Professor Jean-François Focant, Head of the Department of Chemistry (Faculty of Science) and Director of the Organic and Biological Analytical Chemistry group (OBiAChem, MolSys Research Unit), has received the GCxGC Lifetime Achievement Award, awarded each year by an international expert team, which honours the scientist's career but also highlights the quality of his fundamental research and its medical and industrial applications.
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ean-François Focant heads the Organic and Biological Analytical Chemistry group of the mass spectrometry laboratory. His main research interests are the coupling of sample preparation procedures, the development of new chromatography strategies in separation science, the coupling of different types of mass spectrometers to multidimensional systems, and the implementation of emerging strategies as part of the QA/QC requirements for human biomonitoring and food control. Known as an expert in dioxins, he is also very active in other fields of separation science such as the characterization of complex mixtures of volatile organic compounds (VOC) for medical and forensic applications as well as metabolomics (analysis of all small molecules of a living system). His team is pioneering the implementation of analytical strategies for the processing of multidimensional data sets to allow the use of complex and emerging methods to solve concrete problems. Recent research includes characterization of cadaveric decomposition odours, screening for early stage cancer biomarkers by breath analysis and other biological materials, as well as analyses of archeological pieces, all in collaboration with other faculties/research units of ULiege.
The GCxGC Lifetime Achievement Award
This award has been created in 2013 to honnour a scientist whose carrier has contributed to the development of bidimensional gas chromatography and to its industrial use. Jean-François Focant is the youngest recipient of this award.
