Technikatörténeti szemle 15. (1985)

TANULMÁNYOK - Móra László: Zemplén Géza ipari kutatásai

IRODALOM ÉS FORRÁSOK: 1. Zemplén Géza: A szerves chemia múltja, jelene és jövő feladatai hazánkban. = A természet-, orvos-, műszaki- és mezőgazdaságtudományi országos kongresszus munkálatai. Szerk. Gorka Sándor. Bp. Egyetemi ny. 1926. 524—528. p. 2. A Chinoin gyár története. Irta Mráz Ferenc, Hever Dezső stb. Bp. (Alföldi ny. Debrecen), 1964. 156 p. 3. Országos Levéltár Z 548/1. cs. Chinoin gyári iratok. Dr. Zemplén Géza szakértői szerződései (1915—1926). 4. Issekutz Bélának 1970. aug. 10-én írt levele a szerzőhöz. 5. A magyar természettudományi kutatás előmozdítására alakult Széchenyi Tudományos Társaság 1929. és 1930. évi működéséről szóló jelentés. Bp. SZTT, 1931. 16 p. 6. Móra László: Zemplén Géza, a hazai tudományos szerves kémia megalapítója (1883—1956). Bp. (Alföldi ny. Debrecen), 1971. 222 p. (Műszaki tudománytörténeti kiadványok. 23. sz.) 7. Vekerdi László: „Csakis összetételükben és szellemükben fiatal struktúrák alkalmazkodhatnak sikeresen". Beszélgetés Bognár Rezső akadémikussal a Zemplénműhelyről. = Magyar Tudomány. 28. 1983. 673—679. 8. Bognár Rezsőnek közleményünkhöz fűzött írásbeli kiegészítései alapján. LÁSZLÓ MÓRA: INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH OF GÉZA ZEMPLÉN Hungarian scientific and social societies celebrated the hundreth anniversary of the birth of Géza ZEMPLÉN the internationall famous organic chemist in 1983. However, the many appraisements heard on this occasion referred but shortly to his industrial connections though theory and practice were inseperable in the activity of the great scientist. During Zemplén's study-tour in Berlin (1907—1910) at the institute of Nobel prize winner Emil FISCHER he observed directly while studying carbonhydrates, proteins and enzyms that the solution of scientific activities and industrial problems brought about a very close bond between universities and industrial enterprises. Thus when he was appointed professor of organic chemistry at the József University of Technology of Budapest in 1913, Zemplén tried to contact and got into touch with the then developing Hungarian pharmaceutical industry. Of special importance was his fruitful cooperation with the then most important enterprise, the Chinoin Pharmaceutical Factory in Újpest, where he became consultant beginning from 1915. He participated in solving a number of problems, e.g. preparation of synthetic guaiacol sleeping draughts and sedatives on an industrial basis. As during World War I the factory also produced poison gases (bromine cyanide, bromine acetone) he had to take part also in this activity and participated in destroying the stock after the war. In the twenties he represented the factory in law cases with foreign enterprises. However professor Zemplén was active in other factories, too, e. g. the enterprise FLORA. For the Budapest enterprise of Bayer and Co. he elaborated a method to transform tyrozine into a blood-pressure regulating basic called „Tyramine". Bayer Works in Elberfeld applied for a German patent concerning his method, in 1924. Also other methods of professor Zemplén were protected by not only Hungarian but also foreign patent law, thus, for instance the method elaborated for producing alkaline and earth alkaline salts from tartaric acid, was patented in the United States in 1927. During World War I and the years after, Géza Zemplén not only aided the development of the mainly empirical foundation Hungarian organic pharmaceutical industry through his scientific experiments, new methods but also by educating highly qualified experts and thus his activity played a major role in the development of the Hungarian industry.