Leopold Pfaundler von Hadermur (14 February 1839 – 6 May 1920) was an Austrian

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

and

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' 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 ...

born in

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

. He was the father of

pediatrician Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

Meinhard von Pfaundler (1872–1947), and the father-in-law of pediatrician Theodor Escherich (1857–1911).

Biography

He studied under chemist Heinrich Hlasiwetz (1825–1875) at Innsbruck, with

Justus von Liebig Justus ''Freiherr'' von Liebig (12 May 1803 – 18 April 1873) was a Germans, German scientist who made major contributions to the theory, practice, and pedagogy of chemistry, as well as to agricultural and biology, biological chemistry; he is ...

(1803–1873) at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

, and with

Henri Victor Regnault Henri Victor Regnault (21 July 1810 – 19 January 1878) was a French chemist and physicist best known for his careful measurements of the thermal properties of gases. He was an early thermodynamicist and was mentor to William Thomson in ...

(1810–1878) and

Charles Adolphe Wurtz Charles Adolphe Wurtz (; 26 November 181710 May 1884) was an Alsatian French chemist. He is best remembered for his decades-long advocacy for the atomic theory and for ideas about the structures of chemical compounds, against the skeptical opinio ...

(1817–1884) in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. In 1861 he received his doctorate, and in 1867 was appointed professor of physics at the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (; ) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol (state), Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. It is the largest education facility in the Austrian States of Austria, ...

. In 1891 he succeeded

Ludwig Boltzmann Ludwig Eduard Boltzmann ( ; ; 20 February 1844 – 5 September 1906) was an Austrian mathematician and Theoretical physics, theoretical physicist. His greatest achievements were the development of statistical mechanics and the statistical ex ...

(1844–1906) as professor of physics at the

University of Graz The University of Graz (, formerly: ''Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz'') is a public university, public research university located in Graz, Austria. It is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-old ...

. In 1887 he became a full member of the Vienna Academy of Sciences.Pfaundler, Leopold (1839–1920), Chemiker und Physiker
at Kipnis de. Pfaundler is remembered today for his kinetic-molecular explanation of gas reactions under the condition of equilibrium. He was the inventor of a number of scientific apparatuses — devices he often utilized in classroom demonstrations. These included a temperature regulator (1863), a ''Stromkalorimeter'' (1869), a differential air

thermometer A thermometer is a device that measures temperature (the hotness or coldness of an object) or temperature gradient (the rates of change of temperature in space). A thermometer has two important elements: (1) a temperature sensor (e.g. the bulb ...

(1875), a

seismograph A seismometer is an instrument that responds to ground displacement and shaking such as caused by quakes, volcanic eruptions, and explosions. They are usually combined with a timing device and a recording device to form a seismograph. The out ...

(1897) and a distance meter (1915), to name a few. He is also credited with creating a device for optical demonstration of Lissajous figures (1873). In 1863–64 he performed a survey of the Stubaier Alps with Ludwig Barth zu Barthenau (1839–1890), and in 1864 he was the first person to ascend to the summit of the ''Hofmannspitze'' (3112m).

Selected written works

* ''Die Physik des täglichen Lebens, gemeinverständlich dargestellt'' (1906). * ''Die physik des täglichen Lebens mit 467 Abbildungen'' (1913). * ''Ueber die Wärmekapazität des Wassers und eine Methode den Ort ihres Minimums zu messen'' (1915). * ''Ueber einen neuen Distanzmesser'' (1915). * ''Chronik der Familie Pfaundler von 1486 bis 1915'' (1915). * ''Die Innsbrucker Studenten-Kompagnie 1859 und 1866'' (1917). * ''Das chinesisch-japanische GO-Spiel: eine systematische Darstellung und Anleitung zum Spielen desselben''. He also published ''Müller-Pouillet's Lehrbuch der Physik und Meteorologie'' (" Johann Heinrich Jakob Müller–

Claude Pouillet Claude Servais Mathias Pouillet (16 February 1790 – 14 June 1868) was a French physicist and a professor of physics at the Sorbonne and member of the French Academy of Sciences (elected 1837). Biography He studied sciences at the École ...

's textbook of physics and

meteorology Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agricultur ...

"), (9th edition, 1886–98, 3 volumes).
Worldcat Identities

Awards and honors

Pfaundler’s 1867 publication entitled “Beiträge zur chemischen Statik” ��A Contribution to Chemical Statics”ref name="Pfaundler-translation"> was a major contribution to the kinetic theory of chemical reactions. This publication was honored by a Citation for Chemical Breakthrough Award from the Division of History of Chemistry of the American Chemical Society presented to the University of Innsbruck in 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pfaundler, Leopold Austrian chemists 19th-century Austrian physicists 1839 births 1920 deaths Academic staff of the University of Graz Academic staff of the University of Innsbruck Scientists from Innsbruck Chemists from Austria-Hungary Physicists from Austria-Hungary