Pierre-Joseph Macquer (9 October 1718 – 15 February 1784) was an influential 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 ...

. He is known for his ''Dictionnaire de chymie'' (1766). He was also involved in practical applications, to medicine and industry, such as the French development of

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises mainl ...

. He worked as a chemist in industries, such as the Manufacture de Sèvres or the

Gobelins Manufactory The Gobelins Manufactory () is a historic tapestry factory in Paris, France. It is located at 42 avenue des Gobelins, near Les Gobelins métro station in the 13th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally established on the site as a medieval ...

. He was an opponent of

Lavoisier Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier ( , ; ; 26 August 17438 May 1794),
CNRS (

Phillipe Macquer was his brother. In 1752 Macquer showed that the pigment

Prussian blue Prussian blue (also known as Berlin blue, Brandenburg blue or, in painting, Parisian or Paris blue) is a dark blue pigment produced by oxidation of ferrous ferrocyanide salts. It has the chemical formula Fe CN)">Cyanide.html" ;"title="e(Cyani ...

could be decomposed by alkaline solutions into a solid iron hydroxide compound and an aqueous solution of

Ferrocyanide Ferrocyanide is the name of the anion CN)6">cyanide.html" ;"title="e(cyanide">CN)6sup>4−. Salts of this coordination complex give yellow solutions. It is usually available as the salt potassium ferrocyanide, which has the formula K4Fe(CN)6. e ...

. In his 1749 ''Elemens de Chymie Theorique'', Macquer builds on Geoffroy's 1718 affinity table, by devoting a whole chapter to the topic of

chemical affinity In chemical physics and physical chemistry, chemical affinity is the electronic property by which dissimilar chemical species are capable of forming chemical compounds. Chemical affinity can also refer to the tendency of an atom or compound to comb ...

: He became adjunct Chemist at the

French Academy of Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV of France, Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific me ...

the 5th of April 1745. He later became Associate Chemist in 1766 before being granted the permanent Chair of Chemistry in 1772. In 1768, Macquer was elected a foreign member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien) is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special ...

. In 1775, he was elected a member to the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. Macquer's salt, also named

monopotassium arsenate Monopotassium arsenate is the inorganic compound with the formula KH2AsO4. A white solid, this salt is used to prepared other arsenic-containing compounds, mainly pesticides. It is prepared by calcining arsenic oxide and potassium nitrate, follo ...

(KH₂AsO₄) is named in his honor.

Works

Macquer, Pierre-Joseph – Dictionnaire de chymie, 1766 – BEIC 8626805

* 1756
Elemens de Chymietheoretique
* 1766
Dictionnaire portatif des arts et metiers, volume 1
* 1766
Dictionnaire portatif des arts et metiers, volume 2
* * *

References

External links

Macquer, Pierre-Joseph (1718–1784)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macquer, Pierre Joseph 1718 births 1784 deaths 18th-century French chemists Members of the French Academy of Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Members of the American Philosophical Society