Hans von Pechmann (1 April 1850 – 19 April 1902) was a German
chemist, renowned for his discovery of
diazomethane in 1894.
Pechmann condensation and
Pechmann pyrazole synthesis. He also first prepared
1,2-diketone
In organic chemistry, a dicarbonyl is a molecule containing two carbonyl () groups. Although this term could refer to any organic compound containing two carbonyl groups, it is used more specifically to describe molecules in which both carbonyls ...
s (e.g.,
diacetyl),
acetonedicarboxylic acid
Acetonedicarboxylic acid, 3-oxoglutaric acid or β-ketoglutaric acid is a simple dicarboxylic acid.
Preparation
Acetonedicarboxylic acid can also be prepared by decarboxylation of citric acid in fuming sulfuric acid:
:
Applications
Acetonedicar ...
,
methylglyoxal and
diphenyltriketone; established the symmetrical structure of
anthraquinone.
Von Pechmann also produced the first example of solid
polyethylene serendipitous
Serendipity is an unplanned fortunate discovery. Serendipity is a common occurrence throughout the history of product invention and scientific discovery.
Etymology
The first noted use of "serendipity" was by Horace Walpole on 28 January 1754. ...
ly in 1898, via the decomposition of diazomethane.
He was born in
Nürnberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ci ...
. After studying with
Heinrich Limpricht
Heinrich Limpricht (21 April 1827 – 13 May 1909) was a German chemist. Limpricht was a pupil of Friedrich Wöhler; he worked on the chemistry of furans and pyrroles, discovering furan in 1870.
In 1852 he became lecturer and in 1855 extraor ...
at the
University of Greifswald he became professor at the
University of Munich till 1895. He was professor at the
University of Tübingen from 1895 until his death. He killed himself by taking cyanide, aged 52.
Works
* ''Volhard's Anleitung zur Qualitativen chemischen Analyse'' . Chemisches Labolatorium des Staates, München 9th & 10th ed. 190
Digital editionby the
University and State Library Düsseldorf
The University and State Library Düsseldorf (german: Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Düsseldorf, abbreviated ULB Düsseldorf) is a central service institution of Heinrich Heine University. Along with Bonn and Münster, it is also one of th ...
* ''Anleitung zur quantitativen Analyse nach Cl. Zimmermann : zum Gebrauche im chemischen Laboratorium des Staates zu München'' . Chemisches Laboratorium des Staates, München 10th ed. 190
Digital editionby the
University and State Library Düsseldorf
The University and State Library Düsseldorf (german: Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Düsseldorf, abbreviated ULB Düsseldorf) is a central service institution of Heinrich Heine University. Along with Bonn and Münster, it is also one of th ...
See also
*
German inventors and discoverers
References
*
Partington, J. R. ''A History of Chemistry''. Macmillan: 1964; vol. 4, p. 838-839.
1850 births
19th-century German chemists
University of Greifswald alumni
German chemists
Suicides by poison
Suicides in Germany
1902 suicides
{{Germany-chemist-stub