the chemistry department for 25 years and acting provost for one year.

He was a past chairman of the ACS Central Pennsylvania Section. In 1958, he cofounded the Susquehanna Valley Section of ACS and served as its first chair. In 1986, the section honored him with its Outstanding Service Award.

Kieft chaired the 1974 Priestley Bicentennial Symposium at the Joseph Priestley House in Northumberland, Pa. Two years later, in conjunction with ACS's 100th anniversary, Kieft cochaired the dedication of Priestley's restored laboratory. Kieft was also an elected member of the ACS Council for 21 years.

Kieft served as president of the Buffalo Valley Chapter of AARP and was very active with Lions International. He chaired the committee that founded the Pennsylvania Lions Sight Conservation & Eye Research Foundation in 1958, served as chairman of the foundation for more than 25 years, and received numerous awards for his efforts on behalf of eye research.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Norma, and is survived by three sons and three grandchildren. An emeritus member, he joined ACS in 1936.

Marc W. Perkovic, associate professor of chemistry at Western Michigan University, died on April 1 after heart surgery. He was 45.

Perkovic taught advanced inorganic, instrumental analysis, and general chemistry and developed software to facilitate online office hours. He also mentored and published research with students at several academic levels and was especially active in the ACS Project SEED program for disadvantaged high school students. His general research focused on the allosteric tuning of transition-metal photophysics, but recently he had taken an active interest in the development of alternative fuels, such as biodiesel.

Before he joined the faculty at Western Michigan University in 1996, Perkovic was a research associate at Notre Dame Radiation Research Laboratory; a Camille & Henry Dreyfus Fellow at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte; a senior scientist at Olis Instrument Systems; and director of research instrumentation at Wichita State University, in Kansas.

Born in Cleveland, Perkovic earned a B.S. from Cleveland State University in 1985 and a Ph.D. in inorganic chemistry from Wayne State University in 1990.

An avid sailor, Perkovic completed many races on Lake Michigan. He also was an experienced woodworker and craftsman.

Perkovic is survived by his wife, Barbara, and two stepchildren. He joined ACS in 1985.

Martin I. Rubin, 90, a Georgetown University emeritus biochemistry professor who helped promote the field of clinical chemistry around the world, died on March 24 of congestive heart failure.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Rubin graduated from the City College of New York in 1936 and finished his doctorate in chemistry at Columbia University in 1942.

He began his career as a research chemist working on the development of Desenex and other fungicides at Wallace & Tiernan Products in New Jersey. He worked at Georgetown University from 1948 to 1981 as director of the medical center's clinical chemistry lab and as a biochemistry professor in the medical and dental schools.

Rubin researched chelation therapy and advocated using EDTA to treat lead poisoning. He also supported a study that used EDTA to treat atherosclerosis and plaque in the arteries; approval is still pending.

He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Edith; four children; and eight grandchildren. An emeritus member, he joined ACS in 1939.

Elliot L. Shapiro, 88, a pharmaceutical chemist who discovered the steroid mometasone furoate, died on March 8.

A Boston native, he received his B.S. degree from Boston University in 1940 and his M.S. from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn in 1952, where he also completed other graduate courses.

Shapiro spent his career at Schering-Plough in New Jersey. Of note, he was the sole inventor of mometasone furoate, which is the ingredient in the well-known prescription drugs Elocon (a topical anti-inflammatory agent), Nasonex (for treatment of allergic rhinitis), Asmanex (asthma), and Combosol (psoriasis).

Shapiro is survived by his wife of 56 years, Lillian; three children; and five grandchildren. An emeritus member, he joined ACS in 1947.

Obituaries are written by Rachel Petkewich. Obituary notices may be sent to r_petkewich@acs.org and should include detailed educational and professional history.