Archer Martin

Archer John Porter Martin
Born	(1910-03-01)March 1, 1910 London
Died	July 28, 2002(2002-07-28) (aged 92)
Nationality	United Kingdom
Alma mater	Peterhouse, Cambridge
Known for	Chromatography
Awards	Nobel Prize in Chemistry(1952)

Archer John Porter Martin (1 March 1910 in London–28 July 2002) was a British chemist and Nobel Prize winner.

His father was a GP. He was educated at Bedford School and Cambridge University. Working first in the Physical Chemistry Laboratory, he moved to the Dunn Nutritional Laboratory, and in 1938 moved to Wool Industries Research Institution in Leeds. He was head of the Biochemistry Division of Boots Pure Drug Company from 1946 to 1948, when he joined the Medical Research Council. There, he was appointed Head of the Physical Chemistry Division of the National Institute for Medical Research in 1952 and was Chemical Consultant from 1956 to 1959.

He specialised in Biochemistry, in some aspects of Vitamins E and B₂, and in techniques that laid the foundation for chromatography. He developed partition chromatography whilst working on the separation of amino acids, and later developed gas-liquid chromatography. Amongst many other honours, he received his Nobel Prize in 1952.

He published far fewer papers than the typical Nobel winners—only 70 in all—but his 9th paper won the Nobel. The University of Houston dropped him from its chemistry faculty in 1979 because he was not publishing enough.

He was married, with two sons and three daughters. In the last years of his life he suffered from Alzheimer's disease.

Pop culture

Martin was mentioned in the animated television series The Simpsons in the episode titled "Flaming Moe's" (Season 3, Episode 10). Character Martin Prince made reference to Martin while doing a show-and-tell presentation on the gas chromatograph.