The Field and Franklin Award for Mass Spectrometry

To recognize outstanding achievement in the development or application of mass spectrometry.

In recognition of their transformative contributions to the field, the American Chemical Society established the Frank H. Field and Joe L. Franklin Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mass Spectrometry in 1983. Their leadership in both research and professional organizations helped establish modern mass spectrometry and fostered the growth of a vibrant international community of mass spectrometrists. This award recognizes outstanding achievement in the development or application of mass spectrometry.

Frank H. Field (1922-2013) received his B.S. (1943), M.S. (1944), and Ph.D. (1948) in chemistry from Duke University. Field began his career as a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin before joining Humble Oil & Refining in Baytown, Texas in 1952, where he worked until 1966. He then moved to Esso Research & Development in Linden, New Jersey, rising to senior research associate before joining Rockefeller University as a professor in 1970, where he became the institution’s first Camille & Henry Dreyfus Professor in 1988. Field’s most significant contribution to mass spectrometry was the co-development of chemical ionization with Burnaby Munson. This breakthrough technique allowed for softer ionization of molecules by using ion-molecule reactions rather than direct electron impact, enabling better preservation of molecular ion information and facilitating analysis of larger, more fragile molecules. Along with Joe Franklin and Fred Lampe, Field conducted fundamental research on gaseous ion chemistry that helped establish the scientific foundation of the field, culminating in their influential 1957 book “Electron Impact Phenomena and the Properties of Gaseous Ions.” His pioneering work in chemical ionization and ion-molecule reactions was instrumental in expanding mass spectrometry from a technique limited to small, volatile molecules to one capable of analyzing complex biomolecules.

Joseph L. Franklin (1906-1982) studied chemistry at the University of Texas, receiving his B.S. in 1929, M.S. in 1930, and Ph.D. in 1934. In 1934, Franklin joined Humble Oil in Baytown, Texas, where he established a mass spectrometry research group that would become a center for fundamental research in the field. He was named the Robert A. Welch Professor of Chemistry at Rice University in 1963, where he remained until becoming emeritus professor in 1976. Franklin helped found the American Society for Mass Spectrometry and served as its first president in 1969. Franklin’s contributions to mass spectrometry centered on establishing the fundamental understanding of ion-molecule chemistry and gaseous ion reactions. His work with Frank Field and Fred Lampe at Humble Oil created a scientific foundation for the growing but initially disorganized discipline of gaseous-ion chemistry, which became an essential component of mass spectrometry. Franklin and Field’s collaborative research led to their landmark 1957 book “Electron Impact Phenomena and the Properties of Gaseous Ions,” which systematized knowledge about gaseous-ion energetics and helped transform the field into a rigorous science. Their fundamental studies of gas-phase ion-molecule reactions in the 1950s laid crucial groundwork that enabled later developments including chemical ionization mass spectrometry.

This Award consists of a plaque and $2500. The latter may be used to help defray travel expenses associated with the recipient’s participation in the Division’s award ceremony (typically held at the ACS Fall National Meeting each year) which are not covered separately by the Division.