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Paul Marie Eugène Vieille
Paul Marie Eugène Vieille (2 September 1854 – 14 January 1934) was a French chemist who invented modern nitrocellulose-based smokeless gunpowder in 1884. He was a graduate of École Polytechnique. Impact The new smokeless powder, called Poudre B, was three times as powerful as black powder for the same weight and left virtually no residues of combustion. Paul Vieille soon became director of the "Laboratoire Central des Poudres et Salpetres" in Paris, where his research had taken place. His invention was applied not only to small arms but also to the full range of artillery ammunition. His invention was widely followed within a short time by all the major military powers. Vieille received the Prix Leconte (â‚£50,000) in 1889 in recognition of his discovery. Veille was a member of the French Academy of Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (, ) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlantic, North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and List of islands of France, many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean, giving it Exclusive economic zone of France, one of the largest discontiguous exclusive economic zones in the world. Metropolitan France shares borders with Belgium and Luxembourg to the north; Germany to the northeast; Switzerland to the east; Italy and Monaco to the southeast; Andorra and Spain to the south; and a maritime border with the United Kingdom to the northwest. Its metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea. Its Regions of France, eighteen integral regions—five of which are overseas—span a combined area of and hav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chemistry
Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their composition, structure, properties, behavior and the changes they undergo during chemical reaction, reactions with other chemical substance, substances. Chemistry also addresses the nature of chemical bonds in chemical compounds. In the scope of its subject, chemistry occupies an intermediate position between physics and biology. It is sometimes called the central science because it provides a foundation for understanding both Basic research, basic and Applied science, applied scientific disciplines at a fundamental level. For example, chemistry explains aspects of plant growth (botany), the formation of igneous rocks (geology), how atmospheric ozone is formed and how environmental pollutants are degraded (ecology), the prop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smokeless Gunpowder
Finnish smokeless powder Smokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to black powder. Because of their similar use, both the original black powder formulation and the smokeless propellant which replaced it are commonly described as gunpowder. The combustion products of smokeless powder are mainly gaseous, compared to around 55% solid products (mostly potassium carbonate, potassium sulfate, and potassium sulfide) for black powder. In addition, smokeless powder does not leave the thick, heavy fouling of hygroscopic material associated with black powder that causes rusting of the barrel. Despite its name, smokeless powder is not completely free of smoke; while there may be little noticeable smoke from small-arms ammunition, smoke from artillery fire can be substantial. Invented in 1884 by Paul Vieille, the most common formulations are based on nitrocellulose, but the term was also used to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leconte Prize
The Leconte Prize ( French: ') is a prize created in 1886 by the French Academy of Sciences to recognize important discoveries in mathematics, physics, chemistry, natural history or medicine. In recent years the prize has been awarded in the specific categories of mathematics, physics, and biology. Scientists and mathematicians of all nationalities are eligible for the award. The value of the award in the late 19th and early 20th century was F50,000 (at the time equivalent to £2,000, or US$10,000), about five times as much as the annual salary of the average professor in France. The award was F22,000 in 1984, F20,000 in 2001, €3,000 in 2008, €2,500 in 2010, €2,000 in 2014, and €1,500 in 2019. The Leconte Prize was established with a donation from a businessman, Victor Eugene Leconte, to the academy. The donation specified that a F50,000 prize would be awarded every three years for outstanding past work, and that up to 1/8th of the interest earned by the fund each year cou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chemist
A chemist (from Greek ''chÄ“m(Ãa)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms. Chemists carefully measure substance proportions, chemical reaction rates, and other chemical properties. In Commonwealth English, pharmacists are often called chemists. Chemists use their knowledge to learn the composition and properties of unfamiliar substances, as well as to reproduce and synthesize large quantities of useful naturally occurring substances and create new artificial substances and useful processes. Chemists may specialize in any number of Chemistry#Subdisciplines, subdisciplines of chemistry. Materials science, Materials scientists and metallurgists sha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nitrocellulose
Nitrocellulose (also known as cellulose nitrate, flash paper, flash cotton, guncotton, pyroxylin and flash string, depending on form) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to a mixture of nitric acid and sulfuric acid. One of its first major uses was as guncotton, a replacement for gunpowder as propellant in firearms. It was also used to replace gunpowder as a low-order explosive in mining and other applications. In the form of collodion, it was also a critical component in an early photographic emulsion, the use of which revolutionized photography in the 1860s. In the 20th century, it was adapted to automobile lacquer and adhesives. Production The process uses a mixture of nitric acid and sulfuric acid to convert cellulose into nitrocellulose. The quality of the cellulose is important. Hemicellulose, lignin, pentosans, and mineral salts give inferior nitrocelluloses. In organic chemistry, nitrocellulose is a nitrate ester, not a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
École Polytechnique
(, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mathematician Gaspard Monge during the French Revolution and was militarized under Napoleon I in 1804. It is still supervised by the Ministry of Armed Forces (France), French Ministry of Armed Forces. Originally located in the Latin Quarter, Paris, Latin Quarter in central Paris, the institution moved to Palaiseau in 1976, in the Paris-Saclay, Paris-Saclay technology cluster. French engineering students undergo initial military training and have the status of paid Aspirant, officer cadets. The school has also been awarding doctorates since 1985, masters since 2005 and bachelors since 2017. Most Polytechnique engineering graduates go on to become top executives in companies, senior civil servants, military officers, or researchers. List of É ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Poudre B
Poudre B was the first practical smokeless gunpowder created in 1884. It was perfected between 1882 and 1884 at "Laboratoire Central des Poudres et Salpêtres" in Paris, France. Originally called "Poudre V" from the name of the inventor, Paul Vieille, it was arbitrarily renamed "Poudre B" (short for ''poudre blanche''—white powder, as distinguished from black powder) to distract German espionage.Davis, Tenney L. ''The Chemistry of Powder & Explosives'' (1943) pages 289–292 "Poudre B" is made from 68.2% insoluble nitrocellulose, 29.8% soluble nitrocellulose gelatinized with ether and 2% paraffin. "Poudre B" is made up of very small paper-thin flakes that are not white but dark greenish grey in colour. "Poudre B" was first used to load the 8mm Lebel cartridges issued in 1886 for the Lebel rifle. History German-Swiss chemist Christian Friedrich Schönbein created the explosive substance nitrocellulose, or "guncotton", in 1846 by treating cotton fibers with a nitric acid and su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Powder
Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium nitrate (saltpeter). The sulfur and charcoal act as fuels while the saltpeter is an oxidizer. Gunpowder has been widely used as a propellant in firearms, artillery, rocketry, and pyrotechnics, including use as a blasting agent for explosives in quarrying, mining, building Pipeline transport, pipelines, tunnels, and road#Construction, roads. Gunpowder is classified as a Explosive#Low, low explosive because of its relatively slow decomposition rate, low ignition temperature and consequently low brisance, brisance (breaking/shattering). Low explosives deflagration, deflagrate (i.e., burn at subsonic speeds), whereas high explosives detonation, detonate, producing a supersonic shockwave. Ignition of gunpowder packed behind a projectile generates ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prix Leconte
The Leconte Prize ( French: ') is a prize created in 1886 by the French Academy of Sciences to recognize important discoveries in mathematics, physics, chemistry, natural history or medicine. In recent years the prize has been awarded in the specific categories of mathematics, physics, and biology. Scientists and mathematicians of all nationalities are eligible for the award. The value of the award in the late 19th and early 20th century was F50,000 (at the time equivalent to £2,000, or US$10,000), about five times as much as the annual salary of the average professor in France. The award was F22,000 in 1984, F20,000 in 2001, €3,000 in 2008, €2,500 in 2010, €2,000 in 2014, and €1,500 in 2019. The Leconte Prize was established with a donation from a businessman, Victor Eugene Leconte, to the academy. The donation specified that a F50,000 prize would be awarded every three years for outstanding past work, and that up to 1/8th of the interest earned by the fund each year cou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Academy Of Sciences
The French Academy of Sciences (, ) is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific method, scientific research. It was at the forefront of scientific developments in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, and is one of the earliest Academy of Sciences, Academies of Sciences. Currently headed by Patrick Flandrin (President of the academy), it is one of the five Academies of the . __TOC__ History The Academy of Sciences traces its origin to Colbert's plan to create a general academy. He chose a small group of scholars who met on 22 December 1666 in the King's library, near the present-day Bibliothèque nationale de France, Bibliothèque Nationale, and thereafter held twice-weekly working meetings there in the two rooms assigned to the group. The first 30 years of the academy's existence were relatively informal, since no statutes had as yet been laid down for the ins ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1854 Births
Events January–March * January 4 – The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the ''Samarang''. * January 6 – The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes is perhaps born. * January 9 – The Teutonia Männerchor in Pittsburgh is founded to promote German culture. * January 20 – The North Carolina General Assembly in the United States charters the Atlantic and North Carolina Railroad, to run from Goldsboro through New Bern, to the newly created seaport of Morehead City, near Beaufort. * January 21 – The iron clipper runs aground off the east coast of Ireland, on her maiden voyage out of Liverpool, bound for Australia, with the loss of at least 300 out of 650 on board. * February 11 – Major streets are lit by coal gas for the first time by the San Francisco Gas Company; 86 such lamps are turned on this evening in San Francisco, California. * February 13 – Mexican troops force William Walker and his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
