Academician Antonie Ablov

(August 16, 1905, Odessa, Ukraine – 
May 18, 1978, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova)

Chemist, scientific area: inorganic chemistry and coordination chemistry.

•    Doctor Habilitate in Chemical Sciences (1944) 
•    Professor (1945) 
•    Full member of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova (1961)

Ablov A

Acad. Ablov graduated from the Cetatea Alba Gymnasium, and obtained his baccalaureate at the local high school (1923). He enrolls at the Faculty of Physics and Chemistry of the University „Al. I. Cuza" from Iasi the same year. At the same time he enrolled at the Chemical-Technological Institute of Iaşi, graduating the university in 1927 and the institute in 1931. In 1930, together with the famous professor Nicolae Costăchescu who was his mentor, he published a large study entitled "The influence of substituents in bases and anions on the coordination number of a metal". The same topic was the subject of his PhD thesis, defended and published two years later. He was an assistant at the Department of Inorganic Chemistry of the University of Iaşi between 1927 and 1940, and for a short time he worked as an engineer-researcher at the “Astra Română” Association from Ploieşti (1939-1940). In 1940 he became head of the Chemistry Department of the Agricultural Institute of Chisinau, which he led until 1946. Being one of the organizers of the Faculty of Chemistry of the of the State University of Moldova (1946), he became the Head of the Department of Inorganic Chemistry and also the Dean of this faculty (1946-1959), after which he worked as a professor at the Department of Inorganic Chemistry for many years (1959-1978).

The establishment of academic science in the republic is closely linked to the name of academician Antonie Ablov. In 1954 he was appointed chief of the Chemical-Analytical Laboratory of the Moldovan Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences, which was later transformed into the Department of Chemistry (1955), then into the Department of Inorganic Chemistry (1957) and renamed in 1975 into the Laboratory of Chemistry of Coordinating Compounds of the Institute of Chemistry of the ASM, which he lead until 1978. After the founding of the Institute of Chemistry (1959) of the Moldovan Branch of Academy of Sciences of the URSS, he became its first director (a position he held until 1961). From 1961 to 1964 he was the coordinating academician of the Department of Natural and Technical Sciences of the A.S.M. In 1965 he returned to the position of Director of the Institute of Chemistry, which he exercised until 1975. In his various activities, he combined research work with the activity of coordinating academician, member of the Presidium of ASM (1961-1978) and president of the Section of Chemistry Coordinating Compounds of the Scientific Council for Inorganic Chemistry of A.S. of URSS (1966-1978).

Academician Ablov is the founder of the scientific school in the field of chemistry of coordinating compounds in the Republic of Moldova. The scientific works were focused on the study of the effect of trans interaction named the Cherneaev effect in the class of the cobalt(III) dioximates, on the elaboration of synthesis methods of complex combinations of transition metals with polydentate ligands (dioximes, carboxylic acids, Schiff bases, etc.) and study of the magnetic exchange interaction in cluster-type polynuclear compounds. This research made a great scientific contribution:
•    the series of trans interaction of substitution reactions in cobalt (III) dioximates were highlighted;
•    the influence of metal-ligand bonds of σ- and π- type on the acid-base chemical balance was elucidated;
•  the stabilizing effect was determined of certain degrees of oxidation of some 3d elements in complexes with polydentate ligands, the effect of the spin transition in iron(III) coordinative combinations, the dynamic delocalization of the electronic density in compounds with mixed valence and the factors influencing these phenomena;
•    were determined the conditions for carrying out matrix reactions that allow obtaining new coordination combinations and new organic substances (ligands);
•    the method of determining the structure of copper carboxylates from the RES spectra analysis was elaborated etc.

Academician Antonie Ablov made the discovery of the phenomenon of trans influence in cobalt(III) dioximates, called "Open Book" , which is characterized by different values of the angle between α-dioxime monoanions, located in the equatorial part of the octahedron in function of the nature of ligands on the axial coordinate.

Under the leadership of Academician Ablov were investigated the coordination combinations of transition elements by quantum chemical methods, X-ray analysis, IR spectroscopy, UV-VIS, NMR, RES, MRI, mass spectrometry, magnetochemistry, calorimetric and thermogravimetric methods, and thermodynamic methods. From the classes of synthesized substances, a set of biologically active and catalyst complexes for dyeing fabrics was highlighted (implemented at the Textile Plants in Kalinin (Russia), Yartsev (Russia)Ternopol (Ukraine) and Tiraspol (R. of Moldova).

Academician Ablov published approx. 760 scientific papers, including 2 monographs: Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry (1962, in Russian, et al.); Chemical bonding in complex compounds (1962, in Russian, et al.). He participated in 93 international conferences and symposia, gave lectures at the universities of Bucharest, Iasi, Cluj Napoca (Romania), etc.

Academician Antonie Ablov contributed to the training of the most qualified scientists in the fields of chemistry, and also in some adjacent fields: acad. Bersuker Isaac, acad. Malinowski Tadeus, acad. Garbalau Nicolae, acad. Turta Constantin, acad. Gulea Aurelian, corresponding member Tsukerblat Boris, corresponding member Geru Ion, corresponding member Revenco Mihail, doctor habilitate Nazarov Lira, doctor habilitate Sartsova Galina, doctor habilitate Samusi Nina, doctor habilitate Batir Dumitru, doctor habilitate Conunov Tsilea, doctor habilitate Bovakin Boris, doctor habilitate Belciuc Nicolae, Dr. Proschina Nelea, Dr. Bologa Olga, Dr. Milcov Ludmila, Dr. Iampolski Margarita, Dr. Ciapurin Ludmila, Dr. Nejelski Ludmila, Dr. Brega Vladimir and many, many others.
For outstanding results, academician Antonie Ablov was awarded the title of "Emeritus Man", winner of the State Prize (post-mortem), decorated with the orders "Badge of Honor", "October Revolution" and the L.A. Ciugaev medal (Л. А. Чугаев), was introduced in the Golden Book of Honor of the MSSR (1967) and others.

In memoriam
On September 13, 2004, a commemorative plaque "Academician Antonie Ablov" was inaugurated at the Institute of Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova.
In 2004, the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova introduced a scholarship of excellence "Academician Antonie Ablov", worth ten thousand lei (aprox. 830 USD) annually, for the best doctoral student in chemistry.

References
H. Гэрбэлэy, H. Пpocкинa, Памяти учителя. Журнал неорганической химии. 1979, т. 24, № 1. 
Д. Батыр, А. Аблов. Страницы жизни и творчества. Кишинев: Штиица, 1986.
D. Batîr, Spirit încărcat de comori. Antonie Ablov -100 ani. Mediul Ambiant. 2005, 3(21), p. 47-47.
Membrii Academiei de Științe a Moldovei: Dicționar (1961-2006). Chișinău: Știința, 2006.
D. Batîr, Neliniștea memoriei. Evoluția chimiei în Moldova și avatarurile vieții. Chișinău, 2007.
„Cartea întredeschisă”, un nou tip de izomerie. Academos. 2016, nr. 2, p. 29. 
D. Batîr, Un savant care mai urmează a fi descoperit. Revista Moldova. 2008, nr. 4, p. 25-26.
Lupașcu, Tudor; Malcoci, Iulia; Xenofontov, Ion Valer. Academicianul Antonie Ablov (1905–1978) între viața privată și activitatea științifică, Akademos. Revistă de Ştiinţă, Inovare, Cultură şi Artă, nr. 1 (60), 2021, pp. 83-90.
https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Ablov 
https://peoplepill.com/people/anton-ablov/ 
https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Categorie:Academicieni_moldoveni 
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