My family was born on Victory Day

Lyudmila Artemovna Onuchak (Poghosyan), Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor, Head of the Department of Physical Chemistry and Chromatography of the Samara National Research University, has almost half a century of work experience, more than three hundred scientific papers and thirty patents for inventions. Moving forward, overcoming the most difficult periods, she was always helped by the memory of her parents, veterans who passed away early. In the scientist's office, in a prominent place, there is an old photo of my mother, who looks so young and fragile, but in fact is a very strong woman. We started our conversation with the history of the Onuchak family.

...Nina Frolovna Eroshkina and Artem Khachaturovich Poghosyan got married on May 9, 1945 in Sofia. She was a radio operator, participated in the Battle of Stalingrad and in the crossing of the Dnieper. At the crossing of the Dnieper, the fascists defeated the entire troop. Only Nina and one wounded fighter survived, whom the girl pulled on herself from the icy river.

Artem took the fight at the age of nineteen, defending Przemysl. The border fortress city, like Brest, met the first blow of the German troops on June 22, 1941. The survivors and those who escaped from the encirclement could be counted on the fingers, one of them turned out to be Private Poghosyan, who had been conscripted into the army a year earlier. On the roads of the war, an Armenian youth from a small mountain village of Nagorno-Karabakh and a Russian girl from a farm in Stavropol met.

And so they celebrate a Great Victory, forever uniting their hearts on this day. And then there are a lot of plans for a peaceful life, which the newlyweds are going to build in Artem's homeland – in Nagorno-Karabakh. There, in the city of Stepanakert, the couple had two sons and an only daughter, Lyudmila.

Her parents dreamed that the girl would become a musician, having received an education at the conservatory. In parallel with her studies in high school, Lyudmila entered the piano school. She liked to play, her favorite works of Beethoven, Mozart, Rachmaninoff and Chopin appeared, her performance resonated in the hearts of listeners, and especially parents.

Science is a mode

But while studying music, Lyudmila felt that this was not her element. After graduating from school with a silver medal (the only "four" in physical education crept into the certificate), a seventeen-year-old girl went to Moscow instead of the fourth year of the music school to enroll in the chemistry faculty of Lomonosov Moscow State University. The parents were taken aback but did not object. Despite a serious competition, our heroine passed the exams the first time.

Lyudmila chose chemistry not by chance – the authority of the school teacher affected. But the attitude to the subject largely depends on the mentor – if the teacher is in love with the subject and does not spare time for explanations, the students will definitely follow him. They did not conduct experiments in the classroom – there was no laboratory or equipment in Stepanakert, so the children listened exclusively to theory. However, she did not seem boring or incomprehensible, the teacher was able to present the material in an exciting way. At the same time, the mentor was strict and demanding. These qualities echoed the character of Lyudmila herself.

And the youth newspapers of that time wrote a lot and interestingly about the natural sciences. Boys and girls dreamed of making discoveries. Scientists also became the heroes of the films. Lyudmila Artemovna recalls how much she was impressed by the film "Nine Days of one Year", which told about the dangerous work of nuclear physicists.
...The 1960s were coming. Doing science was fashionable and prestigious.

It came once and for a long time

Lyudmila Artemovna's first chemical experiments took place at Moscow State University. I especially remember one – an unsuccessful one. The student was determining the melting point of the metal and, apparently, due to problems with the device, she was doused with hot sulfuric acid. The teacher and classmates reacted instantly – they put them in the sink, washed them. It was lucky that Lyudmila was wearing a tight corduroy dress that day – it saved her from serious consequences.

The first specialization, even before moving to Kuibyshev, Lyudmila Artemovna had colloidal chemistry.
– This is an important part of science devoted to the properties of a substance in a dispersed (finely ground) state. Now a part of colloidal chemistry is called nanochemistry, the scientist explains and demonstrates an illustrative example.

In her office there is a cone with crushed silicon. With the formula unchanged, the dry powder behaves like a liquid even though it is a solid. And for a person far from science. – a miracle: you clearly see how the "milk" is pouring in the vessel, but at a certain angle you understand that there is sand there. Chemistry explains such metamorphoses and finds practical application for them.

Lyudmila Artemovna devoted her thesis to metals in a dispersed state, written at the graduate school of Moscow State University, where she was left to study, noting her independence in work. The aim of the study was to search for stronger alloys for various products.

– I worked with harmless metals – zinc, gallium, aluminum. Some classmates went the other way, were not afraid of risky experiments, which then affected their health," recalls Lyudmila Artemovna.

In Moscow, she married a radiochemist student. They allocated the Onuchak spouses to Kuibyshev, the husband's homeland.

– Our two daughters were born and grew up here, it is now my home too, – the professor smiles.

In 1975, Lyudmila Artemovna joined Kuibyshev State University (today Samara National Research University). And for forty-eight years she has been working in one place.

At first, she and a young scientist joined a scientific group of physicists. The first patent was obtained for the dispersion of kidney stones – this is a technology that allows the formation to be crushed so that they can leave the body without surgery, naturally. Then Lyudmila Artemovna took up teaching.

Masters of chromatography

In 1981, the Department of General and Inorganic Chemistry at Kuibyshev State University was headed by Mark Solomonovich Vigdergauz.

From that moment, the conversion of the scientific direction began, and on June 9, 1982, by order of the Minister of Higher and Secondary Special Education of the RSFSR, it became known as the Department of General Chemistry and Chromatography. At that time, it was the only one in the country that produced chromatography specialists. Previously, chemists of various fields of science worked here. Mark Solomonovich offered each of them ways to combine his "natural inclinations" (native scientific specialization) with the richest possibilities of chromatography. As a result, interesting scientific works appeared at the junction of chromatography and computer science, physical, colloidal chemistry. The foundations were laid for those scientific directions in which, after Mark Solomonovich's departure from life, doctoral theses were defended, including by Lyudmila Artemovna Onuchak.

– Chromatography is a method of analytical chemistry. The uniqueness is that it allows you to analyze multicomponent mixtures. Unlike other methods that analyze an individual substance, – explains Lyudmila Artemovna. – In practice, chromatography is used in a variety of industries. For the Samara region, it is especially relevant in the petrochemical and pharmacological industries. One of Lyudmila Artemovna's graduate students performed an analysis of the composition of cardiovascular drugs to find out whether their initial components were safe for health. Now the young scientist works at a large enterprise for the production of medicines.

Chromatography is indispensable in ecology and involves the analysis of the composition of air, water and soil. One of the graduates of Professor Onuchak works at a factory where pet food is produced.

Lyudmila Artemovna defended her doctoral thesis on the use of liquid crystals as sorbents for gas chromatography in 1997. The study can be applied in practice in petrochemistry to determine the isomeric composition of hydrocarbons, which affects the octane number of gasoline. The idea belonged to the mentor – Mark Solomonovich. But, alas, Lyudmila Artemovna was already writing her thesis without the boss. Moreover, there were health problems at that time. But she did not turn off the planned path – she coped.

– I think highland ambition affected. It's from my father. I want to prove to myself that I can rise higher," Lyudmila Artemovna believes and adds that an increase in salary, which was given by a higher academic degree, was not superfluous in those years. Times were difficult: the head of the family, a teacher, was forced to go out to drive a taxi at night…

In the difficult 90s, Lyudmila Onuchak headed the Department of Physical Chemistry and Chromatography. These were difficult years, when the basic state budget financing of the research sector in universities stopped, money was not allocated for the purchase of equipment. Samara oilmen and service companies working in the field of oil production provided great assistance to the department. The availability of contractual works financially supported the teachers and allowed them to maintain a fleet of devices. In the new conditions, it was necessary to look for additional ways to support scientific research. Scientists found them – they undertook the implementation of various projects, including federal ones, participated in grant competitions. The department was saved. But to this day, the equipment is very carefully treated here. Despite the presence of modern chromatographs, their predecessors are still in service – devices released in the 1980s.

***

– And what is the greatest happiness for you – science or family? I ask.

– First of all, I am a woman, – Lyudmila Artemovna answers. – But we were taught Homeland is a priority. Therefore, work occupies a significant place in my life. I had to show stubbornness and perseverance to keep the department and chromatography. Today we have something to be proud of our Chromatography Center is one of the leading in Russia.

– Is it possible to say that chemistry is more of a man's business? – I ask the following question, especially since in the conversation Lyudmila Artemovna called more names of male scientists – Mark Vigdergauz, Yuri Zolotov, Viktor Berezkin.

– Not at all. We have three female professors in our department. Most of the students are girls. And you know, chemists become great wives – we know what and how to boil or disinfect. And there is also no chaos around us – in everyday life, as in science, we follow strict rules," Lyudmila Onuchak says with confidence.

Chemistry has a future today, which is confirmed by the admission campaign to the university – more applications have been submitted than there are places.

– Chemistry is the basis of everything. If there is no substance, material, biological molecule, there is no living being. Everything – both air and metals – consist of chemicals. The basis of the basics is chemistry. Except for God. But God would hardly have created us without chemical molecules," says Lyudmila Artemovna.

Kirill Kopytin, Associate Professor of the Department of Physical Chemistry and Chromatography:

– I remember with gratitude Lyudmila Artemovna's lectures on thermodynamics and colloidal chemistry. I apply my knowledge in practice, in my research work. Lyudmila Artemovna and my supervisor Stanislav Yuryevich Kudryashov are two teachers, thanks to whom I decided on my life's work and stayed at the University. Was Lyudmila Artemovna strict? I didn't even think about it. I remember she seemed like a very nice person from the first lesson, I wanted to listen to her. I used to turn to her after the training pairs and ask her to explain something beyond the program on colloidal chemistry. She never refused. Now I teach myself and behave the same way with students. I never ignore their questions, although they can be very unexpected and not always on the topic of the lecture. If I teach based on the example of my mentors, it means that in the future my students will join the ranks of successful scientists.

Svetlana Kurbatova, Professor of the Department of Physical Chemistry and Chromatography:

– Lyudmila Artemovna is distinguished by high professionalism and goodwill. She is a multi-faceted specialist who conducts both scientific, pedagogical, and grant work. Professor Onuchak is an excellent organizer. She knows how to find an approach to young people. Boys and girls feel her sincerity and humanity. If students have problems in their studies, Lyudmila Artemovna does not leave them – conducts additional classes, helps to find curators in a group among peers. She has such a rule: you need to deal with the reasons for failure individually. After all, it happens that it's not a matter of banal laziness, but something else – for example, something happened in the family. In this case, the support of the teacher is very important.

Source: socgaz.ru