In Günter Allmaier, the Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics and the Vienna University of Technology have lost a man whose soul burned for science and academic teaching.

Günter Allmaier studied at the University of Vienna and graduated in 1983 with a degree in analytical and pharmaceutical chemistry. He then remained loyal to academia and dedicated himself to analytical chemistry. This passion also characterized his work within the Austrian Society for Analytical Chemistry, which he chaired as President from 2018 until his illness in 2019 after five years as Vice President.

In Günter's early years, scientific stays with outstanding mass spectrometricians shaped his interests. His post-doc period from 1985 to 1986 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the Austrian Klaus Biemann, one of the fathers of organic mass spectrometry, introduced him to structure elucidation. This stay deepened his special interest in mass spectrometry, which he used on his further scientific path, particularly in connection with biological questions. In 1985, Günter Allmaier also married Kasia, with whom he had two children of whom he was very proud. Günter was happy to talk about his time with his wife at MIT.

His research stays in 1987, 1990 and 1991 with Pieter Roeppsdorf in Odense, Denmark, a pioneer of modern protein analysis, now known as proteomics, led him to devote himself particularly to this branch of mass spectrometry. As early as 1988, he wrote the article “Mass spectrometry - its growing importance in molecular biology” for the Österreichische Chemie-Zeitschrift. At that time, mass spectrometry in Austria was strongly focused on organic molecules and less on proteins. This article shows his constant openness to new trends in analytical chemistry. This was followed in 1993, 1994 and 1996 by visiting professorships in Madrid, Spain, at the Universidad Autonoma De Madrid, and finally in 2017 by a well-deserved sabbatical at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia.

Günter was instrumental in establishing proteomics in Austria. His fundamental understanding of mass spectrometry-based protein analysis strengthened the network of the few proteomics experts working in Austria at the time. His work as a founding member and his presidency from 2007-2011 in the Austrian Proteomics Association (AuPA; founded in 2006), now known as the Austrian Proteomics & Metabolomics Association (APMA), was honored in 2016 with the Award for Life Time Achievements. For example, the “Austrian Proteome Research Symposium”, founded by Günter Allmaier and his research group at TU Wien in 2003, became an annual event of the association in 2007 and is still held today as APMRS. 

Throughout his scientific career, Günter Allmaier has always been a scientist with heart and soul. Numerous publications (>300) and three patents bear witness to this. He consolidated Austria's contribution to mass spectrometry at an international level. His contributions still give him a high international profile today. The Beynon Prize in 2007, a prize awarded by the Journal of Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry for the most important publication of the last three years, is more than clear evidence of this.

Accordingly, his activities were also recognized in Austria from an early stage - the Fritz Feigl Prize of the Austrian Society for Analytical Chemistry was awarded to him as early as 1996 and the Heribert Michl Prize of the GÖCH in 2002. The relevance of his research for society was also recognized in 2007 with the Wolfgang Houska Prize, the largest and most highly endowed prize for application-oriented, industry-related research at universities in Austria.

Günter Allmaier has also put his heart into teaching. He established bioanalytics at the Faculty of Technical Chemistry and thus made a significant contribution to giving the “Technical Chemistry” course the “Bio” stamp that is visible to everyone today, to designing the Biomedical Engineering course and thus making the TU's expertise in this area more visible.

As if that were not enough, Günter Allmaier was also committed to the interests of the Faculty of Technical Chemistry. He played a key role in the planning and implementation of the construction projects on the Getreidemarkt and headed the Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics for seven years as Institute Director (2011-2019), making him responsible for over 100 employees. Günter took this task very seriously and, with a heavy heart, put science second to the needs of the institute. During this time, he was also a valuable and motivated member of the faculty management and made a significant contribution to the strategic direction of the faculty.

Günter Allmaier passed away on 16.09.2022 after a long illness, which he endured with admirable strength.

He was a role model for many, always an enrichment in discussions and a person with vision; his commitment made him a fatherly friend to many. We will always keep our teacher, colleague and mentor in vivid memory.

Martina Marchetti-Deschmann