Description: (Inventor, Chemist)
Ri Sung-gi, a North Korean chemist, is renowned for inventing Vinalon and his alleged involvement in North Korea's chemical and nuclear weapons programs. He graduated with a chemistry degree from Kyoto University in 1931 and developed Vinalon in 1939. He defected to North Korea during the Korean War in 1950. Throughout his career, he received accolades such as the Lenin Prize in 1962. Ri held prestigious positions including head of the North Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute and chief of the Hamhŭng branch of the Academy of Sciences.