This Week in Chemistry: May 5 - May 11

May 05, 2008 at 01:36 AM

Analtech, Inc. is proud to provide this public service feature - This Week in Chemistry - a recap of major breakthroughs in chemistry as well as the commemoration of key individuals birthdates.

Analtech thanks Dr. Leopold May of The Catholic University of America forproviding this information - you can visit his web site by clicking here.

May 5

b. 1811 John W. Draper, pioneer in photography; improved on Daguerre's process, first ACS president.

o Louis Pasteur tests inoculations against anthrax from attenuated bacilli on 24 sheep and other animals, 1881. 

Proctor & Gamble Co. incorporated, 1905.

o Albert Ghiorso, et al., announced the discovery of nobelium (No, 102) based on work done at University of California, Berkeley, 1958.

o One of the most cited papers “The first practical method for asymmetric epoxidation” by T. Katsuki and E. B. Sharpless (J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1980, 102, 5974-5976) was received, 1980.


May 6

b. 1635 Johann Joachim Becher, phlogiston theorist; considered matter made of four principles:  water and three “earths”, vitreous, combustible, and mercurial.

b. 1742 Jean Senebier showed that green plants in light converted 'fixed air' (carbon dioxide) to 'dephlogisticated air' (oxygen).

b. 1859 Julius B. Cohen, researcher on the laws of aromatic substitutions & optical activity.

b. 1871 F. Victor Grignard developed magnesium reagent used in organic chemistry; Nobel Prize (1912) for the discovery of the so-called Grignard reagent, which in recent years has greatly advanced the progress of organic chemistry; shared the prize with Paul Sabatier who received it because for his method of hydrogenating organic compounds in the presence of finely disintegrated metals whereby the progress of organic chemistry has been greatly advanced in recent years.


May 7

b. 1871 Richard B. Moore advocated helium for ballons & dirigibles; supervised production of radium salts in US. 

b. 1909 Edwin H. Land developed a light polarizing material called Polaroid and color photography system; invented Polaroid Land camera; founded Polaroid Corporation.

b. 1939 Sid Altman proved that ribonucleic acid (RNA) can act as catalyst in cell; Nobel Prize (1989) with Thomas R. Cech for their discovery of catalytic properties of RNA.


May 8

b. 1873 Nevil V. Sidgwick, researcher on molecular structure & theory of valency; bonding in coordination compounds; investigated phase equilibria and the solubility of organic acids and bases.

b. 1855 Bohuslav Brauner, researcher in the chemistry of tellurium & the rare earths; predicted the existence of element No. 61 [Pm].

May 9

b. 1877 James C. Irvine, researcher on chemistry of sugars.

b. 1927 Manfred Eigen, shared Nobel Prize (1967) with Ronald George Wreyford Norrish and George Porter for their studies of extremely fast chemical reactions, effected by disturbing the equilibrium by means of very short pulses of energy


May 10

b. 1830 François M. Raoult discovered law (Raoult's Law) that vapor pressure of a solution is proportional to the number of molecules per unit volume in the solution.

b. 1850 Edward Weston, improved nickel plating.

o Robert Bunsen & Gustav R. Kirchhoff announced the discovery of cesium (Cs, 55), 1860.


May 11

b. 1904 Donald F. Othmer, chemical engineer; developer of Othmer still; co-founder & editor of the Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology.