(December 20, 1940,  Buciusca village, Rezina district, Republic of Moldova – March 23, 2015, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova)Chemist, scientific area: inorganic and bioinorganic chemistry, coordination chemistry, Mössbauer effect and its applications in chemistry

He graduated from the primary school in his native village (1946–1950), the secondary school in Rezina (1950–1956), and the Faculty of Chemistry of the Moldova State University (1961). He subsequently pursued doctoral studies at the Institute of Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova and the Institute of Chemical Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR in Moscow (1970). He completed research internships at the Faculty of Chemistry of Saint Petersburg University, Russia (1984), and at the School of Chemical Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, England (1999). His professional career included positions as Junior Researcher at Military Unit No. 61469 of the Ministry of Defence of the former USSR (Saratov Region, Russia, 1961–1964), Assistant at the Department of General and Inorganic Chemistry of the Polytechnic Institute of Chișinău (1964–1966), and subsequently at the Institute of Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova as Senior Laboratory Assistant (1970–1971), Junior Researcher (1971–1975), Senior Researcher (1975–1988), Head of Laboratory (1988–2015), and Deputy Director of the Center of Physical Chemistry and Nanocomposites (2010–2015). During the period 2000–2004, he served as Scientific Secretary General of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova.

Academician Constantin Turta was actively involved in university teaching between 1964 and 2003, delivering lectures at the Technical University of Moldova, Moldova State University, Tajik State University in Dushanbe (1983), the “Gheorghe Asachi” Technical University of Iași, Romania (1995–1997), and the West University of Timișoara, Romania (1999).

His scientific interests encompassed inorganic chemistry, coordination chemistry, bioinorganic chemistry, applications of Mössbauer spectroscopy in chemistry, high-temperature ceramic superconductors, fullerides, and molecular magnets.

Professor Constantin Turta gained international recognition for his pioneering contributions to bioinorganic chemistry, dynamic effects in coordination chemistry (including dynamic electron delocalization in mixed-valence iron compounds and spin-crossover phenomena), the application of Mössbauer spectroscopy in chemistry, magnetochemistry, biologically active coordination compounds, and nanomaterials.

Academician C. Turta was the founder of the internationally recognized scientific school in bioinorganic chemistry and the application of Mössbauer spectroscopy in chemistry. In 2006, Professor Constantin Turta played a decisive role in establishing the Center of Physical Chemistry and Nanocomposites within the Institute of Chemistry (currently the Center of Physical and Inorganic Chemistry). As Deputy Director of the Center, he significantly contributed to research on the synthesis of nanoparticles for nanoelectronics, the development of advanced technologies for producing novel materials required by the national economy, the provision of high-performance analytical measurements for research institutions engaged in chemical sciences, and the training of highly qualified scientific personnel through master’s, doctoral, and postdoctoral programs. Under the supervision of Academician Constantin Turta, two Doctor Habilitatus dissertations (Ion Bulhac and Vasile Guțanu) and ten PhD dissertations in Chemical Sciences (Svetlana Bobcova, Vera Zubareva, Tui Fan, Valeriu Mereacre, Denis Prodius, Dumitru Sîrbu, Silvia Melnic, Mihail Iacob, Olesea Cuzan, and Tatiana Straistari) were successfully completed and defended.

Professor Constantin Turta devoted particular attention to international scientific collaboration with researchers from Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Spain, Poland, Switzerland, Germany, France, the United States, and other countries. Through competitive selection, he secured and coordinated four research projects funded by the European Union (INTAS), four research projects funded by the United States (MRDA-CRDF), one Swiss SCOPES research project, and one mobility project within the European Union’s FP7 Research Programme. The development and application of environmentally friendly energy sources, particularly solar energy, represented one of his major scientific interests. Academician Constantin Turta synthesized nanocompounds that were investigated as catalysts for the photocatalytic splitting of water to produce hydrogen and oxygen. Solving this scientific challenge would have a substantial positive impact on mitigating global warming. His scientific achievements have been documented in more than 600 scientific publications, including approximately 300 research articles published in international journals with an impact factor. He is also the author of 32 patents registered in the Republic of Moldova.

In recognition of his outstanding scientific achievements, he received the Presidium Prize of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova (1995), the National Prize in Science and Technology (2004), the Order of Labour Glory (1995), the L. Chugaev Medal of the Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences (2005), and the Jubilee Medal of Moldova State University (2010). He was also awarded numerous distinctions at national and international exhibitions, including Gold Medals at Genius-96, ASTWEST EURO-INTELECT (Varna, Bulgaria), and the European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation, EUROINVENT (Iași, 2009); the Silver Medal at the European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation, EUROINVENT (Iași, 2010); the Bronze Medal at the International Specialized Exhibition INFOINVENT (Chișinău, 2009); the Genius-96 Diploma (Bucharest, 1996); and the Diploma of the International Exhibition of Inventions “Models and Trademarks” (Bucharest, 1997), among many other distinctions.

References

1. Turtă, Constantin. Introducere în spectroscopia de rezonanţă gama. Chişinău, 2003, CEP USM, 171 p.
2. Duca Gh., Lupascu T. Academician Constantin Turta – renowned, consistent, ambitious, non-conformist scientist. Chemistry Journal of Moldova, 2010, vol. 5, nr. 2, pag. 88-89.
3. Tudor Lupascu, Aculina Aricu. In memory of Academician of Academy of Sciences of Moldova Professor Constantin Turta. Chemistry Journal of Moldova, 2015, vol. 10, nr. 1, pag. 116-117.
4. Membrii Academiei de Științe a Moldovei: Dicționar (1961-2006). Chișinău: Știința, 2006, 432 p.
5. Academia de Științe a Moldovei. Academicieni și membri corespondenți. Duca Gh. (coord.), Chișinău, 2015, 192 p.
6. Vlad, P. Ed. The Institute of Chemistry of the AS MSSR (1959-1984 years). Stiinta: Chisinau, 1987, 145 p. (in Russian).
7. Aricu A., Nastas R., Cocu M. The Institute of Chemistry at 60 years anniversary. Brief history, achievements and perspectives. Chemistry Journal of Moldova, 2019, 14(1), p. 8-31. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.19261/cjm.2019.349