Retiring Senior Chemist for ChemScan Changed Single-Parameter Monitoring with Reagent-Based Methods
After 19 years with the company, ChemScan Senior Chemist Dr. Roy McKnight recently retired, leaving a legacy of innovation in reagent-based measurement of individual parameters for drinking water and wastewater process control.
We sat down with Roy and Scott Kahle, In-Situ vice president for process analyzers and monitoring, to talk about Roy’s work and lasting contributions to the field.
In-Situ: Roy, congratulations on your retirement! Please describe for us the work you did at ChemScan.
Roy: When I started with the company, they used just the large online analyzers operating on the UV spectrum to measure multiple analyte concentrations. But we had customers interested in measuring individual parameters in the field rather than the lab. So, it was my job to develop measurement methods using liquid reagents.
Scott: When Roy joined us almost 20 years ago, we didn’t have the array of single-line, colorimetric analyzers we have today. So, when we’d hear something at a conference about a specific parameter or get a request from a customer, we’d put Roy on the case.
He would start with a literature search of different techniques to do measurements. Then he’d take the top candidates and do benchtop testing in the lab to determine things like sensitivity, linearity and volumes. In a lot of cases, you’re taking work that’s been done to make a powder test kit and converting that to a liquid, understanding how long it will last, whether it it’s going to precipitate, fade away, form a color. Roy looked at all of that.
In-Situ: What are some of the parameters you developed methodologies for?
Roy: We did well with nitrogen, various metals like copper, chrome, nickel, molybdate, manganese and iron, and non-metals like phosphorous, chlorine, monochloramine, sulfite and others. It was gradual progress, responding to customer interest to add more analytes and build the capabilities of the instruments.
In-Situ: So, that was the genesis of the mini analyzer?
Scott: Yes, Roy did all the initial methods for the mini. Tasked with taking what we were already measuring with ultraviolet, he helped develop a unit with a simple LED light source that could be shipped worldwide and not require a service tech to follow it out. Roy got those methods to the point where we could trust them. And the result has been a shift to the smaller more affordable product that is actually the most sensitive device we sell for most parameters.
In-Situ: Can you recall a particularly rewarding breakthrough?
Scott: We had a customer, a chemical treatment company in Canada, running wastewater treatment processes, and they needed to measure copper. They asked if we could do it, so we gave it to Roy. After Roy spent a few weeks testing a trio of reagents, the customer sent over the single-reagent test method they were using in the lab. Within a week, Roy took that one reagent and turned it into a mini analyzer for measuring copper. Today, it’s probably our third or fourth highest-selling product.
In-Situ: That’s fantastic. Roy, what did you enjoy most about your time with the company?
Roy: I always enjoyed being able to help customers solve problems and adapt methods to get them the measurements they needed. Being able to answer their questions and provide prompt and valuable support was gratifying.
In-Situ: And, Scott, what does he leave behind?
Scott: Roy just had great laboratory professionalism. We had him go back through every method and refine a protocol for looking at limits of detection quantification and linearity to put into our specifications. For years, he made all our reagents, developing best practices and ensuring they met our standards. And he’s left behind a complete library of well-documented experiments. We’re currently looking at expanding the range on our phosphorous analysis, and Roy’s great work serves as a springboard for that development. We wouldn’t be where we are today without his expertise and leadership.
We sat down with Roy and Scott Kahle, In-Situ vice president for process analyzers and monitoring, to talk about Roy’s work and lasting contributions to the field.
In-Situ: Roy, congratulations on your retirement! Please describe for us the work you did at ChemScan.
Roy: When I started with the company, they used just the large online analyzers operating on the UV spectrum to measure multiple analyte concentrations. But we had customers interested in measuring individual parameters in the field rather than the lab. So, it was my job to develop measurement methods using liquid reagents.
Scott: When Roy joined us almost 20 years ago, we didn’t have the array of single-line, colorimetric analyzers we have today. So, when we’d hear something at a conference about a specific parameter or get a request from a customer, we’d put Roy on the case.
He would start with a literature search of different techniques to do measurements. Then he’d take the top candidates and do benchtop testing in the lab to determine things like sensitivity, linearity and volumes. In a lot of cases, you’re taking work that’s been done to make a powder test kit and converting that to a liquid, understanding how long it will last, whether it it’s going to precipitate, fade away, form a color. Roy looked at all of that.
In-Situ: What are some of the parameters you developed methodologies for?
Roy: We did well with nitrogen, various metals like copper, chrome, nickel, molybdate, manganese and iron, and non-metals like phosphorous, chlorine, monochloramine, sulfite and others. It was gradual progress, responding to customer interest to add more analytes and build the capabilities of the instruments.
In-Situ: So, that was the genesis of the mini analyzer?
Scott: Yes, Roy did all the initial methods for the mini. Tasked with taking what we were already measuring with ultraviolet, he helped develop a unit with a simple LED light source that could be shipped worldwide and not require a service tech to follow it out. Roy got those methods to the point where we could trust them. And the result has been a shift to the smaller more affordable product that is actually the most sensitive device we sell for most parameters.
In-Situ: Can you recall a particularly rewarding breakthrough?
Scott: We had a customer, a chemical treatment company in Canada, running wastewater treatment processes, and they needed to measure copper. They asked if we could do it, so we gave it to Roy. After Roy spent a few weeks testing a trio of reagents, the customer sent over the single-reagent test method they were using in the lab. Within a week, Roy took that one reagent and turned it into a mini analyzer for measuring copper. Today, it’s probably our third or fourth highest-selling product.
In-Situ: That’s fantastic. Roy, what did you enjoy most about your time with the company?
Roy: I always enjoyed being able to help customers solve problems and adapt methods to get them the measurements they needed. Being able to answer their questions and provide prompt and valuable support was gratifying.
In-Situ: And, Scott, what does he leave behind?
Scott: Roy just had great laboratory professionalism. We had him go back through every method and refine a protocol for looking at limits of detection quantification and linearity to put into our specifications. For years, he made all our reagents, developing best practices and ensuring they met our standards. And he’s left behind a complete library of well-documented experiments. We’re currently looking at expanding the range on our phosphorous analysis, and Roy’s great work serves as a springboard for that development. We wouldn’t be where we are today without his expertise and leadership.