MARIO MOLINA: BIOGRAPHY AND CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCIENCE - SCIENCE - 2024

Mario Molina is a Mexican scientist who was born in Mexico City in 1943. He was educated in his native country, and later in Germany and the United States. Considered a universal Mexican, he has earned world scientific recognition, leading him to collaborate in institutions and projects around the world, as well as being an advisor to executive cabinets on climate issues.

Mario Molina's contributions have highlighted him as one of the greatest referents in terms of environmental conservation. He is best known for his work related to the deterioration of the ozone layer caused by industrial gases known as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). These studies and positions earned him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995.

Today Mario Molina is a member of multiple national academies of sciences; he has been a professor and guest at distinguished universities worldwide; has a great support in scientific projects and research as well as a written work of high importance. He chairs and works from a research center that bears his name.

Biography

Mario Molina was born in Mexico City, Mexico, on March 19, 1943. His father was Roberto Molina Pasquel, who was a diplomat and specialist in Law; and his mother was Leonor Henríquez Verdugo.

From a very young age, Mario showed that he was attracted to science. When he was little he observed a protozoan through a toy microscope, which captivated him in a great way.

His interest in science was so great that he even turned a bathroom in his house into a small laboratory, in which he enjoyed spending hours.

Studies

Mario Molina's family had a tradition that its members went to study in Switzerland; When Mario turned eleven, his time came to study abroad.

Molina had already opted to dedicate himself to research in the area of ​​chemistry, an option that he chose over dedicating himself to playing the violin professionally, an activity that he also liked a lot.

He returned to Mexico after a season in Europe and in 1960 he studied chemical engineering at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, specifically at the Faculty of Chemistry. He finished his studies in 1965 and then traveled to Germany to continue his training, there he studied postgraduate studies at the University of Freiburg.

After his training in Germany, Mario Molina returned to Mexico, where he worked as an assistant professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, his alma mater, and created the first graduate degree in Chemical Engineering in all of Mexico.

After this, in 1968, he traveled to the United States and studied at the University of California, located in Berkeley. In this house of studies he obtained a doctorate in Physics and Chemistry, in 1972.

Rowland and the ozone layer

While in California he met Frank Sherwood Rowland, a scientist and professor originally from the United States, who also won the Nobel Prize in 1995 as a result of his research on the ozone layer and its deterioration.

At that time, Molina had been recognized as a researcher with a special focus on environmental issues.

Molina focused his efforts on increasing knowledge about the stratosphere, and he was one of the first scientists to recognize how dangerous chlorofluorocarbons (present in refrigerants, aerosols and other elements of daily use) can be for the ozone layer.

Molina and Rowland collaborated with each other on several occasions, especially in research related to the properties of the atom in the chemical field, specifically applied to radioactivity.

In addition, starting in 1974 these two scientists made it known that the ozone layer showed a thinner surface in the Antarctic area.

They both indicated that the use of products containing chlorofluorocarbons, used by humans since about 1940, was strongly affecting the ozone layer at the stratospheric level, deteriorating it and rendering it useless.

At that time the warnings made by Molina and Rowland were not taken into account, they were even considered excessive.

Defense of the theory

The approach that Mario Molina made together with Sherwood Rowland was very delicate, since they established that many products of daily use, produced by large and powerful industries, caused serious damage to the planet.

This meant that both Molina and Rowland had to stand up to a powerful industry that felt under attack. Throughout this process, Molina dedicated himself to advising private and public institutions on this issue, and in many cases he had to face representatives of the government's political and economic sphere.

Eventually their work paid off, as companies that manufacture chlorofluorocarbon products admitted that this element was indeed harmful to the ozone layer.

Protocol in Montreal

In 1987 the fruits of all the work that Mario Molina had carried out in relation to the defense of his theory, exposed in conjunction with Frank Rowland, were observed.

That year the Protocol began to be negotiated in Montreal, through which the reduction in the consumption of substances that have been proven to be harmful to the ozone layer is promoted.

This protocol has been in force since 1989, the year in which it was made official, and it is estimated that in the year 2050 it is possible that the ozone layer will have recovered. The establishment of this protocol was the result of the work of several scientists, among which Mario Molina stands out.

Investigative work and awards

Molina continued his environmental work in the field of chemical engineering. This scientist worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, attached to the California Institute of Technology, in the United States.

In 1989 he began working as a researcher and professor in the Department of Atmospheric, Planetary and Earth Sciences, attached to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, also in the United States. In this context, being linked to this institute, Mario Molina obtained US nationality.

In 1994 Mario Molina obtained the recognition of the President of the United States, Bill Clinton, who offered him to join the presidential advisory committee, in which only 18 scientists who analyze scientific and technological aspects participate.

In 1995 Mario Molina received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research related to the ozone layer, in the field of atmospheric chemistry. This award was received together with his co-worker, Frank Rowland.

Present

Today Mario Molina continues to work in the field of chemical engineering with an environmental focus.

In June 2018, Molina spoke about the importance of complying with the Paris Agreement, whose objective is to regulate the emissions of gases that generate the greenhouse effect. Molina established that, if this agreement is not fulfilled, the environmental consequences can be very serious.

Contributions

CFCs and their impact on the ozone layer

In 1974, Mario Molina was working together with the scientist FS Rowland, and a whole research team, on some predictions about the thinning of the ozone layer, which they described as a consequence of the emission of gases emanating at an industrial level. and domestic: chlorofluorocarbons.

These gases are usually emitted as waste from industrial refrigeration processes and by aerosol products, and have a capacity to remain in the atmosphere for up to 100 years.

Molina's work gave an important impetus to nations to begin working together to counter air pollution.

Atom Properties

Before focusing on the effects of CFCs in the atmosphere, and during his years of study in the United States, Mario Molina was part of the department at the University of Berkeley, under the tutelage of one of the pioneers in the development of molecular structures.

Here he began his work, together with FS Rowland, who would be a co-author of his most representative work, focused on the understanding of the chemical properties of the atom in radioactive processes.

This first approach to molecular components led Molina to become interested in inert chemical particles in the atmosphere.

Functional treaties

Molina's stance on air pollution after publishing his discoveries led societies to take measures to reduce their polluting emissions.

It is stated that the influence of Molina's work led him to be present in the agreements that led to the establishment of the Montreal Protocol in 1994; one of the international treaties that has demonstrated the most effectiveness in the application of its guidelines.

Urban air quality

His first book, Air quality in the megacity of Mexico: a comprehensive approach, published in 2005 together with Luisa Molina, includes in its pages the contributions of more than a hundred experts and science professionals, in terms of your considerations about urban air quality.

The content of this book, whose research command was led by Mario Molina, is considered an indispensable modern reference and the support of international scenarios and policies that must be considered worldwide.

Placing an example such as that of Mexico City on the table, positions that benefit less affected scenarios can be adopted.

Climate change

More recently, Molina saw his second bibliographic work published jointly with other authors, this time addressing the causes, consequences and phenomena of climate change, analyzing the factors that have led man to this point, and the possible short, medium and long term.

Published in 2016, this work reinforces the position that Molina maintains in the face of atmospheric and climatic deterioration of human origin.

Mario Molina Center

This research center, located in Mexico City, is the physical representation of the legacy that Mario Molina has left on the world scientific stage.

Today the Mario Molina Center is considered a bastion from which we work tirelessly to continue carrying out pertinent research on climate change.

The clearest objective of this institution is to be an influential representative in local and national political decisions in favor of climate and environmental conservation. Similarly, it encourages international collaboration for this common good.

Scientific Publications

Mario Molina carries with him a considerable scientific background, where his articles, nowadays available for consultation, are of great importance.

His dedication to the issue of air pollution has not limited the scientific content and international collaborations that he has been able to carry out.

Molina has also investigated the efforts and results of international treaties established over the years, as well as working together to generate predictions and scenarios on which to work in the future.

Public image and politics

The birth of a public influence after the disclosure of its results allowed Mario Molina to position himself in high diplomatic and international instances in order to not only expose a reality, but also be a participant in its change.

The international importance that the scientist acquired led him to supervise the decisions of international treaties regarding climate change.

The influence of his actions has led him to receive international decorations such as the Champions of the Earth Award, awarded by the United Nations, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the United States.

Mario Molina, apart from his research projects, has served in the advisory, in a climate conservation nature, of governments such as Barack Obama, belonging to his Council of Science and Technology Advisors; More recently, he has provided his advice and advice to government representatives and Enrique Peña Nieto, current president of Mexico.

Awards

-Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995.

-In 1995 he received the award from the United Nations Environment Organization Program.

-Received the Essekeb awards in 1987; and Tyler, in 1983, awarded by the American Chemical Society.

-He was awarded the Newcomb-Cleveland Prize in 1987, awarded by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In this case, he received the award as a result of a text he published in the scientific journal Science, in which he talked about research related to the hole in the ozone layer.

-In 1989 he received the medal from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, better known by its acronym in English, NASA.

References

1. Bruzón, L. (April 8, 2002). Mario Molina. Mexican scientist, discoverer of the hole in the ozone layer. EFE Agency.
2. Mario Molina Center. (2014). Climate Change Education. Mexico, DF: Mario Molina Center.
3. Mario Molina Center. (sf). Biography Dr. Mario Molina. Obtained from Centro Mario Molina: centromariomolina.org
4. Chimal, C. (2014). Clouds in the Mexican sky: Mario Molina, pioneer of environmentalism. Alfaguara.
5. Leal, J. (2006). Air quality in the Mexico megacity. An integrated advice. Eure Magazine, 141-145.