Ludwig Gattermann (20 April 1860 – 20 June 1920) was a German

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 ...

who contributed significantly to both

organic Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...

and

inorganic chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with chemical synthesis, synthesis and behavior of inorganic compound, inorganic and organometallic chemistry, organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subj ...

Early life

Ludwig Gatterman was born on 20 April 1860 in

Goslar Goslar (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Goslär'') is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the Goslar (district), district of Goslar and is located on the northwestern wikt:slope, slopes of the Harz ...

, an old mining town north of the

Harz The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' der ...

mountains. Two of his three siblings died at a young age. During his time in the

Realschule Real school (, ) is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), F ...

he started experimenting. In 1880, he wanted to study at the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

, but he had to complete his

compulsory military service Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it contin ...

before he could start. He started his studies in 1881. After one year with

Robert Bunsen Robert Wilhelm Eberhard Bunsen (; 30 March 1811 – 16 August 1899) was a German chemist. He investigated emission spectra of heated elements, and discovered caesium (in 1860) and rubidium (in 1861) with the physicist Gustav Kirchhoff. The Bu ...

at the University of Leipzig, he visited

Liebermann Lieberman and Liebermann are names deriving from ''Lieb'', a German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) nickname for a person from the German ''lieb'' or Yiddish ''lib'', meaning 'dear, beloved'.Patrick Hanks and Flavia Hodges, ''A Dictionary of Surnames'', Ox ...

for one semester at the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

to improve his skills in organic chemistry. Gattermann chose the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen (, commonly referred to as Georgia Augusta), is a Public university, public research university in the city of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1734 ...

, which was close to Goslar for his further studies. He started his thesis under the supervision of

Hans Hübner Hans Hübner (13 October 1837, in Düsseldorf – 4 July 1884, in Göttingen) was a German chemist. He was the son of painter Julius Hübner (1806–1882). He studied chemistry at the University of Göttingen, receiving his doctorate in 1859 wit ...

, who died in 1884, and finished his Ph.D. in 1885. As successor of Hans Hübner,

Victor Meyer Viktor Meyer (8 September 18488 August 1897) was a German chemist and significant contributor to both organic chemistry, organic and inorganic chemistry. He is best known for inventing an apparatus for determining vapour densities, the Viktor Meye ...

came to Göttingen and some renowned chemists worked as assistants in his group, which consisted of

Rudolf Leuckart Karl Georg Friedrich Rudolf Leuckart (7 October 1822 – 22 February 1898) was a German zoologist born in Helmstedt. He was a pioneer of parasitology research and was widely known for developing a series of illustrated wall charts for use in zo ...

Emil Knoevenagel Heinrich Emil Albert Knoevenagel (; 18 June 1865 – 11 August 1921) was the German chemist who established the Knoevenagel condensation reaction. The Knoevenagel condensation reaction of benzaldehydes with nitroalkanes is a classic general m ...

, Traugott Sandmeyer and

Karl von Auwers Karl Friedrich von Auwers (September 16, 1863 – May 3, 1939) was a German chemist, and was the academic adviser of both Karl Ziegler and Georg Wittig at the University of Marburg. Life Karl Friedrich von Auwers was born the son of the renowned ...

. His private life in Heidelberg and Freiburg was overshadowed by his problematic 25-year-long marriage which was divorced. Gattermann had one daughter who cared for him during his illness which caused his death on 20 June 1920.

Career

Göttingen

During his time as assistant of

in Göttingen, Victor Meyer established a cooperation with the dyes company of Friedr. Bayer & Co., later known as

Bayer AG Bayer AG (English: , commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and biomedical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's ...

, and especially with the chief chemist

Carl Duisberg Friedrich Carl Duisberg (29 September 1861 – 19 March 1935) was a German chemist and industrialist. Life Duisberg was born in Barmen, Germany. From 1879 to 1882, he studied at the Georg August University of Göttingen and Friedrich Schiller U ...

starting in 1888 and working perfectly for 32 years, which gave Gatterman an insight into industrial chemistry and provided him with access to chemical compounds produced by Bayer.

Heidelberg

He followed Victor Meyer, who succeeded Robert Bunsen, to the

University of Heidelberg Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...

in 1889. Gattermann conducted the practical education of the students in the laboratory for several years, till the suicide of Victor Meyer. He stayed with the successor of Meyer,

Theodor Curtius ''Geheimrat'' Julius Wilhelm Theodor Curtius (27 May 1857 – 8 February 1928) was professor of Chemistry at Heidelberg University and elsewhere. He published the Curtius rearrangement in 1890/1894 and also discovered diazoacetic acid, hydra ...

, for two further years until 1900 in Heidelberg.

Freiburg

Gattermann became professor at the

University of Freiburg The University of Freiburg (colloquially ), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (), is a public university, public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The university was founded in 1 ...

in 1900. He improved the educational situation and was mainly involved in organisation and teaching. The results of his personal research get sparse and most of the publications come from his PhD students.

Research

His dangerous analysis of the highly explosive

nitrogen trichloride Nitrogen trichloride, also known as trichloramine, is the chemical compound with the formula . This yellow, oily, and explosive liquid is most commonly encountered as a product of chemical reactions between ammonia-derivatives and chlorine (for ex ...

in 1887 showed his excellent abilities in the laboratory. His nickname "der Heros" was coined after an English article title a hero of science reporting about nitrogen trichloride. The production of boron and silicon by the reaction with magnesium yielded amorphous powders which were more reactive and easier to handle than the substances. The improved Sandmeyer reaction using metallic copper as catalyst, and the discovery of the reaction of

hydrocyanic acid Hydrogen cyanide (formerly known as prussic acid) is a chemical compound with the formula HCN and structural formula . It is a highly toxic and flammable liquid that boils slightly above room temperature, at . HCN is produced on an industrial s ...

with an aromatic compound now called the

Gatterman reaction The Gattermann reaction (also known as the Gattermann formylation and the Gattermann salicylaldehyde synthesis) is a chemical reaction in which aromatic compounds are formylation reaction, formylated by a mixture of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and hy ...

were achieved during his time in Heidelberg. He also conducted research in inorganic chemistry. Gatterman synthesized and characterized Si₂Cl₆, Si₃Cl₈ and also the selfigniting P₂H₄. His fearless nature towards the highly toxic

can be best be shown by a quotation from him: If you are used to handling the substance it is no worse than handling alcohol.

His Book

His book about practical work in the laboratory became a standard textbook of organic synthesis at almost every German university. In some universities the organic course is still called ''"Gattermann"''.Gattermann Vorlesung
/ref>
Digital edition: "Die Praxis des organischen Chemikers" 2nd ed. 1896

"Die Praxis des organischen Chemikers" 15th ed. 1920
by the

University and State Library Düsseldorf The University and State Library Düsseldorf (, abbreviated ULB Düsseldorf) is a central service institution of Heinrich Heine University. Along with Bonn and Münster, it is also one of the three State Libraries of North Rhine-Westphalia. ...

) His book is mentioned in

Primo Levi Primo Michele Levi (; 31 July 1919 – 11 April 1987) was a Jewish Italian chemist, partisan, Holocaust survivor and writer. He was the author of several books, collections of short stories, essays, poems and one novel. His best-known works i ...

's autobiography ''

If This Is a Man ''If This Is a Man'' ( ; United States title: ''Survival in Auschwitz'') is a memoir by History of the Jews in Italy, Jewish Italians, Italian writer Primo Levi, first published in 1947. It describes his arrest as a member of the Italian resista ...

'' when it came up in discussion during Levi's chemist interview at Buna synthetic rubber factory at

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

during the Holocaust.

Further Works

* ''Tabelle zur Berechnung der volumetrischen Stickstoff-Bestimmungen'' . Veit, Leipzig 190
Digital edition
by the

References

* *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gattermann, Ludwig 1860 births 1920 deaths 19th-century German chemists University of Göttingen alumni Academic staff of the University of Göttingen People from Goslar People from the Province of Hanover Leipzig University alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Academic staff of the University of Freiburg 20th-century German chemists