Obituary: C. David Gutsche, professor emeritus of chemistry, 97

Gutsche
Gutsche

C. David Gutsche, professor emeritus of chemistry in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, died Aug. 28, 2018, in Seattle. Gutsche was 97.

Gutsche joined the Department of Chemistry as an assistant professor in 1947. He became a professor in 1959 and served as chair of the chemistry department from 1970-76. Gutsche was named professor emeritus in 1989. He joined Texas Christian University as the Robert A. Welch Professor of Chemistry from 1989 to 2002.

During his 42-year career at Washington University, Gutsche conducted research in organic chemistry and pioneered the field of calixarene chemistry. Calixarenes — a name he derived from the Greek word for vase, or calyx — quickly spawned an extensive field of chemistry that remains active to this day. Gutsche was a fellow of the American Chemical Society.

In 1994, Gutsche helped establish an annual award for a senior chemistry major at Washington University who has completed significant research in organic chemistry.

Read his full obituary on Legacy.com.

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