Three chemists from The University of Texas at Arlington are among the most influential analytical scientists in the world, as selected by a top publication.
The Analytical Scientist magazine recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of its Power List, which this year includes the leading 100 analytical scientists from around the globe. UTA honorees are:
- Daniel Armstrong, the R.A. Welch Distinguished Professor in Chemistry;
- Purnendu "Sandy" Dasgupta, the Hamish Small Chair in Ion Analysis; and
- Kevin Schug, the Shimadzu Distinguished Professor of Analytical Chemistry.
Armstrong and Schug were named to the connectors and interdisciplinarians category, while Dasgupta was included in the innovators and trailblazers category.
"This is a tremendous honor for Drs. Dasgupta, Armstrong, and Schug. They are very worthy of being included in this prestigious company," said College of Science Dean Morteza Khaledi. "Their commitment to making a difference through their groundbreaking research is inspirational."
Armstrong has more than 35 years of experience in the field of chiral recognition, enantiomeric separations and their biological relevance.
"Having three scientists not only from the same university but also the same department is quite extraordinary and something that is rare," Armstrong said. "It gives UTA a lot of visibility and enhances graduate student recruiting in this area."
Dasgupta has made significant contributions to many areas, most importantly to ion chromatography, as well as to arsenic detection, perchlorate detection and dried blood spot analysis.
"While I personally do not believe in a caste system in any discipline, much less my own, my being included among an elite group of people never fails to please one very important group of people. Those are my students, both present and past, and they are really the people who deserve the credit for others to think that we are doing something worthwhile," Dasgupta said. "So, kudos to them!"
A Fulbright scholar, Schug's research focuses on the theory and application of separation science and mass spectrometry for solving a variety of analytical and physical chemistry problems in the fields of environmental, pharmaceutical, biological and energy research.
"It is an honor to be recognized together with my esteemed colleagues," Schug said. "If you want exceptional training as an analytical chemist, there are few places better than UT Arlington."
To identify the top scientists in the field for the 2023 list, The Analytical Scientist held open nominations and a panel of expert, independent judges narrowed down the candidates to the final 100. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Power List, this year's edition recognizes scientists whose excellence and impact have stood out over the past decade across four areas: inventors and trailblazers, mentors and educators, leaders and advocates, and connectors and interdisciplinarians.
