Editing Hermann Kolbe

{{Short description|German chemist (1818–1884)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name              = Hermann Kolbe
| image             = Hermann Kolbe2.jpg
| caption           = Kolbe, c. 1860
| birth_name        = Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe
| birth_date        = {{Birth date|1818|9|27|df=y}}
| birth_place       = Elliehausen, [[Kingdom of Hanover]]
| nationality       = German
| death_date        = {{death date and age|1884|11|25|1818|9|27|df=y}}
| death_place       = [[Leipzig]], [[Kingdom of Saxony]], [[German Empire]]
| field             = [[Chemist]]
| work_institutions = [[University of Marburg]]<br/>[[University of Leipzig]]
| alma_mater        = [[University of Marburg]]
| doctoral_advisor  = [[Robert Bunsen]]<br/> [[Friedrich Wöhler]]
| doctoral_students = [[Peter Griess]]<br/> [[Aleksandr Mikhailovich Zaitsev]]<br/> [[Theodor Curtius]]<br/> [[Ernst Otto Beckmann]]<br/> [[Carl Graebe]]<br/> [[Oscar Loew]]<br/> [[Constantin Fahlberg]]<br/> [[Nikolai Menshutkin]]<br/> [[Vladimir Markovnikov]]<br/> [[Jacob Volhard]]<br/> [[Ludwig Mond]]<br/> [[Alexander Crum Brown]]<br/> [[Maxwell Simpson]]<br/> [[Frederick Guthrie (scientist)|Frederick Guthrie]] [Note, not primary advisor for all in this list]
| known_for         = [[Kolbe electrolysis]],<br/> [[Kolbe–Schmitt reaction]]<br/> [[Kolbe nitrile synthesis]]
| prizes            = [[Davy Medal]] {{small|(1884)}}<br>[[List of fellows of the Royal Society J, K, L|ForMemRS]] {{small|(1877)}}
| footnotes         = 
}}

'''Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe''' (27 September 1818 – 25 November 1884<ref name="Britannica bio"/>) was a German chemist and academic, and a major contributor to the birth of modern [[organic chemistry]]. He was a professor at [[University of Marburg|Marburg]] and [[Leipzig University|Leipzig]]. Kolbe was the first to apply the term [[chemical synthesis|synthesis]] in a chemical context, and contributed to the philosophical demise of [[vitalism]] through synthesis of the [[organic chemical|organic substance]] acetic acid from [[carbon disulfide]], and also contributed to the development of [[structural theory]]. This was done via modifications to the idea of "radicals" and accurate prediction of the existence of secondary and tertiary alcohols, and to the emerging array of organic reactions through his [[Kolbe electrolysis]] of carboxylate salts, the [[Kolbe-Schmitt reaction]] in the preparation of [[aspirin]] and the [[Kolbe nitrile synthesis]]. After studies with [[Friedrich Wöhler|Wöhler]] and [[Robert Bunsen|Bunsen]], Kolbe was involved with the early internationalization of chemistry through work in London (with [[Edward Frankland|Frankland]]). He was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and won the [[Royal Society of London]]'s Davy Medal in the year of his death. Despite these accomplishments and his training important members of the next generation of chemists (including [[Aleksandr Mikhailovich Zaitsev|Zaitsev]], [[Theodor Curtius|Curtius]], [[Ernst Otto Beckmann|Beckmann]], [[Carl Graebe|Graebe]], [[Vladimir Markovnikov|Markovnikov]], and others), Kolbe is best remembered for editing the [[:de:Journal für praktische Chemie|''Journal für Praktische Chemie'']] for more than a decade, in which his vituperative essays on [[August Kekulé|Kekulé]]'s structure of benzene, [[Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff|van't Hoff]]'s theory on the origin of [[chirality]] and [[Adolf von Baeyer|Baeyer]]'s reforms of nomenclature were personally critical and linguistically violent. Kolbe died of a heart attack in [[Leipzig]] at age 66, six years after the death of his wife, Charlotte.

==Life==

Kolbe was born in Elliehausen, near [[Göttingen]], [[Kingdom of Hanover]] (Germany) as the eldest son of a [[Protestant]] pastor. At the age of 13, he entered the Göttingen Gymnasium, residing at the home of one of the professors. He obtained the leaving certificate (the [[Abitur]]) six years later. He had become passionate about the study of [[chemistry]], matriculating at the [[University of Göttingen]] in the spring of 1838 in order to study with the famous chemist [[Friedrich Wöhler]].<ref name="Britannica bio">{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hermann-Kolbe |title=Hermann Kolbe – German chemist |author=Alan J. Rocke|access-date=28 July 2016}}</ref>

In 1842, he became an assistant to [[Robert Bunsen]] at the [[University of Marburg|Philipps-Universität Marburg]]. He took his doctoral degree in 1843 at the same university. A new opportunity arose in 1845, when he became assistant to [[Lyon Playfair, 1st Baron Playfair|Lyon Playfair]] at the new ''Museum of Economic Geology'' in London and a close friend of [[Edward Frankland]]. From 1847, he was engaged in editing the ''Handwörterbuch der reinen und angewandten Chemie'' (''Dictionary of Pure and Applied Chemistry'') edited by [[Justus von Liebig]], [[Wöhler]], and [[Johann Christian Poggendorff]], and he also wrote an important textbook. In 1851, Kolbe succeeded Bunsen as professor of chemistry at Marburg and, in 1865, he was called to the [[Leipzig University|Universität Leipzig]]. In 1864, he was elected a foreign member of the [[Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Rocke |first=Alan J. |title=The Quiet Revolution: Hermann Kolbe and the Science of Organic Chemistry |location=Berkeley |date=1993 |isbn=978-0-520-08110-9}}</ref> He was elected as a member of the [[American Philosophical Society]] in 1874.<ref>{{Cite web|title=APS Member History|url=https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?year=1874;smode=advanced;startDoc=1|access-date=5 May 2021|website=search.amphilsoc.org}}</ref>

In 1853, he married Charlotte, the daughter of General-Major Wilhelm von Bardeleben. His wife died in 1876 after 23 years of happy marriage. They had four children.

==Work in chemical research==

As late as the 1840s, and despite [[Wöhler synthesis|Friedrich Wöhler's synthesis of urea]] in 1828, some chemists still believed in the doctrine of [[vitalism]], according to which a special life-force was necessary to create "organic" (i.e., in its original meaning, biologically derived) compounds. Kolbe promoted the idea that [[organic compound]]s could be derived from substances clearly sourced from outside this "organic" context, directly or indirectly, by substitution processes. (Hence, while by modern definitions, he was converting one [[organic compound|organic molecule]] to another, by the parlance of his era, he was converting "inorganic"—''anorganisch''—substances into "organic" ones only thought accessible through vital processes.) He validated his theory by converting [[carbon disulfide|carbon disulfide (CS<sub>2</sub>)]] to [[acetic acid]] ({{Chem2|CH3COOH}}) in several steps (1843–45). Kolbe also introduced a modified idea of structural [[radical theory|radicals]], so contributing to the development of [[structural theory]]. A dramatic success came when his theoretical prediction of the existence of secondary and tertiary [[Alcohol (chemistry)|alcohol]]s was confirmed by the synthesis of the first of these classes of organic molecules. Kolbe was the first person to use the word [[chemical synthesis|synthesis]] in its present-day meaning,<ref>Kolbe wrote the word "synthesis" describing his project to transform carbon disulfide into acetic acid. See: {{cite journal|last1=Kolbe|first1=H.|title=Beiträge zur Kenntniß der gepaarten Verbindungen|journal=Annalen der Chemie und Pharmacie|date=1845|volume=54|issue=2|pages=145–188|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uiug.30112025847093;view=1up;seq=161|trans-title=Contributions to [our] knowledge of paired compounds|language=de|doi=10.1002/jlac.18450540202}} From pp. 145–146: ''"Im Gegensatz zu den bis jetzt bekannten gepaarten organischen Säuren, welche durch Zersetzung organischer Materien von meist complicierter Zusammensetzung unter Einwirkung kräftiger Agentien und unter Verhältnissen entstanden sind, welche eine mehrfache Auslegung der Zersetzungserscheinungen gestatten, werden diejenigen, welche den Gegenstand der nachstehenden Betrachtungen ausmachen, durch Synthese aus Körpern von möglichst einfacher Zusammensetzung gebildet, so daß sie uns über ihre Constitution kaum im Zweifel lassen, und können deshalb gewissermaßen als Prototypen jener Körperreihe angesehen werden."'' (In contrast to the paired organic acids known until now, which have been formed by the decomposition of organic matter of the most complicated composition during the reaction of strong agencies and under conditions that admit multiple interpretations of decomposition phenomena, those [compounds] that constitute the object of the following observations are formed by synthesis from substances of the simplest possible composition, so that they leave us hardly in doubt about their constitution, and thus can be viewed in a way as prototypes of those series of substances.)</ref> and contributed a number of new chemical reactions.<ref name="Britannica bio" />

In particular, Kolbe developed procedures for the [[electrolysis]] of the salts of [[fatty acid|fatty]] and other [[carboxylic acid]]s ([[Kolbe electrolysis]])<ref>{{cite journal|title=Untersuchungen über die Elektrolyse organischer Verbindungen |author=Hermann Kolbe |journal=[[Annalen der Chemie und Pharmacie]] |year=1849 |volume=69 |issue=3 |pages=257–372 |doi=10.1002/jlac.18490690302 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1427016}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=July 2014}}<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lindsey|first1=Alan|last2=Jeskey|first2=Harold|date=1957|title=The Kolbe Schmitt Reaction|journal=Chem Rev|volume=57|issue=4|pages=583–620|doi=10.1021/cr50016a001}}</ref> and prepared [[salicylic acid]], a building block of [[aspirin]] in a process called [[Kolbe synthesis]] or [[Kolbe-Schmitt reaction]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Ueber Synthese der Salicylsäure |author=Hermann Kolbe |journal=[[Annalen der Chemie und Pharmacie]] |year=1860 |volume=113 |issue=1 |pages=125–127 |doi=10.1002/jlac.18601130120 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1427141}}</ref><ref name="Kolbe-Schmitt Reaction">{{cite web|url=https://www.organic-chemistry.org/namedreactions/kolbe-schmitt-reaction.shtm|title=Kolbe-Schmitt Reaction|access-date=28 July 2016}}</ref> His method for the synthesis of nitriles is called the [[Kolbe nitrile synthesis]],<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=4TBWg3dIyKQC&q=kolbe+nitrile%25&pg=PA537 Electrochemical Dictionary]</ref> and with [[Edward Frankland]] he found that [[nitrile]]s can be hydrolyzed to the corresponding acids.<ref name="Kolbe Nitrile Synthesis">{{cite web|url=https://www.organic-chemistry.org/namedreactions/kolbe-nitrile-synthesis.shtm|title=Kolbe Nitrile Synthesis|access-date=28 July 2016}}</ref>
In addition to his own bench research and scholarly and editorial work, Kolbe oversaw student research at Leipzig and especially at Marburg; students spending time under his tutelage included [[Peter Griess]], [[Aleksandr Mikhailovich Zaitsev]] (known for [[Zaitsev's rule]] predicting the product composition of elimination reactions), [[Theodor Curtius]] (discoverer of [[diazo]] compounds, [[hydrazine]]s, and the [[Curtius rearrangement]]), [[Ernst Otto Beckmann]] (discoverer of the [[Beckmann rearrangement]]), [[Carl Graebe]] (discoverer of [[alizarin]]), [[Oscar Loew]], [[Constantin Fahlberg]], [[Nikolai Menshutkin]], [[Vladimir Markovnikov]] (first to describe [[carbocycle]]s smaller and larger than [[cyclohexane]], and known for [[Markovnikov's rule]] describing addition reactions to alkenes), [[Jacob Volhard]], [[Ludwig Mond]], [[Alexander Crum Brown]] (first to describe the double bond of ethylene), [[Maxwell Simpson]], and [[Frederick Guthrie (scientist)|Frederick Guthrie]].<ref name="worldofchemicals.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.worldofchemicals.com/495/chemistry-articles/adolph-wilhelm-hermann-kolbe-developer-of-kolbe-synthesis.html |title=Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe – developer of Kolbe synthesis |access-date=28 July 2016 |date=11 June 2015 |archive-date=19 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819135758/http://www.worldofchemicals.com/495/chemistry-articles/adolph-wilhelm-hermann-kolbe-developer-of-kolbe-synthesis.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Work as journal editor==
Besides his work for [[periodical]]s he wrote numerous books<ref name="goodreads">{{cite web|url=http://www.goodreads.com/author/list/4504758.Hermann_Kolbe |title=Books by Hermann Kolbe |access-date=28 July 2016}}</ref>
Kolbe served for more than a decade as what, in modern terms, would be understood the senior editor of the [[:de:Journal für praktische Chemie|''Journal für Praktische Chemie'']] (''Journal of practical chemistry'', from 1870 to 1884), Kolbe was sometimes so severely critical of the work of others, especially after about 1874, that some wondered whether he might have been suffering a mental illness. He was intolerant of what he regarded as loose speculation parading as theory, and sought through his writings to save his beloved science of chemistry from what he regarded as the scourge of modern structural theory.<ref name="Britannica bio" />

His rejection of structural chemistry, especially the theories of the structure of benzene by [[August Kekulé]], the theory of the [[asymmetric carbon atom]] by [[Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff|J.H. van't Hoff]], and the reform of chemical nomenclature by [[Adolf von Baeyer]], was expressed in his vituperative articles in the ''Journal für Praktische Chemie''. Some translated quotes illustrate his manner of articulating the deep conflict between his interpretation of chemistry and that of the structural chemists: <blockquote>«''...Baeyer is an excellent experimentor, but he is only an empiricist, lacking sense and capability, and his interpretations of his experiments show particular deficiency in his familiarity with the principles of true science...»''<ref name="Britannica bio" /><ref>{{cite journal |title=Begründung meiner Urtheile über Ad. Baeyer's wissenschaftliche Qualification |author=Hermann Kolbe |journal=Journal für Praktische Chemie |volume=26 |issue=1 |year=1882 |pages=308–323 |doi=10.1002/prac.18820260121 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1427894}}</ref></blockquote>The violence of his language worked to limit his posthumous reputation.<ref name="Today In Science History">{{cite web|url=http://sciencenotes.org/today-science-history-september-27-adolph-wilhelm-hermann-kolbe/ |title=Today In Science History – September 27 – Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe|access-date=28 July 2016|date=27 September 2014}}</ref>

==Publications==
* {{Cite book|title=Untersuchungen über die Elektrolyse organischer Verbindungen|volume=|publisher=Livingstone|location=Edinburgh|year=1947|language=en|url=https://gutenberg.beic.it/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=7863532}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |author=Rocke, Alan J. |title=The Quiet Revolution: Hermann Kolbe and the Science of Organic Chemistry |year=1993 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |isbn=978-0-520-08110-9}}
* {{cite journal |title=Zur Erinnerung an Hermann Kolbe |author=von Meyer, E. |journal=Journal für Praktische Chemie |volume=30 |issue=1 |year=1884 |pages=417–467 |doi=10.1002/prac.18850300143 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1427902 }}

==Notes and references==
<references />

==Further reading==
* ''Kurzes Lehrbuch der Chemie . 1.Anorganische Chemie'' . Vieweg, Braunschweig 2. verb. Aufl. 1884 [http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:hbz:061:2-7908 Digital edition] by the [[University and State Library Düsseldorf]]
* [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1615-4169/issues Wiley online library: ''Advanced Synthesis & Catalysis'', ultimate descendant of the ''Journal für Praktische Chemie''], accessed 2 July 2014.
* [[:de:Journal für praktische Chemie|''Journal für Praktische Chemie'']], the article on the original German journal and its descendants, German Wikipedia, accessed 2 July 2014.

==External links==
* [http://www.mjlphd.net/translations.html Translations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018004942/https://www.mjlphd.net/translations.html |date=18 October 2020 }} English Translation of Kolbe's seminal 1860 German article in ''Annalen der Chemie und Pharmacie''. English title: "On the syntheses of salicylic acid"; German title "Ueber Synthese der Salicylsäure".

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolbe, Hermann}}
[[Category:19th-century German chemists]]
[[Category:1818 births]]
[[Category:1884 deaths]]
[[Category:Foreign members of the Royal Society]]
[[Category:Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:Academic staff of Leipzig University]]
[[Category:University of Göttingen alumni]]
[[Category:University of Marburg alumni]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the University of Marburg]]
[[Category:Scientists from Göttingen]]
[[Category:People from the Kingdom of Hanover]]
[[Category:Members of the American Philosophical Society]]