JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL ATOMIC SPECTROMETRY, JUNE 1986, VOL. 1 167 Invited Speakers at 3rd BNASS SAC 86/3rd BNASS: July 20-26, 1986, Bristol, UK The purpose of this article is to introduce our readers to some of the scientific personalities who will give invited lectures within the 3rd BNASS section of the above meeting. The choice of invited speakers to a conference or symposium must be made on the basis of the excel- lence of their contribution to their parti- cular field of endeavour over a period of time, which must include the present. As a consequence these lecturers have the responsibility to set the scene of the constituent themes of the symposium, together with the initiation of discussion on the future direction of research. In the opinion of the 3rd BNASS Scientific Committee our choice of lecturers reflects these criteria.I have purposely written the short biographies in an informal style in the hope that this will encourage conference delegates (especially younger workers) to get to know these scientists. They are all very approachable people, keen to discuss their work and yours. The future of analytical atomic spectrometry will only be assured if there is a continuing exchange of ideas between workers at all levels of experience and position. Whilst Professor Boris V. L’vov of the Polytechnical Institute, Leningrad, USSR, is not exclusively a 3rd BNASS lecturer, but rather a SAC 8613rd BNASS Plenary Lecturer, I have included him in this article. He began his career in analy- tical spectroscopy in 1955 after graduating from the chemical faculty of the Lenin- grad State University.At this time he went to work in the Isotope Laboratory of the State Institute of Applied Chemistry, also in Leningrad. In this laboratory he was mainly responsible for the develop- ment of spectrochemical methods of analysis of compounds labelled with radio- active isotopes measuring differences in the isotopic structure of atom lines. In the winter of 1956 Boris L’vov chanced to read the now classic paper by Alan Walsh on Flame Atomic Absorption Spectro- scopy. He was so impressed by this work that he spent the following summer vaca- tion checking the validity of Walsh’s results. Many years later he remarked about this period of time “the dice were thrown and I became enchanted for life by this elegant method.” His initial studies with an unused tubular graphite furnace, originally designed for pre-concentration in arc - spark spectrography, were first reported to the scientific community in November 1958.This paper heralded the beginning of graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry, which has proved to be a versatile and invaluable technique for the determination of trace concentrations of elements in a myriad of sample matrices. In the 30 years since his pioneering work Boris L’vov’s research activities in the field of atomic absorption show no signs of abating. This is eviden- ced by his list of published works, num- bering over 140. He has an excellent understanding of the physico-chemical principles that underly the processes in furnace and flame atom cells, plus the ability to explain his experimental obser- vations with confidence and simplicity.These qualities have made him an out- standing scientist and respected teacher who is always receptive to the thoughts of others. His presence at SAC 86/3rd BNASS represents an excellent oppor- tunity for conference delegates to meet with one of the premier workers in atomic spectrometry. On the occasions of the previous two BNASS meetings the Association of British Spectroscoposists (ABS) have generously provided funds for an invited lectureship. This year the ABS Lecturer will be Professor Dr. Leo de Galan from Professor Leo de Galan168 JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL ATOMIC SPECTROMETRY, JUNE 1986, VOL. 1 the Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands.Leo de Galan studied physical and analytical chemistry at the University of Amsterdam where he received his PhD in 1965. After a post- doctoral year at the University of Florida he returned to the Delft University of Technology, where he was appointed Professor of Analytical Chemistry in 1972. His current research interests are many and varied, and include atomic spectrometry, liquid chromatography, computerised optimisation and instrumental development. He has publi- shed over 100 research papers, which have earned him an international reputa- tion as a distinguished analytical scientist. Leo de Galan is no stranger to the UK, having attended a number of conferences in recent years including 1st BNASS, Sheffield, 1982 and SAC 83, Edinburgh, 1983. As well as his considerable research and teaching commitments he was Chair- man of the organising committee for CSI XXIII, Amsterdam, 1983.The ABS lecture will be chaired by Dr. W. John Price and will mark the official opening of 3rd BNASS. In his lecture Professor de Galan will outline a physi- cist’s appraisal of recent developments in atomic spectrometry and attempt to ascertain what new inventions are required. The 3rd BNASS section of the meeting will be composed of two parallel streams on both Thursday 24th and Friday 25th July, in the mornings and afternoons of these two days. Each of the eight sessions will contain an invited lecture from one of the following: Dr. Malcolm S. Cresser, Dr. Alan R. Date, Doz. Dr. Sc. Klaus Dittrich, Dr. David A. Hickman, Dr. Graham J. Oliver, Dr.Richard D. Snook, Dr. Vaclav Sychra and Dr. Anne P. Thorne. Dr. Malcolm S. Cresser began his chemistry at Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, as an under- graduate in 1964. He stayed at Imperial College and pursued research towards a PhD on the analytical chemistry of sele- nium and atomic fluorescence spectro- scopy under the supervision of Professor T. S. West. After graduating with a PhD in 1970 Malcolm Cresser joined the Department of Soil Science at Aberdeen University, initially to design courses on instrumental methods of chemical analy- sis for research students. Inevitably this led to his continuing research into spec- troscopic methods of analysis both atomic and molecular, together with research into the much publicised “acid rain” and the relevant soil - water interactions. Much of his research has been directed towards a systematic understanding of the processes involved in the production of aerosols for sample introduction in atomic spectrometry.His significant scientific contributions were recognised in 1984 by the awarding of the eleventh SAC Silver Medal. Malcolm Cresser has over 90 publications covering his wide range of interests, and he has given many invited papers at conferences in the USA, Europe and the UK. He is well known to readers of ARAAS as a member of the Editorial Board since 1974 and General Editor 1979-1983 and 1984-1985, and he continues to play a major role on the JAAS Editorial Board. In his lecture Dr. Cresser will critically assess the perfor- mance and the operating characteristics of pneumatic nebulisers from both the theoretical and the practical viewpoint.Dr. Alan Date Dr. Alan R. Date graduated from Imperial College with a PhD in Pure Geochemistry in 1969 when he joined the then Institute of Geological Sciences (IGS), now the British Geological Survey (BGS). His primary responsibility at this time was the development of method- ology for the simultaneous determination of trace elements in geological samples using d.c. arc atomic emission spectro- graphy. Alan Date was also responsible for the development of a new method for the preparation of solid standard silicate reference materials. In 1977 he was appointed Principal Scientific Officer and Head of the Emission Spectroscopy Sec- tion, which carried out analyses with both d.c.arc and ICP sources. In 1979 he became involved in research and develop- ment on inductively coupled plasma source mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) in conjunction with Alan Gray. This part- nership has resulted in one of the most exciting developments in elemental analy- sis in the past decade. The success of the technique can be measured by the increas- ing number of research papers appearing in the literature, many by Date and Gray, and also by the availability of commercial instrumentation. Alan Date will present an invited lecture entitled “ICP-MS: the best thing in analytical chemistry since chopped light ,” which will certainly ini- tiate some response from the audience. Doz. Dr. Sc. Klaus Dittrich is Head of Inorganic Analysis in the Division of Analytical Chemistry at the Karl Marx University in Leipzig, GDR. His associ- ation with the Karl Marx University began in 1956 as an undergraduate. After graduating in 1961 he undertook research into inorganic complex formation to gain his doctorate in 1965.He then completed 3 years’ postdoctoral study in Leipzig and the Soviet Union. At this time Klaus Dittrich began to study in the field of atomic spectroscopy, investigating gas phase interferences in electrothermal atomisation, diagnostics of atomic emis- sion from arc-discharge plasmas and the use of lasers as sources for AAS and AFS and as a means of generating a vapour for sample introduction. Upon completion of this considerable body of work in 3977 he defended a second thesis and was awar- ded the degree Doctor of Science.As a result of the detailed study made by Klaus Dittrich and his co-workers concerning molecular interferences on electrother- mal atomisation, they have described the theory and analytical applications of molecular absorption using electrother- mal vaporisation. Klaus Dittrich concen- trates his research on the use of lasers and other non-thermal excitation systems for atomic and molecular spectroscopy. In his lecture he will describe these systems and discuss their application to trace analysis compared with more conventional tech- niques, such a graphite furnace AAS. Dr. Graham Oliver Dr. Graham J. Oliver graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Chemistry. He then moved to the British Ceramic Research Association Limited (BCRA Ltd.) in order to undertake PhD research into the analysis of solids by direct reading optical emission spec- trometry.After gaining considerable experience in the analysis of a large range of ceramic and geological materials using techniques including spectrography ,JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL ATOMIC SPECTROMETRY, JUNE 1986, VOL. 1 169 AAS, ICP-AES and XRF he became Deputy Manager of the Analytical and Testing Services facility at BCRA Ltd. Graham Oliver is particularly concerned with the development of XRF as a stan- dard method of analysis for the ceramic and allied industries. In his lecture he will outline these developments, discussing methodology, instrumental parameters, standards production, competitive tech- niques and future trends. Dr. Richard D.Snook gained his first chemistry qualification at the Medway and Maidstone College of Technology, Kent, in 1974, by successfully completing the GRIC Parts I and 11. That same year he entered Imperial College, London, firstly to study for the MSc in Analytical Chemistry and subsequently, in 1975, to carry out research into the applications of electrothermal atomisers in analytical atomic spectroscopy under the super- vision of Dr. G. F. Kirkbright. After being awarded a PhD in 1977 Dick Snook continued his research at Imperial Col- lege until 1985 on a variety of topics, which included discrete sample intro- duction into flames and various plasma sources, plasma diagnostics, electro- chemical pre-concentration, ICP torch configurations and chemical sensors. In the past decade he has published over 30 research papers on these subjects.He is at present the manager of Research and Development at Chelsea Instruments Ltd., London, which has an active research group of 12 personnel, together with a manufacturing facility producing a wide range of analytical instrumentation. One of his current research interests is the use of low noise ICP sources with a Chelsea Instruments Fourier Transform Spectrometer for high resolution UV spectroscopy. This work is being carried out in conjunction with Dr. Anne P. Thorne at Imperial College. Dick Snook is well known in the field of analytical science and it will give me a great deal of pleasure to act as Chairman for his invited lecture on torch configurations and designs for ICP-AES. Dr. Vaclav Sychra has been Head of the Laboratory of Atomic Spectroscopy at the Prague Institute of Chemical Tech- nology since 1972. He received his Mas- ters degree from Charles University, Prague, in 1961 and his PhD from his present institute in 1971. Vaclav Sychra has been an active member of the Cze- choslovak Spectroscopic Society since 1965 and Chairman of the atomic section since 1982. His research interests include AAS (particularly with electrothermal atomisation from metal surfaces), AFS and ICP-AES and the application of these techniques to the analysis of petroleum and petroleum products, and he has published over 50 research papers in these fields. He is a member of the Editorial Boards of Progress in Analytical Atomic Spectroscopy and the Canadian Journal of Spectroscopy. In 1984 he received the Dr. Vaclav Sychra Joannes Marcus Marci of Kronland plaque from the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences for his outstanding work in the field of analytical atomic spectroscopy and for his contribution to the develop- ment of spectroscopy in Czechoslovakia. His lecture will discuss the recent advances made with metal based elec- trothermal atomisers, which his group has developed from a research idea to a commercially available system. Neil W. Barnett Chairman, 3rd BNASS Scientific Committee