Antoine Lavoisier

Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier (an aa Antoine Lavoisier efter the French Revolution; 26 August 1743 – 8 Mey 1794;^[1] French pronunciation: ​[ɑ̃twan lɔʁɑ̃ də lavwazje]) wis a French nobleman an chemist central tae the 18t-century chemical revolution an a lairge influence on baith the history o chemistry an the history o biology.^[2] He is widely conseedert in popular leeteratur as the "faither o modren chemistry".^[3][4] Archived 2019-07-06 at the Wayback Machine

Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier
Born	26 August 1743(1743-08-26) Paris, Fraunce
Dee'd	8 Mey 1794(1794-05-08) (aged 50) Paris, Fraunce
Cause o daith	execution bi guillotine
Restin place	Picpus Seemetry
Kent for	Combustion Identified Oxygen Identified Hydrogen Stoichiometry
Scientific career
Fields	biologist, chemist
Notable students	Éleuthère Irénée du Pont
Influences	Guillaume-François Rouelle, Étienne Condillac
Signatur

It is generally acceptit that Lavoisier's great accomplishments in chemistry lairgely stem frae his chyngin the science frae a qualitative tae a quantitative ane. Lavoisier is maist noted for his diskivery o the role oxygen plays in combustion. He recognised an named oxygen (1778) an hydrogen (1783) an opponed the phlogiston theory. Lavoisier helped construct the metric seestem, wrote the first extensive leet o elements, an helped tae reform chemical nomenclatur. He predictit the exeestence o silicon (1787)^[5] an wis an aw the first tae establish that sulfur wis an element (1777) raither nor a compoond.^[6] He diskivert that, awtho maiter mey chynge its form or shape, its mass ayeweys remeens the same.

Lavoisier wis a pouerfu member o a nummer o aristocratic cooncils, an an admeenistrator o the Ferme générale. The Ferme générale wis ane o the maist hatit components of the Ancien Régime acause o the profits it teuk at the expense o the state, the saicrecy o the terms o its contracts, an the veeolence o its airmed augents.^[7] Aw o thir poleetical an economic acteevities enabled him tae fund his scienteefic resairch. At the hicht o the French Revolution, he wus chaurged wi tax fraud an sellin adulteratit tabaccae, an was guillotined.

References

1. (in French)Lavoisier, le parcours d'un scientifique révolutionnaire CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)
2. Schwinger, Julian (1986). Einstein's Legacy. New York: Scientific American Library. pp. 93. ISBN 0-7167-5011-2.
3. "More recently, he has been dubbed the "father of modern nutrition", as being the first to discover the metabolism that occurs inside the human body. Lavoisier, Antoine." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 24 July 2007.
4. Eddy, Matthew Daniel; Newman, William R.; Mauskopf, Seymour (2014). "Chemical Knowledge in the Early Modern World". Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
5. In his cairt o the elements, Lavoisier leetit five "salifiable yirds" (i.e., ures that coud be made tae react wi acids tae produce sauts (salis = saut, in Laitin)): chaux (calcium oxide), magnésie (magnesia, magnesium oxide), baryte (barium sulfate), alumine (alumina, aluminum oxide), an silice (silica, silicon dioxide). Aboot these "elements", Lavoisier speculates: "We are probably only acquainted as yet with a part of the metallic substances existing in nature, as all those which have a stronger affinity to oxygen than carbon possesses, are incapable, hitherto, of being reduced to a metallic state, and consequently, being only presented to our observation under the form of oxyds, are confounded with earths. It is extremely probable that barytes, which we have just now arranged with earths, is in this situation; for in many experiments it exhibits properties nearly approaching to those of metallic bodies. It is even possible that all the substances we call earths may be only metallic oxyds, irreducible by any hitherto known process." – from p. 218 of: Lavoisier with Robert Kerr, trans., Elements of Chemistry, ..., 4th ed. (Edinburgh, Scotland: William Creech, 1799). (The original passage appears in: Lavoisier, Traité Élémentaire de Chimie, ... (Paris, France: Cuchet, 1789), vol. 1, p. 174.)
6. Hogan, C. Michael (2011). "Sulfur" Archived 28 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine in Encyclopedia of Earth, eds. A. Jorgensen and C.J. Cleveland, National Council for Science and the environment, Washington DC
7. Schama, Simon (1989). Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution. Alfred A Knopf. p. 73.