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Dr Frikkie Mostert
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Unlike his namesake in the book Waiting for the Rain (1987) by Sheila Gordon, Dr Frikkie Mostert, 52, does not want things to stay the same. He loves change and embraces such if it is for the benefit of industry and the advancement of science.
The use of small charges in the oil industry has been around for about 40 years but Mostert and team have focused on is to try and leverage indigenous shaped charge technology into new charge concepts for industry. "There were two PCT patents filed and we decided to carry on with one patent," he says.
He is neither the average guy from next door, nor a typical scientist, holed up in his office or the lab. He prefers hands-on work and seeks to mentor young or less experienced researchers - his third passion besides his family and being a scientist. The word selfish does not exist in his vocabulary; instead, he is passionate and wants to impart his experience and knowledge to people who are ready to listen. Although he enjoys conducting his own research most, he also realises that science advances the fastest in any domain when a younger breed of scientists is nurtured and properly mentored.
Mostert worked as a junior lecturer at Stellenbosch University (where he achieved his PhD in physics) before he was head-hunted by Denel (formerly Somchem that later became Denel Munitions) in 1983, where he spent 22 years. He attained the position of Chief Scientist while working on rockets and missile subsystems until he joined the CSIR in 2005. "Although it was always coupled to development of systems, we concentrated on applied research. Many of the aspects of science we applied there are rarely taught elsewhere," he says.
Although he left Denel, his skills and knowledge is still intermittently called upon by his erstwhile employer. "As a result of this, the landward sciences research group has over the past few years received a couple of contracts on programmes I have been involved in before I left," he says. "I still have an interest in the application of science in industry for it contributes to the growth of the country."
His specialised knowledge of detonics (the science of detonation and related phenomena) and specifically in the shaped charge field also known as improvised explosive devices, led to his involvement in a project to develop new commercial perforator charges for the oil industry. "Armscor wanted to leverage shaped charge technologies developed for military purposes into the commercial sector. A feasibility study was performed and this led to a specific project financed by the private investor company CPPE Petroleum." In this project Mostert and a group of specialists are looking at more innovative concepts of the small little 'perforator'-shaped charges that are currently used in drilled oil wells to extract oil from the well bore. The CSIR's landward sciences group is still part of this project through Mostert's consultative work.
"I feel obligated to share what I know with our younger scientists and engineers," he says. "I want to reinvest what was invested in me. I am trying to help the younger people here to get to grips with the multidisciplinary nature of our field of work," he says, adding, "there is little of this to be found in textbooks and because of the specialised nature, one can easily feel isolated."
Mostert also interacts from time to time with the academic team of the Blast Impact and Survivability Research Unit (BISRU) - a research group at the University of Cape Town (UCT). Mostert supervised two postgraduate students during the past year and has given a couple of lectures to the postgraduate students of this university. He also participates in experimental tests performed at the university by the landward sciences group.
"What will make me the happiest," he says, "will be to see this fascinating field of study being embraced by my younger colleagues. One must be careful not to 'spoon-feed', but the nature of the research and the safety regulations during experimental testing make supervision crucial."
Nevertheless, he believes that assignments must be mentored in such a way that it allows the researcher to move independently through proper research methodology. He calls it the "tough love" method adding that any protégé gains greater confidence if he feels the work to be his own. "I had a great mentor and it took me quite some time to realise that some of my first real achievements were not really my own but more that of my mentor in the background," he says.
Why the continued thrust of work on detonics and ballistics? He says it is still very important to understand the new developments in these fields. "Most conventional weapon systems contain energetic materials of some kind, so it is of crucial importance that we do our research to understand the threats that our defence forces will be up against in future and devise countermeasures," he says. Apart from this, he says, detonics have other applications outside of the military domain "but we are yet to fully explore this avenue".
Mostert says he enjoys his work because "the working environment at the CSIR is conducive to doing science. Management, in general, have succeeded in putting systems in place for scientists to perform work that is relevant, applied at an adequate level and facilitates the developing of new talent."
He authored or co-authored 38 scientific papers in open literature and more than 180 reports with restricted distribution lists. He is a member of the executive committee of the South African Ballistics Organisation (SABO) as well as a SABO Fellow and an elected member of the International Ballistics Committee (IBC). As a member of the latter organisation he features on the paper selection committee for the International Symposium on Ballistics (every 18 months) and has performed duties as chairman or co-chairman in the Terminal Ballistics or Warhead sessions in every IBS since 1999.
Enquiries: CSIR Communication
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