Justus Von Liebig His Life And Work 18031873 William Ashwell Shenstone 9781160923934 Books
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Justus Von Liebig His Life And Work 18031873 William Ashwell Shenstone 9781160923934 Books
"Justus von Liebig, His Life and Work (1803-1873)," by William Ashwell Shenstone, Forgotten Books, 2012, reprint of the book published by Cassell, London, 1901. This 220 p. (+ads) paperback is a biography of Justus von Liebig, one of the pioneers of chemistry. He arrived just as experiments began to reveal the basic laws of matter, i.e., of chemistry. The Greeks had taught that matter was composed of earth, air, fire and water. Those ideas and alchemy dominated the subject until the latter 18th century when men like Lavoisier, Boyle, Priestly, Davy, Berzelius, et. al., proved that matter is composed of a handful of elements bound together in compounds, each with unique properties.Liebig is best recognized for his advances in chemistry education, but he is also known for the chemical journal, Liebig's Annalen der Chemie which he began in 1832. He developed combustion analysis to determine the molecular formula of an organic compound. The method is still in use, although his good friend Friedrich Wohler is considered the father of organic chemistry for his synthesis of urea from inorganic materials in 1828. Wohler's discovery disproved Vital Force Theory, the idea that materials from living systems are somehow different from those of mineral or other origin.
This was an age when investigators studied organic compounds to learn about bonding and chemical structures. His friendship with Wohler grew out of the concept of isomerism. Liebig had isolated fulminic acid; and Wohler had isolated cyanic acid. They both had the same formula but differing properties, contrary to the previous rule that each formula identified a specific material. Isomerism proved that the way the elements are bonded, i.e. molecular structure, also matters.
Conflicting theories to explain observations were common. Liebig was famous for his strong views, which he defended vigorously. In contrast, Wohler was more the diplomat and peace maker. He urged Liebig to moderate his views. Although Liebig and Wohler were never at the same university, they co-authored numerous papers. Much of their communication was by letter.
Liebig began his career as an apothecary. His father was a "colour manufacturer" giving Liebig early exposure to chemical processing. As synthetic dyes were invented only later (in 1856 by William Perkins, student of Liebig's student AW Hofmann), that presumably means the natural dyes then in use mostly extracted from plants. Liebig did poorly in school. His father apprenticed him as an apothecary, but he found it unsatisfying. He studied at Bonn and Erlangen, but soon went to Paris to study under Gay-Lussac.
The role of alchemy in the history of chemistry is perhaps overstated. Alchemists had developed methods of purification such as filtration, crystallization, sublimation and distillation, but medical schools carried on chemical education. Universities in Europe date from the 11th century (Bolognia, founded 1088; Oxford, 1096) and they included medical schools, which had laboratories. One wonders what chemistry was taught in the age of earth, air, fire and water, but perhaps they studied the medical preparations of the time. Until the adoption of Germ Theory in about 1890, medicine was based on the ideas of the Roman, Galen, i.e., diseases were caused by an imbalance of fluids: blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. This was the age of purges and bleeding patients. Alchemists did not support Galen's ideas. Hence, they were eccentrics to the medical/university establishment.
Much scientific study of chemistry was the work of hobbyists. Boyle and Lavoisier were aristocrats; Lavoisier was guillotined in the French Revolution. Priestly was a preacher. Like Ben Franklin, they did chemical experiments out of curiosity, and usually in private laboratories. Berzelius was a physician, and was appointed Professor of Chemistry at Karolinska Institute, a medical school in Sweden. Gay-Lusac studied at École Polytechnique in Paris, where he eventually became demonstrator in chemistry, and later Professor of Chemistry. Lecture demonstrations were the norm in chemical education. Liebig found it impossible to learn experimental chemistry in Germany. Hence, he went to Paris to study in the laboratory of Gay-Lusac. Even then chemistry training was informal. The student was admitted to the laboratory of the master by recommendation.
In 1822, Liebig was appointed Professor at the University of Giessen, a small Lutheran University in Hesse-Darmstadt. His meeting with Gay-Lusac and this appointment were arranged through Wilhelm von Humbolt, a key player in Liebig's education. Von Humbolt was Prussia's Minister of Education and the founder of the Prussian system of public education, which became the model for general education elsewhere.
At Giessen, Liebig set about creating Liebig's School of Chemistry. It became the model for the study of chemistry and for the modern research university. He worked with 20 students or more at a time with Liebig acting as the master, and older students teaching the basics to entry level students. Hence, the student did his own work advised by a master scientist, learning as he went. Students from around the globe came to be trained in Liebig's laboratory. Liebig's method is still used in US graduate schools.
Liebig studied fermentation to determine how sugar is converted to alcohol and then vinegar. He opposed the idea that living organisms were present, and disputed the findings of Louis Pasteur, who showed that the yeasts are killed by heating briefly to 60 C, i.e., pasteurization.
He undertook a careful study of agriculture and especially the idea of sustainable agriculture, i.e., that essential elements are removed when crops are harvested. They must be replaced, or the fertility of the land is reduced. Today, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potash are considered essential for healthy plants. Liebig is credited with the discovery that nitrogen is essential. However, his list for study was more extensive including lime and humus. He strongly believed in the application of manure, and that humus contributed additional carbon dioxide to aid the growth of young plants. Today the organic content of soils is thought to aid the penetration of plant roots in heavy soils and in the retention of moisture in sandy soils. He learned that minerals applied must be soluble to be available to plants, and that soils retain minerals reducing losses to rain. He selected a barren sandy plot to demonstrate his concepts on a larger scale. His plots treated with manure-based formulations flourished. This work resulted in the creation of "agricultural research stations," the first of which was established near Liepzig in 1851. Other nations established similar ag research programs. (In the US, the Morrill Act of 1862 provided federal land grants for the universities of engineering and agriculture.)
Liebig also investigated animal metabolism and nutrition. He realized that plants produce mostly carbohydrates, which animals convert to fats. He recognized the importance of albuminous substances (i.e., proteins) in the animal diet, and seemed to be on the trail of the essential amino acids.
In 1852, Liebig moved to the University of Munich. There the government established stipends to allow teachers from outlying areas to study in his laboratory. His work continued but on a larger scale. He had an offer to move to Berlin in 1865, but declined. He remained at Munich until his death in 1873.
Liebig's chemistry school caused a proliferation of similar laboratories. The custom in Germany, was to provide the professor with an apartment on the premises. His best student was perhaps AW Hofmann, who brought Liebig's method of chemical education to Britain in 1845. When he returned to Germany at Bonn in 1864, the laboratory provided was said to be palatial.
Von Humbolt's system of education served Germany well. He envisioned universal, compulsory, free, public education supported by taxes, coupled with a tracking system that sent university bound students to gymnasium high schools, and others to technical schools where they learned a trade often through apprenticeships working closely with industry. Similarly university training gave Germany a leading position in chemistry. That allowed it to take over the dye industry from Britain creating the German Dye Trust, later I.G. Farben, which dominated the chemical industry until World War II.
Not covered in the book, the University of Giessen was renamed in Liebig's honor. He was named a baron in Hesse-Darmstadt in 1845. Other sources indicate his test gardens were not immediately successful. He apparently did not work in greenhouses, and required several growing seasons to work out the details. He is credited with learning to make superphosphates by the action of sulfuric acid on bones, still the basis of phosphate fertilizers although now phosphate rock is used. He learned to make beef extracts, which he commercialized. We know them as bullion cubes. Oxo was his brand name.
This book endeavors to tell the story of Justus von Liebig in a non-technical way. Chemical formulas are avoided. However, background in chemistry is needed to understand the discussion. Students of chemistry and especially the history of chemistry will find it of interest. Index.
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Justus Von Liebig His Life And Work 18031873 William Ashwell Shenstone 9781160923934 Books Reviews
Solid historical of this man
"Justus von Liebig, His Life and Work (1803-1873)," by William Ashwell Shenstone, Forgotten Books, 2012, reprint of the book published by Cassell, London, 1901. This 220 p. (+ads) paperback is a biography of Justus von Liebig, one of the pioneers of chemistry. He arrived just as experiments began to reveal the basic laws of matter, i.e., of chemistry. The Greeks had taught that matter was composed of earth, air, fire and water. Those ideas and alchemy dominated the subject until the latter 18th century when men like Lavoisier, Boyle, Priestly, Davy, Berzelius, et. al., proved that matter is composed of a handful of elements bound together in compounds, each with unique properties.
Liebig is best recognized for his advances in chemistry education, but he is also known for the chemical journal, Liebig's Annalen der Chemie which he began in 1832. He developed combustion analysis to determine the molecular formula of an organic compound. The method is still in use, although his good friend Friedrich Wohler is considered the father of organic chemistry for his synthesis of urea from inorganic materials in 1828. Wohler's discovery disproved Vital Force Theory, the idea that materials from living systems are somehow different from those of mineral or other origin.
This was an age when investigators studied organic compounds to learn about bonding and chemical structures. His friendship with Wohler grew out of the concept of isomerism. Liebig had isolated fulminic acid; and Wohler had isolated cyanic acid. They both had the same formula but differing properties, contrary to the previous rule that each formula identified a specific material. Isomerism proved that the way the elements are bonded, i.e. molecular structure, also matters.
Conflicting theories to explain observations were common. Liebig was famous for his strong views, which he defended vigorously. In contrast, Wohler was more the diplomat and peace maker. He urged Liebig to moderate his views. Although Liebig and Wohler were never at the same university, they co-authored numerous papers. Much of their communication was by letter.
Liebig began his career as an apothecary. His father was a "colour manufacturer" giving Liebig early exposure to chemical processing. As synthetic dyes were invented only later (in 1856 by William Perkins, student of Liebig's student AW Hofmann), that presumably means the natural dyes then in use mostly extracted from plants. Liebig did poorly in school. His father apprenticed him as an apothecary, but he found it unsatisfying. He studied at Bonn and Erlangen, but soon went to Paris to study under Gay-Lussac.
The role of alchemy in the history of chemistry is perhaps overstated. Alchemists had developed methods of purification such as filtration, crystallization, sublimation and distillation, but medical schools carried on chemical education. Universities in Europe date from the 11th century (Bolognia, founded 1088; Oxford, 1096) and they included medical schools, which had laboratories. One wonders what chemistry was taught in the age of earth, air, fire and water, but perhaps they studied the medical preparations of the time. Until the adoption of Germ Theory in about 1890, medicine was based on the ideas of the Roman, Galen, i.e., diseases were caused by an imbalance of fluids blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. This was the age of purges and bleeding patients. Alchemists did not support Galen's ideas. Hence, they were eccentrics to the medical/university establishment.
Much scientific study of chemistry was the work of hobbyists. Boyle and Lavoisier were aristocrats; Lavoisier was guillotined in the French Revolution. Priestly was a preacher. Like Ben Franklin, they did chemical experiments out of curiosity, and usually in private laboratories. Berzelius was a physician, and was appointed Professor of Chemistry at Karolinska Institute, a medical school in Sweden. Gay-Lusac studied at École Polytechnique in Paris, where he eventually became demonstrator in chemistry, and later Professor of Chemistry. Lecture demonstrations were the norm in chemical education. Liebig found it impossible to learn experimental chemistry in Germany. Hence, he went to Paris to study in the laboratory of Gay-Lusac. Even then chemistry training was informal. The student was admitted to the laboratory of the master by recommendation.
In 1822, Liebig was appointed Professor at the University of Giessen, a small Lutheran University in Hesse-Darmstadt. His meeting with Gay-Lusac and this appointment were arranged through Wilhelm von Humbolt, a key player in Liebig's education. Von Humbolt was Prussia's Minister of Education and the founder of the Prussian system of public education, which became the model for general education elsewhere.
At Giessen, Liebig set about creating Liebig's School of Chemistry. It became the model for the study of chemistry and for the modern research university. He worked with 20 students or more at a time with Liebig acting as the master, and older students teaching the basics to entry level students. Hence, the student did his own work advised by a master scientist, learning as he went. Students from around the globe came to be trained in Liebig's laboratory. Liebig's method is still used in US graduate schools.
Liebig studied fermentation to determine how sugar is converted to alcohol and then vinegar. He opposed the idea that living organisms were present, and disputed the findings of Louis Pasteur, who showed that the yeasts are killed by heating briefly to 60 C, i.e., pasteurization.
He undertook a careful study of agriculture and especially the idea of sustainable agriculture, i.e., that essential elements are removed when crops are harvested. They must be replaced, or the fertility of the land is reduced. Today, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potash are considered essential for healthy plants. Liebig is credited with the discovery that nitrogen is essential. However, his list for study was more extensive including lime and humus. He strongly believed in the application of manure, and that humus contributed additional carbon dioxide to aid the growth of young plants. Today the organic content of soils is thought to aid the penetration of plant roots in heavy soils and in the retention of moisture in sandy soils. He learned that minerals applied must be soluble to be available to plants, and that soils retain minerals reducing losses to rain. He selected a barren sandy plot to demonstrate his concepts on a larger scale. His plots treated with manure-based formulations flourished. This work resulted in the creation of "agricultural research stations," the first of which was established near Liepzig in 1851. Other nations established similar ag research programs. (In the US, the Morrill Act of 1862 provided federal land grants for the universities of engineering and agriculture.)
Liebig also investigated animal metabolism and nutrition. He realized that plants produce mostly carbohydrates, which animals convert to fats. He recognized the importance of albuminous substances (i.e., proteins) in the animal diet, and seemed to be on the trail of the essential amino acids.
In 1852, Liebig moved to the University of Munich. There the government established stipends to allow teachers from outlying areas to study in his laboratory. His work continued but on a larger scale. He had an offer to move to Berlin in 1865, but declined. He remained at Munich until his death in 1873.
Liebig's chemistry school caused a proliferation of similar laboratories. The custom in Germany, was to provide the professor with an apartment on the premises. His best student was perhaps AW Hofmann, who brought Liebig's method of chemical education to Britain in 1845. When he returned to Germany at Bonn in 1864, the laboratory provided was said to be palatial.
Von Humbolt's system of education served Germany well. He envisioned universal, compulsory, free, public education supported by taxes, coupled with a tracking system that sent university bound students to gymnasium high schools, and others to technical schools where they learned a trade often through apprenticeships working closely with industry. Similarly university training gave Germany a leading position in chemistry. That allowed it to take over the dye industry from Britain creating the German Dye Trust, later I.G. Farben, which dominated the chemical industry until World War II.
Not covered in the book, the University of Giessen was renamed in Liebig's honor. He was named a baron in Hesse-Darmstadt in 1845. Other sources indicate his test gardens were not immediately successful. He apparently did not work in greenhouses, and required several growing seasons to work out the details. He is credited with learning to make superphosphates by the action of sulfuric acid on bones, still the basis of phosphate fertilizers although now phosphate rock is used. He learned to make beef extracts, which he commercialized. We know them as bullion cubes. Oxo was his brand name.
This book endeavors to tell the story of Justus von Liebig in a non-technical way. Chemical formulas are avoided. However, background in chemistry is needed to understand the discussion. Students of chemistry and especially the history of chemistry will find it of interest. Index.
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