Louis Édouard Grimaux (3 July 1835, Rochefort-sur-Mer – 2 May 1900,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

) was a French

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

, known for his research in the area of

organic synthesis Organic synthesis is a special branch of chemical synthesis and is concerned with the intentional construction of organic compounds. Organic molecules are often more complex than inorganic compounds, and their synthesis has developed into one o ...

Biography

From 1853 to 1858 he served as a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

for the French navy at the ports of Rochefort and

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

. In 1861 he moved to Paris, where he obtained his pharmacy degree (first class). In 1865 he earned his medical doctorate, and during the following year, received his

agrégation In France, the ''agrégation'' () is a competitive examination for civil service in the French public education system. Candidates for the examination, or ''agrégatifs'', become ''agrégés'' once they are admitted to the position of ''professe ...

for chemistry. In 1866 he began work in the laboratory of

Charles-Adolphe Wurtz Charles Adolphe Wurtz (; 26 November 181710 May 1884) was an Alsatian French chemist. He is best remembered for his decades-long advocacy for the atomic theory and for ideas about the structures of chemical compounds, against the skeptical opinio ...

. In 1873 he became sub-director in the laboratory of advanced studies at the Sorbonne, and three years later, was appointed professor of general chemistry at the Institute of Agronomy. In 1881 he was the successor of Auguste André Thomas Cahours at the

École Polytechnique École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

, but was forced to relinquish his professorship in 1898 due to his support regarding the innocence of

Alfred Dreyfus Alfred Dreyfus ( , also , ; 9 October 1859 – 12 July 1935) was a French artillery officer of Jewish ancestry whose trial and conviction in 1894 on charges of treason became one of the most polarizing political dramas in modern French history. ...

.Torchbearers of Chemistry: Portraits and Brief Biographies of Scientists
by Henry Monmouth Smith His research included studies of nitrites, allantoin, aromatic

glycols A diol is a chemical compound containing two hydroxyl groups ( groups). An aliphatic diol is also called a glycol. This pairing of functional groups is pervasive, and many subcategories have been identified. The most common industrial diol is e ...

and on the synthesis of

citric acid Citric acid is an organic compound with the chemical formula HOC(CO2H)(CH2CO2H)2. It is a colorless weak organic acid. It occurs naturally in citrus fruits. In biochemistry, it is an intermediate in the citric acid cycle, which occurs in t ...

. Also, he conducted extensive research on the properties of numerous uric acid derivatives. In 1881 he succeeded in preparing

codeine Codeine is an opiate and prodrug of morphine mainly used to treat pain, coughing, and diarrhea. It is also commonly used as a recreational drug. It is found naturally in the sap of the opium poppy, ''Papaver somniferum''. It is typically use ...

synthetically from

morphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a analgesic, pain medication, and is also commonly used recreational drug, recreationally, or to make ...

Published works

He was the author of more than 120 scientific papers and books. He is credited with writing the first extensive

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

of Antoine Lavoisier. He also published a biography of

Charles Frédéric Gerhardt Charles Frédéric Gerhardt (21 August 1816 – 19 August 1856) was a French chemist, born in Alsace and active in Paris, Montpellier, and his native Strasbourg. Biography He was born in Strasbourg, which is where he attended the gymnasium (an ...

. * ''Equivalents, atomes, molécules'', 1866. * ''Introduction à l'étude de la chimie, théories et notations chimiques'', 1883. * ''Lavoisier'', 1888. * ''Chimie organique élémentaire'', 1889. * ''Charles Gerhardt, sa vie, son oeuvre, sa correspondance, 1816-1856'', 1900.Édouard Grimaux (1835-1900)
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grimaux, Edouard 1835 births 1900 deaths École Polytechnique faculty Members of the French Academy of Sciences People from Rochefort, Charente-Maritime 19th-century French chemists