Aleksandr Abramovich Voskresensky (Russian: Александр Абрамович Воскресенский; 25 November 1808 – 21 January 1880) was a
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
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 ...
who served as
rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of
Saint Petersburg Imperial University
Saint Petersburg Imperial University (russian: Санкт-Петербургский Императорский университет) was a Russian higher education institution based in Saint Petersburg, one of the twelve Imperial universities ...
in 1861–1863 and 1865–1867.
Dmitri Mendeleev
Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev (sometimes transliterated as Mendeleyev or Mendeleef) ( ; russian: links=no, Дмитрий Иванович Менделеев, tr. , ; 8 February Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._27_January.html" ;"title="O ...
regarded him as a "grandfather of Russian chemistry". One of his major scientific achievements is the discovery of
theobromine
Theobromine, also known as xantheose, is the principal alkaloid of ''Theobroma cacao'' (cacao plant). Theobromine is slightly water-soluble (330 mg/L) with a bitter taste. In industry, theobromine is used as an additive and precursor to s ...
, the major
alkaloid
Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...
Voskresensky was born to a family of a poor priest, who died in 1814. He had one sister and one brother. From early ages he showed talents for sciences, and, after graduating from the St. Petersburg Institute of Pedagogy in 1836, was sent to Germany to continue his education. There he attended courses of
Eilhard Mitscherlich
Eilhard Mitscherlich (; 7 January 179428 August 1863) was a German chemist, who is perhaps best remembered today for his discovery of the phenomenon of crystallographic isomorphism in 1819.
Early life and work
Mitscherlich was born at Neuende ...
,
Heinrich Rose
Heinrich Rose (6 August 1795 – 27 January 1864) was a German mineralogist and analytical chemist. He was the brother of the mineralogist Gustav Rose and a son of Valentin Rose.
Rose's early works on phosphorescence were noted in the Quarter ...
and
Justus von Liebig
Justus Freiherr von Liebig (12 May 1803 – 20 April 1873) was a German scientist who made major contributions to agricultural and biological chemistry, and is considered one of the principal founders of organic chemistry. As a professor at t ...
, who considered Voskresensky one his most talented students. With Liebig he started his own chemical research. After returning to Russia in 1838 he was appointed as assistant to Prof. Solovyov at University of St. Petersburg. In 1839 he defended his PhD on
quinic acid
Quinic acid is a cyclitol, a cyclic polyol, and a cyclohexanecarboxylic acid. It is a colorless solid that can be extracted from plant sources. Quinic acid is implicated in the perceived acidity of coffee.
Occurrence and preparation
The compound ...
under supervision of
Germain Henri Hess
Germain Henri Hess (russian: Герман Иванович Гесс, German Ivanovich Gess; 7 August 1802 – 30 November 1850) was a Swiss-Russian chemist and doctor who formulated Hess's law, an early principle of thermochemistry.
Early li ...
, and in 1843 was promoted to professor. Hess died in 1850, and Voskresensky took over all his teaching duties, simultaneously lecturing in several St. Petersburg institutions. His students included
Nikolay Beketov
Nikolay Nikolayevich Beketov (russian: Николай Николаевич Бекетов; , Alferovka (now Beketovka), Penza Governorate, Russian Empire – , St. Petersburg, Russian Empire) was a Russian Imperial physical chemist and metallur ...
,
Nikolai Menshutkin
Nikolai Aleksandrovich Menshutkin (russian: Николай Александрович Меншуткин; – ) was a Russian chemist who discovered the process of converting a tertiary amine to a quaternary ammonium salt via the reaction with an ...
and
Dmitri Mendeleev
Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev (sometimes transliterated as Mendeleyev or Mendeleef) ( ; russian: links=no, Дмитрий Иванович Менделеев, tr. , ; 8 February Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._27_January.html" ;"title="O ...
. After serving as rector of Saint Petersburg Imperial University in 1861–1863 and 1865–1867 he briefly moved to