Sir Albert Cherbury David Rivett, KCMG (4 December 1885 – 1 April 1961) was an Australian chemist and science administrator.

Background and education

Rivett was born at Port Esperance,

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Australia, a son of the Rev. Albert Rivett (1855–1934), a noted pacifist. He studied at

Wesley College, Melbourne Wesley College is an independent, co-educational, open-entry private school in Melbourne, Australia. Established in 1866, the college is the only school in Victoria to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) from early childhood to Year 12. Th ...

and the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb n ...

, where he was a member of

Queen's College, Melbourne Queen's College is a residential college affiliated with the University of Melbourne providing accommodation to more than 300 students who attend the University of Melbourne, the Victorian College of the Arts, RMIT University and Monash Univers ...

, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in 1906 and a

Doctor of Science Doctor of Science ( la, links=no, Scientiae Doctor), usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D., or D.S., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, "Doctor of Science" is the degree used f ...

degree in 1913. He was a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, situated on Turl Street in central Oxford. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Fleming, t ...

, where he did research under the supervision of Nevil Sidgwick in the laboratories of Magdalen College, Oxford. He was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree with First Class Honours in 1909, and a Bachelor of Science degree with First Class Honours in 1910.

Career

In 1910 Rivett spent six months at the Nobel Institute of Physical Chemistry at Stockholm working with the Director,

Svante Arrhenius Svante August Arrhenius ( , ; 19 February 1859 – 2 October 1927) was a Swedish scientist. Originally a physicist, but often referred to as a chemist, Arrhenius was one of the founders of the science of physical chemistry. He received the N ...

. In 1911 he returned to Australia as Lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Melbourne. On 11 November 1911 he married Stella Deakin, daughter of

Alfred Deakin Alfred Deakin (3 August 1856 – 7 October 1919) was an Australian politician who served as the second Prime Minister of Australia. He was a leader of the movement for Federation, which occurred in 1901. During his three terms as prime minist ...

, a former Prime Minister of Australia. Stella, a research chemist, had first met David when both were students at the University of Melbourne. In 1914 he was organising secretary of the 84th meeting of the

British Association for the Advancement of Science The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Ch ...

, with the committee chaired by David Orme Masson. This was the first time the meeting had been held outside the United Kingdom. Rivett left extensive archives of this meeting. Rivett was away from Australia during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

from 1915 to 1919. In August 1915 he accepted a commission in the Australian Army Medical Corps Reserve, but from 1917 he was involved in the production of pure ammonium nitrate, used for explosives, at the British munitions works at Swindon. The understanding gained there led to the publication in 1924 of ''The Phase Rule and the Study of Heterogeneous Equilibria'', and to an appreciation of the value of fundamental research for industrial applications. He became Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne in 1921 and succeeded Professor David Orme Masson, with whom he had previously worked, as Professor of Chemistry in 1924. From 1923 to 1927, he lived in what is now University House at the University of Melbourne.University House
University of Melbourne. unihouse.org.au He was Deputy chairman and chief executive officer, '

Council for Scientific and Industrial Research The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is South Africa's central and premier scientific research and development organisation. It was established by an act of parliament in 1945 and is situated on its own campus in the cit ...

' (CSIR) from 1927 to 1946 and Chairman of the Council of the renamed

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government agency responsible for scientific research. CSIRO works with leading organisations around the world. From its headquarters in Canberra, CSIRO ...

(CSIRO) from 1946 to 1949. In 1935 he was made a

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in hono ...

(KCMG). He became a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, r ...

of London in 1941 and was a Foundation

fellow of the Australian Academy of Science The Fellowship of the Australian Academy of Science is made up of about 500 Australian scientists. Scientists judged by their peers to have made an exceptional contribution to knowledge in their field may be elected to Fellowship of the Academy ...

in 1954. He served as president of the

Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science The Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science (ANZAAS) is an organisation that was founded in 1888 as the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science to promote science. It was modelled on the British As ...

from 1937 to 1939. He died at Sydney in 1961. The

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

suburb of Rivett is named after him.

Family

In 1911 he married Stella Deakin, second daughter of former Prime Minister of Australia

. Sir David and Lady Rivett had two children: journalist Rohan Deakin Rivett (1917–1977) and academic economist Dr Kenneth Deakin Rivett (1923–2004).

Background and education

Career

Family

References

Further reading