Henri-François Gaultier de Claubry (21 Jul 1792 – 4 Jul 1878) was a French chemist and toxicologist. Following the discovery of iodine in 1811, he examined its properties along with

Jean-Jacques Colin Jean-Jacques Colin (16 December 1784 – 1865) was a French chemist known for his work in plant physiology, fermentation, and the chemistry of iodine. He collaborated with Henri-François Gaultier de Claubry on research demonstrating the interact ...

(1784-1865) and identified its ability to react with starch in 1814.

Biography

Gaultier de Claubry was born in Paris, son of well-known physician Charles-Daniel. After beginning studies in medicine, he shifted to research and began to apprentice in the pharmacies of Pelletier and Boudet and at the

Hôpital de la Charité Hôpital de la Charité (, "Charity Hospital") was a hospital in Paris founded by the Brothers Hospitallers of St. John of God in the 17th century. In 1935, it was closed and demolished to make way for the new faculty of medicine. Located at 45, ...

before joining the laboratory of Gay Lussac at the

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 mat ...

. He then worked under Louis Jacques Thenard at the Faculty of Sciences. In 1812 he translated William Henry's ''Elements of Experimental Chemistry'' into French.

Iodine–starch test

The iodine–starch test was first described in 1814 by Gaultier de Claubry and Jean-Jacques Colin, and independently by

Friedrich Stromeyer Friedrich Stromeyer FRS(For) FRSE (2 August 1776 – 18 August 1835) was a German chemist. He was the discoverer of cadmium. From 1982, the Friedrich Stromeyer Prize has been awarded for chemical achievement in Germany. Biography He was born i ...

the same year.

Classification of minerals

His thesis published in 1824 was on the classification of minerals. His work was a critique of the method of Berzelius in which he had disregarded physical forms, depending only on chemical composition and proportions. The minerals examined were silicates.

Public health

Gaultier de Claubry was also involved in public health after being elected to the Conseil d'Hygiène of the Department of the Seine in 1825 and worked particularly on the testing and examination of products for

adulteration An adulterant is a substance secretly added to another that may compromise the safety or effectiveness. Typical substances that are adulterated include food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or fuels. Definition Adulteration is the practice of secre ...

, hygiene and disinfection. He thought plague was a variety of typhus as also typhoid although he considered typhus to be aided by overcrowding unlike typhoid. In 1835 he became a professor of chemistry at the École de Pharmacie. He was elected to the

Académie Nationale de Médecine Situated at 16 Rue Bonaparte in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the Académie nationale de médecine (National Academy of Medicine) was created in 1820 by King Louis XVIII at the urging of baron Antoine Portal. At its inception, the institu ...

in 1848 and was made officer of the Légion d'honneur in 1849.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Claubry, HenriFrancois Gaultier de 1878 deaths 1792 births 19th-century French chemists Scientists from Paris Recipients of the Legion of Honour French toxicologists