Arthur Wallace
Encyclopedia
Arthur Wallace, born January 4, 1919 in Bear River City, Utah
died on October 11, 2008 in Santa Monica, California
at age 89, was a soil scientist
.
(chemistry) in 1943 and at Ph.D. from Rutgers University
in 1949 (soils and plant nutrition).
(1949–1989).
which was synthesized by his friend, Harry Kroll and which was commercialized by Geigy as Fe-EDDHA and Sequestrene 138. At that time, EDTA, HEEDTA and DTPA were known. Fe-EDTA was effective in the acidic Florida soils but failed in California giving chelates a poor reputation later reversed with the astounding success of Fe-EDDHA.
He helped organize the biannual international iron nutrition and interactions symposia which have been held since 1979. Wallace hosted the first one at UCLA.
. The Law of the Maximum predicts plant yield based on the additivity of nutrients, growth factors and stress factors. He formulated 13 sound rules for the use of fertilizers.
. Monsanto
launched the technology of synthetic and natural polyelectrolytes as soil conditions for the formation of water-stable soil aggregates in 1952. The introduction was written by Firman E. Bear, Arthur’s major professor at Rutgers. The product was marketed under the trade name “Krilium.” The product technically successful but commercially failed due to the high cost of manufacturing and difficulty of use. Krilium became an example of a scientifically successful product but an economical failure. The technology became an embarrassment with an aversion and hesitance to resolve the causes of failure. Dr. Wallace resolved the technical problems, answering the Krilium problem. PAM was reported to be an economic solution of Krilium to condition soil, to reduce soil erosion, to prevent crusting, to help ameliorate sodic soils and to increase crop yield. Various cries were heard such as – “Do not forget the Krilium failure.” PAM is currently fully accepted as a BMP and is used for erosion control such as in burned areas and an economical agricultural soil conditioner.
Bear River City, Utah
Bear River City is a city in Box Elder County, Utah, United States. The population was 853 at the 2010 census, an increase over the 1990 population of 700. At the time this was sufficient under Utah state law for Bear River City to become a city, which it did at the end of 2000...
died on October 11, 2008 in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
at age 89, was a soil scientist
Soil science
Soil science is the study of soil as a natural resource on the surface of the earth including soil formation, classification and mapping; physical, chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils; and these properties in relation to the use and management of soils.Sometimes terms which...
.
Schooling
Wallace received a B.S. from Utah State UniversityUtah State University
Utah State University is a public university located in Logan, Utah. It is a land-grant and space-grant institution and is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities....
(chemistry) in 1943 and at Ph.D. from Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
in 1949 (soils and plant nutrition).
Professor
He was a professor of Plant Physiology at University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
(1949–1989).
Accomplishments
Wallace was elected Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy, of the Soil Science Society of American, of the Crop Science Society of America, and of the American Society for Horticultural Science.Dr. Iron
Wallace was known as “Dr. Iron” for his research and studies on chelated iron. At a meeting in Berkeley, California held on December 11, 1953, he formulated the structure of EDDHAEDDHA
EDDHA or ethylenediamine-N,N'-bis is an iron-chelating chemical used in bacterial siderophore studies.-History:...
which was synthesized by his friend, Harry Kroll and which was commercialized by Geigy as Fe-EDDHA and Sequestrene 138. At that time, EDTA, HEEDTA and DTPA were known. Fe-EDTA was effective in the acidic Florida soils but failed in California giving chelates a poor reputation later reversed with the astounding success of Fe-EDDHA.
He helped organize the biannual international iron nutrition and interactions symposia which have been held since 1979. Wallace hosted the first one at UCLA.
Working in the Middle East and Africa
He worked with plant mineral nutrition problems in the Middle East and Africa. He made 30 visits to Egypt working with Yossef Wiley, minister of agriculture, to solve some of their agricultural production problems.Law of the Maximum
Wallace is known for his Law of the Maximum in lieu of Liebig's law of the minimumLiebig's law of the minimum
Liebig's Law of the Minimum, often simply called Liebig's Law or the Law of the Minimum, is a principle developed in agricultural science by Carl Sprengel and later popularized by Justus von Liebig...
. The Law of the Maximum predicts plant yield based on the additivity of nutrients, growth factors and stress factors. He formulated 13 sound rules for the use of fertilizers.
P.A.M. / Soil Conditioner
Wallace is responsible for the current implementation and success of the soil conditioner – linear, water-soluble, anionic polyacrylamidePolyacrylamide
Polyacrylamide is a polymer formed from acrylamide subunits. It can be synthesized as a simple linear-chain structure or cross-linked, typically using N,N-methylenebisacrylamide. Polyacrylamide is not toxic...
. Monsanto
Monsanto
The Monsanto Company is a US-based multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation. It is the world's leading producer of the herbicide glyphosate, marketed in the "Roundup" brand of herbicides, and in other brands...
launched the technology of synthetic and natural polyelectrolytes as soil conditions for the formation of water-stable soil aggregates in 1952. The introduction was written by Firman E. Bear, Arthur’s major professor at Rutgers. The product was marketed under the trade name “Krilium.” The product technically successful but commercially failed due to the high cost of manufacturing and difficulty of use. Krilium became an example of a scientifically successful product but an economical failure. The technology became an embarrassment with an aversion and hesitance to resolve the causes of failure. Dr. Wallace resolved the technical problems, answering the Krilium problem. PAM was reported to be an economic solution of Krilium to condition soil, to reduce soil erosion, to prevent crusting, to help ameliorate sodic soils and to increase crop yield. Various cries were heard such as – “Do not forget the Krilium failure.” PAM is currently fully accepted as a BMP and is used for erosion control such as in burned areas and an economical agricultural soil conditioner.