Skochinskii, Aleksandr

Born July 1 (13), 1874, in the village of Olekma, in what is now the Yakut ASSR; died Oct. 6, 1960, in Moscow. Soviet scientist specializing in mining. Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (1935). Hero of Socialist Labor (1954).

In 1900, Skochinskii graduated from St. Petersburg Institute of Mines, where he subsequently worked; he was a professor at the institute from 1906 to 1930. From 1917 to 1920 he also taught at the Don Polytechnic Institute. From 1930 to 1960 he was a professor at the Moscow Mining Institute, and from 1921 to 1930 he served as chairman of the scientific and technical council of the Central Mining Industry Board of the Supreme Council on the National Economy. In 1935, Skochinskii became chairman of the mining group of the department of technical sciences of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, and from 1938 to 1960 he was director of the academy’s Mining Institute. From 1944 to 1951 he served as chairman of the Presidium of the Western Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR.

Skochinskii’s principal works dealt with the problems of mine atmospheres and with safety and the provision of comfortable working conditions in the underground mining of useful minerals. Skochinskii developed a theory for the movement of air in mines and a theory of dust-reducing aerodynamic conditions. He developed methods for studying the porosity and other properties of coal deposits and determined the methane content of various types of coals. He also set forth problems concerning the control of gas venting in mines, the ventilation of quarries, and mine thermodynamics.

Skochinskii participated in the organization of a mine rescue service, in the design of coal mines in the Donbas, and in work to combat silicosis. He acted as a mining consultant in the Donbas, the Urals, the Kuznetsk Coal Basin, and Kazakhstan; he was also a consultant for the construction of the Moscow Subway. Skochinskii was awarded the State Prize of the USSR in 1950 and 1951. He was also awarded five Orders of Lenin, two Orders of the Red Banner of Labor, and various medals.