b. 1852 Eugène A. Demarçay discovered europium (Eu, 63)
1901; gave spectroscopic proof of discovery of radium (Ra, 88); vacuum
studies of volatility and low temperatures followed by high temperature spark
spectra. January
1
b. 1852 Eugène A. Demarçay discovered europium (Eu, 63)
1901; gave spectroscopic proof of discovery of radium (Ra, 88); vacuum
studies of volatility and low temperatures followed by high temperature spark
spectra.
?Aluminum Company of America
(ALCOA) renamed 11/12/1906, effective 1/1/1907; originally Pittsburgh Reduction
Company, founded 9/18/1888.
?Merck & Co. founded 1891.
?Rhodia established from merger
of Rhône-Poulenc's divisions of chemicals, fibers and polymers; originally Societé
Chimique des Usines du Rhône founded in 1895.
?Harold C. Urey and George Murphy
announced existence of deuterium (D, 1), heavy isotope of hydrogen (H, 1),
1932.
2
b. 1765 Charles Hatchett discovered niobium (Nb, 41),
formerly columbium, 1801, from columbite.
b. 1822 Rudolph Clausius established foundations for
modern thermodynamics; First stated the
basic idea of the second law of thermodynamics using it in showing that for a
'Carnot cycle', which transmits heat between two heat reservoirs at different
temperatures and at the same time converts heat into work, the maximum work
obtained from a given amount of heat depends solely upon the temperatures of
the heat reservoirs and not upon the nature of the working substance.
b. 1889-1971 Roger Adams researcher in organic chemical
synthesis; directed 184 doctoral theses.
b. 1920 Isaac Asimov, biochemist & science fiction author.
? US Atomic Energy took over
from wartime Manhattan Engineer Commission District, 1947.
3
b. 1916 Keith
James Laidler; researcher in
chemical kinetics and history of physical chemistry.
? Henry Bradley, Binghamton, NY, patent on
oleomargarine (U.S. Patent
No. 110,626) in 1871.
4
b. 1905 Aristid V. Grosse isolated protactinium (Pa, 91) (1927) metal (1934) from
pentoxide isolated in 1927; researcher on uranium‑235 fission by slow
neutrons with Alfred Nier, E. J. Booth & J. R. Dunning, 1940.
?Henry H. Dow prepared bromine
from brine, 1891.
?Benjamin Rush began series of
lectures on chemistry for the people of Philadelphia, 1775.
5
b. 1874 Joseph
Erlanger; research in electrophysiology
of nerves; Nobel Prizein
Physiology or Medicine (1944) for their discoveries relating to the highly
differentiated functions of single nerve fibers with Herbert Spencer Gasser.
6
b. 1872 John V. N. Dorr, inventor & chemical
engineer; developed
the Dorr classifier for extracting ore, which became a practical method for the
separation and chemical treatment of fine solids suspended in liquid.
7
b. 1794
Eihardt Mitscherlich researcher on crystalline structure, catalysis, benzene & its
derivatives; discovered isomorphism.
b. 1833 Henry E. Roscoe, researcher on the chemical action of light; invented
actinometer with Robert Bunsen, 1856; first to isolate vanadium (V, 23), 1869.
b. 1941 John E. Walker, studied amino acid sequences
in protein units of ATP synthetase Nobel
Prize (1997) with Paul D. Boyer for elucidation of the enzymatic mechanism
underlying the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and Jens C. Skou 
for the first discovery of
an ion-transporting enzyme, Na+, K+-ATPase.
8
? J. A. Veatch. discovered borax in mineral water at Tuscan Springs,
California, 1856.
9
b. 1868 Sören P. L. Sörensen, "Father of pH";
researcher on proteins, amino acids, enzymes & hydrogen ion concentrations.
b. 1922 H. Gobind Khorana, first to synthesize an
artificial gene; interpretation of genetic code & protein synthesis
function; Nobel Prize in Medicine (1968) with Marshall W. Nirenberg & Robert W. Holley for their interpretation of the genetic code
and its function in protein synthesis.
10
b. 1877 Frederick G. Cottrell, researcher in nitrogen
fixation, liquefaction of gases, & recovery of helium; invented
electrostatic (Cottrell) precipitator for precipitation of particles from
gases.
b. 1916 Sune K. Bergström, shared the 1982
Nobel Prize in Medicine with Bengt I. Samuelsson and John R. Vane for their
discoveries concerning prostaglandins and related biologically active
substances.
? Eagle-Picher Industries
incorporated, 1867.
? ACS published the first issue
of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Edition, 1923. The NewsEdition was published on the 10th and
20th of each month and was included with the other ACS publications
as part of the ACS dues package. On January 10, 1942, the magazine was first
published as Chemical and Engineering News (CE&N). A history of the magazine appeared in the January
12, 1998 issue of CEN (the 75th
anniversary issue).
11
b. 1875 Frederick M. Becket, inventor in electrochemistry
& electrometallurgy; received more
than one hundred patents covering a wide range of electric furnace and chemical
products, notably ferro-alloys, calcium carbide, and special chromium steels.
.
12
b. 1579 Jan Bapista Van Helmont, alchemist; proposed
two basic elements, air and water; founder of pneumatic chemistry; coined term
?gas?; isolated carbon dioxide as gas sylvestre.
b. 1716 Antonio de Ulloa discovered platinum with Jorge Juan (Pt, 78) (1748); established the first museum of natural history, the
first metallurgical
laboratory in Spain, and the observatory of Cadiz.
b. 1916 Ruth R. Benerito, first woman to win the Southern
Chemist Award for research in cotton chemistry.
b. 1912 Konrad E. Bloch, researcher on cholesterol & fatty acid
metabolism; Nobel Prize (1964) with Feodor Lynen for their discoveries concerning the mechanism and
regulation of the cholesterol and fatty acid metabolism.
?Henry L. Smith
took first x‑ray photograph, 1896.
13
b. 1780 Pierre J. Robiquet discovered asparagine with
Nicolas-Louis Vauquelin; codeine content of opium.
b. 1850 Charles F. Mabery, pioneer in petroleum
chemistry & electrolytic aluminum & bromine industries.
14
b. 1851 Rainer Ludwig
Claisen
developed reactions such as condensation of esters & rearrangement of allyl
vinyl ethers; developed the Claisen
flask and Claisen's rule that relates acidity to enolisation; research on
tautomerism.
b. 1868 Francis D. Dodge, expert in chemistry of
essential oils.
? Armstrong World Industries
incorporated as Armstrong Cork Co., 1895.
15
b. 1785 William Prout suggested that all atomic
weights were multiples of weight of hydrogen (Prout's Hypothesis); identified
hydrochloric acid in the stomach.
b. 1739 Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours, transformed explosive maker E. I. du Pont de Nemours into a diversified chemical producer. For biography: http://www.heritage.dupont.com/floater/fl_pierresamuel/floater.shtml
b. 1895 Artturi Il Mari Virtanen, researcher on nutrition & development of food
resources; nitrogen fixation; developed method for preserving silage; Nobel
Prize (1945) for his research and inventions in agricultural and nutrition
chemistry, especially for his fodder preservation method.
b. 1912 Frank H. Westheimer, researcher in physical organic chemistry& on the calculation of electric effects in
chemistry.
? Henry Cavendish presented the
quantitative composition of water before Royal Society, 1784.
16
b. 1767 Anders G. Ekeberg discovered tantalum (Ta, 73)
1802.
b. 1875 Leonor
Michaelis, researcher in physical chemistry, in particular its use
in biology and medicine; developed an equation (Michaelis-Menten) with Maude
Leonora Menten that relates the velocity of enzyme catalyzed reactions to the
concentration of reactants; discovered that keratin was soluble in thioglycolic
acid & was a pioneer of the permanent wave.
? First isolation by ion
exchange chromatography & identification of fermium (Fm, 100) with sample
of only about 200 atoms at University of California, Berkeley, 1953.
17
b. 1706 Benjamin Franklin, researcher in electricity; inventor, statesman, described marsh gas to
Priestley.
b. 1781 Robert Hare invented the oxyhydrogen
blowtorch, 1801, and a voltaic battery
having large plates, used for producing rapid and powerful combustion,
called a deflagrator.
18
b. 1825 Edward Frankland, theory of valency (1852‑60);
discovered helium (He, 2) in the sun with Norman Lockyer, 1868; authority on
sanitation & river pollution; first synthesis of organometallic compound.
? Hans Goldschmidt invented the
alumino‑thermite process (Goldschmidt Process), 1861.
19
b. 1885 Harry L. Fisher, inventor in field of rubber
technology & synthetic rubber.
20
b. 1758 Marie Anne Paulze Lavoisier, research assistant, collaborator, illustrator,
editor, publisher, and spouse of Antoine Lavoisier;
later spouse (but not collaborator) of Benjamin
Thompson, Count Rumford.
b. 1834 Adolph Frank made calcium cyanamide from
calcium carbide & nitrogen, 1898.
? American Tobacco Company,
incorporated, 1890.
21
b. 1845 Edward Mallinckrodt, founder of Mallinckrodt
Chemical Works.
? Dow Chemical Company,
Freeport, TX, produced an ingot of magnesium (Mg, 12), the first commercial
ingot of any metal ever to be extracted from seawater, 1941.
22
b. 1796 Karl K. Klaus discovered ruthenium (Ru, 44)
(1844); pioneer in platinum chemistry. He lived to 96.
b. 1822 Henri Erni, teacher of chemistry, US
consul in Switzerland.
b. 1917 George G. Henderson, discovered enzyme that makes
fireflies glow; Head of National Science Foundation (1969-1972).
b. 1936 Alan J. Heeger, shared Nobel Prize in
Chemistry (2000) with Alan G. MacDiarmid and Hidaki Shirakawa for their
discovery and development of conductive polymers.
23
b. 1872 Paul Langevin, researcher on x‑rays & magnetism.
b. 1876 Otto Paul Hermann Diels developed the diene synthesis & practical method
for making ring compounds from chain compounds (Diels‑Alder Reaction);
Nobel Prize (1950) with Kurt Alder for their discovery and development of the
diene synthesis.
b. 1918 Gertrude B. Elion, researcher on the synthesis and development of
therapeutic agents; Nobel Prize (1988) in Medicine with James W. Black and George H. Hitchings for their discoveries of
important principles for drug treatment.
b. 1929 John C. Polanyi, researcher using infrared chemiluminescence to
follow the excited reaction products; Nobel Prize (1986) with Dudley R.
Hershbach & Yuan T. Lee for
their contributions concerning the dynamics of chemical elementary processes.
24
b. 1872 Morris W. Travers codiscovered krypton (Kr, 36)
1898, neon (Ne, 10) 1898, & xenon (Xe, 54) 1898, with William Ramsay;
researcher on low temperature.
? Gold discovered at Sutter's
Mill in northern California setting off the '49er Gold Rush, 1848.
? Beer first sold in cans,
1935.
? B. B. Cunningham, et al.,
made first reported observation of absorption spectrum of compound of
einsteinium (Es, 99) at University of California, Berkeley, 1966.
25
b. 1627 Robert Boyle defined an element; discovered
Boyle's Law; stated that matter was
composed of corpuscles which themselves were differently built up of different
configurations of primary particles; suggested
alcohol as biological preservative.
b. 1865 William D. Horne, innovator in refining &
manufacturing of sugar.
b. 1917 lya
Prigogine, researcher in
irreversible processes; Nobel Prize (1977) for his contributions to non-equilibrium thermodynamics, particularly
the theory of dissipative structures.
b. 1923 Arvid Carlsson shared Nobel Prize in
Physiology and Medicine (2000) with Paul Greengard for their discoveries
concerning signal transduction in the nervous system and Eric R. Kandel for
discoveries of how efficiency of synapses can be modified and molecular
mechanisms take part in memory.
? Martin H. Klaproth reported
to the Berlin Academy of Sciences, 1798, the discovery of a new element by
Müller von Reichenstein in 1782 & named it tellurium (Te, 52).
26
b. 1881
Claude S. Hudson,
researcher in chemistry of sugars.
? Niels Bohr reported the
discovery of nuclear fission by Otto Hahn & Fritz Strassman at Fifth
Washington Conference on Theoretical Chemistry, 1939.
27
b. 1870 Louis A. Kahlenberg, pioneer in American physical
chemistry.
? F. August Kekulé presented
his benzene structure to Société Chimique, Paris, 1865.
? Chevron incorporated, 1926.
28
b. 1843 Henry C. Bolton, writer & bibliographer of
history of chemistry; studied the action
of organic acids on minerals.
b. 1929 Edith Marie Flanigan, developed molecular sieves as catalysts; Perkin Medal,
1992.
29
b. 1838 Edward W. Morley performed ether drift experiments with Albert A.
Mickelson; made extremely accurate determination of combining weights of
hydrogen (H, 1) & oxygen (O, 8).
30
b. 1862 George G. Henderson, researcher on catalysis.
b. 1891 Harold S. Booth, researcher in inorganic
chemistry, particularly fluoride gases.
b. 1949 Peter Agre who shared the 2003 Nobel Prize with Roderick MacKinnon, was born on this date. He
was awarded it for the discovery of
water channels.
31
b. 1868 Theodore W. Richards, researcher on atomic weights,
electrochemistry, & thermodynamics; discovered isotopes of lead from uranium
& thorium, 1913; Nobel Prize (1914) in recognition of his accurate determinations of the
atomic weight of a large number of chemical elements.
b. 1881 Irving Langmuir, research on surface
chemistry, introduced gas-filled tungsten lamps & use of atomic hydrogen
blowpipe for welding; invented condensation pump for producing high vacuum;
evolved electronic theory with Gilbert N. Lewis; Nobel Prize (1932) for his discoveries and
investigations in surface chemistry.
?The first paper on the solid phase synthesis of
peptides by R. B. Merrifield was received on this date by the Journal of the American Chemical Society [85, 2149 (1963)].