Lecoq de Boisbaudran
| P.-E. Lecoq de Boisbaudran | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
18 April 1838 Cognac, France |
| Died | 28 May 1912 (aged 74) Paris, France |
| Fields | Chemistry, spectroscopy |
| Known for | Discovering gallium, samarium and dysprosium |
| Notable awards | Davy Medal (1879) |
Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, also called François Lecoq de Boisbaudran (18 April 1838 – 28 May 1912), was a French chemist known for his discoveries of the chemical elements gallium, samarium and dysprosium.
De Boisbaudran belonged to the ancient Protestant nobility of considerable fortune, which, however, disappeared after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The property of de Boisbaudran was sold; and his father Paul started a wine business at Cognac. The venture required the energy of the entire family, including young Lecoq. His mother was well educated and taught him history and foreign languages, so he was fluent in English. He also studied some courses of the École Polytechnique by reading the syllabus and fitted up a modest laboratory, where he began to repeat the experiments which he had read in books. In this laboratory he made most of his early discoveries, including the isolation of gallium.
De Boisbaudran’s early work focused on supersaturation of solutions. He showed that supersaturation is destroyed by contact with crystals of an isomorphous salt, and that it is possible to prepare solutions of anhydrous salts in a supersaturated condition (1866–1869). In 1874 he found that octahedral faces are less readily soluble than cubic faces for ammonium alum crystals. His chief work, however, was in spectroscopy and its application to rare earth elements. He analysed spectra of 35 elements, using the Bunsen burner, electric spark or both to induce luminescence and in this way discovered the lanthanides samarium (1880), dysprosium (1886) and europium (1890). He also isolated gadolinium in 1885, the element which was previously discovered in 1880 by J.C. Galissard de Marignac.
...
Wikipedia