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Henry John Rossell (1936-1993)

[Rossell]H. J. Rossell
In Melbourne, Australia, on Oct. 11, 1993, Henry Rossell died suddenly from a heart attack; he was 57 years old and recently retired from his position as Principal Research Scientist in the division of Materials Science and Technology, CSIRO. He will be long remembered by his friends and colleagues, as a scientist of international repute and as a great character: anyone who has heard him talk, will never forget his penchant for wit and comical turn of phrase. He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, and four adult children to whom we extend our deepest sympathy.

Henry Rossell graduated with First Class Honors in Physical and Inorganic Chem. from the U. of Western Australia in 1958, where he proceeded to work for his Ph.D. in collaboration with D.J.M. Bevan and the Australian Atomic Energy Commission on the then topical subject of the thoriurn carbides. At the end of 1964, he undertook postdoctoral work with the late J.S. Anderson at the Inorganic Chem. Lab. in Oxford where he embraced with enthusiasm the ancient art of bell-ringing.

In 1967, he returned to Australia as a Research Scientist with the Division of Tribophysics, CSIRO, under the direction of Walter Boas, where he engaged in crystallographic studies of refractory oxides, particularly 'fast-ion conductors' such as lime-stabilized zirconia, with fluorite-related structures. In this he was associated with J. Sanders and J. Allpress, from whom he learnt electron microscopy and diffraction. In Rossell's hands, the combination of these with Guinier powder X-ray diffraction methods led to many significant. advances, and he became an acknowledged authority on those zirconia-based materials which have assumed such importance in the ceramic industry.

His sudden death is a great loss to crystallography in general and particularly to Australian crystallography, where he will be sadly missed as both scientist and friend.

Emeritus Prof D.J.M. ('Judge') Bevan
Oct. I Z 1993