Justus von Liebig (1803 - 1873) |
Freiherr Justus von Liebig (12. May 1803 in Darmstadt, Germany - 18. April 1873 in Munich, Germany)
was a German chemist. He made major contributions to agricultural and biological
chemistry, and worked on the organization of organic chemistry.
He was expelled from his Gymnasium for detonating an explosive device he had made at home
from chemicals obtained from his father's business. He was apprenticed to an apothecary
in Heppenheim.
Liebig studied at the University of Bonn, together with Karl Wilhelm Gottlob Kastner.
When Kastner moved to the University of Erlangen, Liebig accompanied him and received
his doctorate there in 1822. He then received a grant from the Hessian government to
study in Paris.
Through the influence of Alexander von Humboldt he was able to work in the private
laboratory of Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac.
In 1824 at the age of 21, he became professor at the University of Giessen. He was
a professor at the University of Munich from 1852 to 1873. He became Freiherr (baron)
in 1845. Liebig improved organic analysis, and discovered that plants feed on the
nitrogen (actually microbes do the conversions to nitrogen componds) and carbon
dioxide in the air, as well as on minerals in the soil.
One of his most famous
accomplishments was the invention of nitrogen-based fertilizer. He was also one of
the first chemists to organize a laboratory as we know it today. The vapor condensation
device he invented for his research is still known as a "liebig condenser".
In 1865 he founded the Liebig Extract of Meat Company which produced beef extract, an
innovation of his, as a cheap, nutricious alternative to real meat.
The University of Giessen today is officially named after him, Justus Liebig University Giessen.
Liebig's Major Works
- Organic Chemistry in its Application to Agriculture and Physiology (1840)
- Organic Chemistry in its Application to Physiology and Pathology (1842)
Banknote displaying Justus von Liebig
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