Obituary: Attila E. Pavlath

Attila E. Pavlath, a past president of the American Chemical Society known for his public service and work in agricultural and food chemistry, died Nov. 22, 2024, in Atlanta. He was 94 years old.

“His accomplishments in chemistry are remarkable in every area,” says Ann Nalley, a professor of chemistry and Clarence Page Endowed Chair at Cameron University.

Pavlath’s chemistry career spans 60 years, in which he published extensively, with 130-plus publications, and he held 25 patents. Pavlath was awarded the Kenneth A. Spencer Award for Outstanding Achievement in Agricultural and Food Chemistry from the ACS Kansas City Section in 2013.

“For the most recent two [patents], he received the Secretary of Agriculture US Department of Agriculture's technology transfer award for carrying out his research from the laboratory to commercial applications,” Nalley says. “He has written books—two of them are ACS monographs. And while government laboratories are rarely involved in teaching, numerous French students sought him out from 1985 until his election as ACS president in 1999 to finish their prediploma studies under his leadership.”

Pavlath was a senior emeritus scientist at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). He received his diploma in chemical engineering at the Technical University of Budapest, where he later became an assistant professor, and his PhD in chemistry from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Pavlath spent time in academic, industry, and government settings. He left Budapest, Hungary, for a research fellow position at McGill University in 1956 and shortly after joined Stauffer Chemical. Almost 10 years later, he joined the USDA at their Western Regional Research Center, where he headed several research projects.

In addition to his work in agricultural and food chemistry, Pavlath was well known for his efforts to improve the public image of chemistry and his volunteerism in ACS.

Pavlath created a “Technology Milestones in Chemistry” exhibit for ACS’s 125th anniversary. It highlighted contributions of chemistry in transportation, energy, communications, medicine, agriculture, and food in a way that was accessible to the general public. He received the ACS Board of Directors’ Charles Lathrop Parsons Award for work like this. Pavlath was also an ACS fellow, which is a program created by the board “to recognize members of the ACS for outstanding achievements in and contributions to science, the profession, and the Society.”

Many of those who worked with Pavlath during his time at ACS describe him as a real “member’s president,” noting he was most passionate about making sure everyone was able to be involved in ACS. “When he was president, he commissioned a study on the needs of ACS members, which he kindly asked me to chair,” says Judith Giordan, managing director of ecosVC and a past ACS president. “He also loved art and music, so he commissioned a play about chemistry when he was president. Many thought it foolish, but as we look at the STEAM [science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics] movement, we see he was ahead of his time.”

“In my mind, Attila had two great passions as an ACS leader: making ACS more international in its focus and mission and supporting ACS members,” says Flint Lewis, retired secretary and general counsel at ACS. “He made significant contributions on both fronts—notably, guiding through a critical bylaw change giving international ACS members stronger governance representation shortly before his passing.”

Something that stuck with Giordan in her time knowing Pavlath was that he never missed an ACS Council meeting. It was at his final in-person meeting that the Petition for Global Representation on Council passed. “This was an idea and action he had wanted and fought for for years. It was a great joy to have that pass when he was here to see it and know the value he had brought.”

“He believed that everyone should be allowed to be involved and encouraged members to run by petition for the ACS Board,” Nalley recalls. “I was the first woman to run for the board by petition, and when I ran, Attila came to my home in Oklahoma and helped me stuff 5,000 envelopes with campaign materials. He spoke with the ACS liaison and enabled me to receive my first committee appointment—to LSAC [the Committee on Local Section Activities] in 1981. I was the only woman on the committee.”

Pavlath believed that great things could be accomplished for chemists and ACS by working together. He is remembered for being dedicated to not only the practice of chemistry but the practitioners of chemistry as well.

Pavlath is survived by children Grace Pavlath and George Pavlath, three granddaughters, and one great-granddaughter.