University of Utah chemistry professor J. Calvin Giddings, 66, died Oct. 24, 1996, of cancer.
An American Fork native, Dr. Giddings was internationally recognized for his work in methods of chemical separations. He devised a precise theoretical framework for chromatography, a widely used technique in industry and research, which is still being used for advances in the field. He also invented the technique of field-flow fractionation, which has helped solve numerous problems in medicine, industry and environmental studies.Dr. Giddings wrote or co-wrote more than 400 technical articles, founded the journal of Separation Science and Technology, edited 32 books and wrote three of his own. He received numerous awards from the American Chemical Society, an honorary doctorate from Sweden's 500-year-old University of Uppsala and the 1991 Governor's Medal in Science and Technology. He was twice nominated for a Nobel Prize.
Dr. Giddings was a lifelong explorer, well-known in Utah for his mountain-climbing, kayaking, cross-country skiing and mountain biking.In 1975 he organized and led the first expedition to successfully kayak the Apurimac River, source of the Amazon, from its Andes headwaters to the Amazonian jungle.
A memorial service will be held at the U.'s Museum of Fine Arts Auditorium at 4 p.m. Tuesday.