Daniel B. Murphy

Daniel B. Murphy, 82, a Yonkers, N.Y., professor emeritus of chemistry at Lehman College, in Bronx, N.Y., died on Dec. 15, 2010, after a brief illness.

Born in Richmond Hill, Queens, N.Y., Murphy received a B.S. in 1947 and an M.S. in 1949, both in chemistry, from Fordham University. After teaching at the University of Scranton, in Pennsylvania, for two years, he worked as a research chemist at Picatinny Arsenal in Dover, N.J., from 1951 until 1954. He then joined Pennsylvania State University as a research assistant and graduate student in fuel science, earning a Ph.D. there in 1958.

Beginning what would become a 34-year association with colleges that are part of the City University of New York system, Murphy joined Hunter College as a chemistry instructor. He advanced to associate professor before transferring to Lehman in 1967.

His areas of research included propellants and explosives, high-nitrogen heterocyclics, carbon and graphite, and the kinetics of carbon deposition. He retired as a full professor in 1991 but continued to teach part-time and to maintain a research laboratory for several years. Murphy served as a visiting professor at the University of Derby, in England, in 1993 and 1994.

He coauthored the textbook “Foundations of College Chemistry” and wrote many journal articles. He was a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Sigma Xi, and Phi Lambda Upsilon, as well as an emeritus member of ACS, which he joined in 1948.

He enjoyed spending time at the family’s summer home near Sag Harbor, N.Y., and sailing on nearby Noyac Bay.

Murphy is survived by his wife, Lorraine, whom he married in 1951; sons, Daniel C., Brien J., and Kevin A.; daughter, Kathleen M. Civetta; nine grandchildren; and a great-grandson.