Vovsi (Wowsy) David (Dawid) (9 November 1919, Dvinsk [Daugavpils], Latvia – 30 September 2001, Israel) – professor, expert in applied chemistry, and scientific organiser.
From a young age, David Vovsi studied Hebrew, attended a performance by the “Habima” theatre during its 1929 tour in Dvinsk, and listened to Hebrew-language radio broadcasts. After finishing secondary school, he moved to Riga in 1937 and worked with the vocational organisation Hakhshara, which trained youth for emigration to Palestine. In 1938, Vovsi received a student certificate that permitted his entry to Palestine for study.
In 1939, he was admitted to the Faculty of Chemistry at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, where he also studied physics. His parents sold their apartment in Dvinsk to support his studies. While in his third year, he and friends founded a cooperative producing chemicals to support themselves financially. In 1945, he earned a Master of Science (M.Sc.) degree.
Following graduation, he worked in industry and, from 1948 to 1955, served in the scientific division of the Israel Defense Forces and the Ministry of Defence, leading a team focused on developing solid rocket fuel. From 1952 to 1955, he continued his studies at the Hebrew University and earned his Ph.D. in chemistry under the supervision of Prof. A. Katchalsky, defending a dissertation on “The Kinetics of Nitroethylene Polymerisation.” He completed postdoctoral research at the University of Birmingham, UK.
From 1957 until his retirement in 1984, his scientific work was centred at the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot. In 1959, he founded the Institute of Polymer Materials, which he headed for 25 years. David Vovsi was the author of numerous scientific publications and patents that significantly contributed to the development of Israel’s chemical industry. His research addressed topics such as the application of Dead Sea salts, polymer materials for contact lenses, synthesis of bromine compounds for extending the shelf-life of citrus fruits, and the creation of flame-retardant plastics.
In 1964, he was appointed Professor of Chemistry and became head of the autonomous Institute for Plastic Research. In 1977, following his initiative, a new building for the Institute of Applied Chemical Research was established, where he served as the first director.
Prof. Vovsi was a member of the Chemical Societies of Israel and the UK, a member of editorial boards or editor of five international journals, and a consultant for numerous scientific institutions and companies.
After retiring in 1984, he moved from Rehovot to Haifa, where he remained active in public life. He founded the Plastics Research Centre at the Technion, supported many immigrant scientists in entering academia, and consulted for technology companies and projects.
Beyond his significant contributions to Israel's economy and defence, he was also passionate about painting and archaeology and was an accomplished violinist.
The Vovsi family of Dvinsk produced several notable individuals, including the renowned Jewish actor Solomon Mikhoels (Vovsi) (see: Mikhoels, Solomon) and the distinguished physician Prof. Miron (Meer) Vovsi, academician of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences (see: Vovsi, Miron).
In 1960, David Vovsi visited Moscow as part of an Israeli delegation to a symposium of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). He met with family members, but was unable to see Miron Vovsi, who had been arrested in 1952 and, though later rehabilitated, passed away before they could reunite. In 2000, Vovsi visited Riga and travelled to Daugavpils with his niece, physicist Aviva Vovsi (see: Vovsi, Aviva).
Publications:
Rosen H., Arad Y., Levy M., Vovsi D. Cross Hydrodimerization of Acrylonitrile, Ethylacrylate fnd Methacrylonitrile by Sodium Amalgam J.Amer.Chem.Soc., 1969, 91, 1425.
Asscher M., Orochov A., Vovsi D. Ditto-Part VI: Determination of Hammett’s ρ-constant for the Oxidation of Cuprous Chloride by Aromatic Sulfonylchlorides J.Chem.Soc. B, 1968, 255.
Патенты:
Bloch R., Vovsi D., Kedem O., Katchalsky A. Separation of Ions. US pat. 3,450,630 (17.6.69)
Bloch R., Vovsi D., Kedem O., Katchalsky A. Improved ion-specific Membranes.
US pat. 3,450,631 (17.6.69)
Literature:
Ashbel Rivka. As much as we could do. The Contributions made by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Jewish Doctors, and scientists from Palestine During and After Second World War, Jerusalem, 1989, p.31