Alex Kotch Jr.

Alex Kotch Jr., 87, a chemist who worked in industry, academia, and government, died at home in Golden, Colo., on March 8.

Born in Edwardsville, Pa., Kotch earned a B.S. in chemistry from Pennsylvania State University in 1946 and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, in 1950. He then accepted a Fulbright fellowship in the Netherlands.

During his career, Kotch was a research chemist for DuPont, program director for organic chemistry at the National Science Foundation, a professor and associate chair of the chemistry department at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and assistant director for information and education at the Solar Energy Research Institute (now the National Renewable Energy Laboratory). He served as a professor of chemistry and director of research and program development at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, before retiring in 1991.

Kotch was an emeritus member of ACS, having joined in 1946.

Known for his encyclopedic knowledge of opera and classical music, Kotch was an active supporter of the Colorado Symphony, Opera Colorado, Denver Lyric Opera Guild, and the Metropolitan Opera. He was also active in the Parkinson Association of the Rockies.

He is survived by his wife, Anne, whom he married in 1952; daughters, Marianne and Jennifer; sons, Axel and Robert; and three grandchildren.