Adinath Lahiri (1916–1975) was an Indian

geochemist Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the e ...

and fuel technologist, known for his efforts in developing the ''Central Fuel Research Institute'',

Dhanbad Dhanbad is the second-most populated city in the Indian state of Jharkhand after Jamshedpur and a major financial hub of Jharkhand. In terms of economy, Dhanbad has the largest economy in the state of Jharkhand and it is often referred to as th ...

(CFRI) into one of the premier research institutions in India. He was the director of the ''National Coal Development Corporation'' (NCDC) and contributed towards the establishment of the ''Central Mining Research Station'', which was later merged with CFRI to form the present day Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research). The

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour, the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

, in 1960, and followed it up with the third highest civilian honour, the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

, in 1969, for his contributions to science and technology.

Biography

Adinath Lahiri was born on 24 August 1916. After completing his master's degree in geology and geochemistry from the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta, informally known as Calcutta University (), is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Kolkata, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal, India. It has 151 affiliated undergraduate c ...

, he obtained ''Sir Palit Foreign Fellowship'' of the university and did his doctoral studies at the

Imperial College Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a cultural district in South Kensington that included museums ...

of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

to secure a PhD, winning the Judd Memorial Prize for the best thesis in geochemistry. He started his career as a research associate at the Department of Chemical Technology at Imperial College in 1942, but joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

to serve as a Scientific Officer and, later, as the Head of the Fuel and Oil Research Section at the

Royal Aircraft Establishment The Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) was a British research establishment, known by several different names during its history, that eventually came under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), bef ...

Farnborough airfield Farnborough Airport (previously called: TAG Farnborough Airport, RAE Farnborough, ICAO Code EGLF) is an operational business/executive general aviation airport in Farnborough, Rushmoor, Hampshire, England. The airport covers about 8% of Ru ...

. After the war was over, he returned to India, in 1945, to take up the position as the Assistant Director (Planning) at the

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: ''vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada'') is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industrial and economic growth. Headquarter ...

(CSIR) when he contributed to the planning and establishment of the Central Fuel Research Institute (CFRI), Dhanbad. He joined the institute after its inception as the Deputy Director and when the founder director, J. W. Whitteker left, he took over as the director in 1953 to stay with the institute till his superannuation in 1974. In between, he also underwent training under a Summer Fellowship at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science The MIT School of Science is one of the five schools of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The School, which consolidated under the leadership of Karl Taylor Com ...

in 1950. After his retirement from CFRI, he joined the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

as an advisor and served in Chile when he died on 26 August 1975, two days after his 60th birthday, succumbing to a cardiac arrest. Lahiri's research interests covered the fields of

petrography Petrography is a branch of petrology that focuses on detailed descriptions of rocks. Someone who studies petrography is called a petrographer. The mineral content and the textural relationships within the rock are described in detail. The clas ...

, oxidation mechanisms, solvent extraction, surface chemistry of coal, catalysts and adsorbents and he was credited with several innovations in fuel technology, which earned him over 90 patents. His contributions have been reported in the development of

beehive coke oven A beehive oven is a type of oven in use since the Middle Ages in Europe. It gets its name from its domed shape, which resembles that of a skep, an old-fashioned type of Beehive#Skeps, beehive. Its apex of popularity occurred in the Americas an ...

, process technologies for the isolation and recovery of useful chemicals from the byproducts of coal, process technologies for the production of resins and other compounds, and

active carbon Activated carbon, also called activated charcoal, is a form of carbon commonly used to filter contaminants from water and air, among many other uses. It is processed (activated) to have small, low-volume pores that greatly increase the surface ar ...

and

ion exchange Ion exchange is a reversible interchange of one species of ion present in an insoluble solid with another of like charge present in a solution surrounding the solid. Ion exchange is used in softening or demineralizing of water, purification of ch ...

rs for determination of water-based coal. He published his research and professional experiences by way of over 500 articles, ''Reaction of coals under plasma conditions: direct production of acetylene from coal'', ''National Coal Development Corporation A New Approach'', and ''Trekking on the Southern Bhutan Frontier'' counting among them. During his tenure with CFRI, he proposed the setting up of ''Central Mining Research Station'' for overcoming the coal mining issues faced in India and served as the director of the National Coal Development Corporation. In 1954, he proposed energy studies, a pioneering effort in India, and served the Indian Energy Survey Committee of 1965 and the National Fuel Policy Committee of 1974, as a member. Lahiri was an elected Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Institute of Fuels (London) and the

Indian National Science Academy The Indian National Science Academy (INSA) is a national academy in New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three b ...

(INSA), and served as a member of the INSA council from 1968 to 1970. In 1960, the

awarded him the

, the country's fourth-highest civilian honour. Nine years later, in 1969, he was included in the Republic Day Honours list again, this time for India's third-highest civilian honour, the

. ''Central Fuel Research Institute'', the institute he helped found, have since renamed their conferencing facility as ''Adinath Lahiri Hall'', in his honour.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lahiri, Adinath Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in science & engineering 1916 births 1975 deaths Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy Indian geochemists Scientists from West Bengal Recipients of the Padma Shri in trade and industry 20th-century Indian inventors Indian officials of the United Nations University of Calcutta alumni Alumni of Imperial College London Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science alumni Council of Scientific and Industrial Research 20th-century Indian chemists

Biography

See also

References

External links