Johan Afzelius
{{Short description|Swedish chemist}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Johan Afzelius
| image =Jon Arvid Afzelius (1753-1837).jpg
| caption =Johan Afzelius
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1753|6|13|df=y}}
| birth_place = Larv, Sweden
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1837|5|20|1753|6|13|df=y}}
| death_place = Uppsala, Sweden
| nationality = Swedish
| occupation = Chemist
| signature =
| spouse =
| children =
| relatives = Adam Afzelius (brother)
Pehr von Afzelius (brother)
}}
Johan Afzelius (13 June 1753 in Larv – 20 May 1837 in Uppsala) was a Swedish chemist and notable as the doctoral advisor of one of the founders of modern chemistry, Jöns Jacob Berzelius. He was the brother of botanist Adam Afzelius and physician Pehr von Afzelius.
Afzelius received his PhD at Uppsala University in 1776 under Torbern Olof Bergman. In 1780 he became a lecturer at Uppsala and in 1784 a professor of chemistry.[https://runeberg.org/nfba/0186.html Nordisk familjebok] Uggleupplagan. 1. A - Armati From 1792 to 1797 he undertook research trips to Norway, Denmark and Russia in order to study mineral deposits and to visit scientific institutions.[https://sok.riksarkivet.se/sbl/Presentation.aspx?id=5585 Johan (Jan) Afzelius] Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon His remarkable mineral collection became part of Uppsala University's mineral cabinet.
Afzelius did mineral analyses, and made contributions to the journal Afhandlingar i fysik, kemi och mineralogi (Treatises on physics, chemistry and mineralogy).[https://books.google.com/books?id=N_o0AAAAcAAJ&dq=%22Afhandlingar+i+fysik%2C+kemi+och+mineralogi%22+Afzelius&pg=PP5 Afhandlingar i fysik, kemi och mineralogi, Volume 5] He is notable for having isolated formic acid
from ants and showing that formic acid was different from the closely related acetic acid. He also studied the chemistry of nickel and oxalic acid.
In 1801, he was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
Published works
- Dissertatio chemica de niccolo, (with Torbern Bergman), 1775 – dissertation on nickel.
- Dissertatio chemica de acido sacchari (with Torbern Bergman), 1776 – dissertation on saccharinic acid.
- Dissertatio chemica de acido formicarum, (with Petrus Öhrn), 1777 – dissertation on formic acid.
- Dissertatio chemica de baroselenite (with Axel Fryxell) 1788 – dissertation on barium selenite.[http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=au%3AAfzelius%2C+Johann%2C&qt=hot_author OCLC World Cat] published works
References
- J.R. Partington, A History of Chemistry, Macmillan: 1962, vol. 3, p. 200.
- Svenskt biografiskt lexikon, Albert Bonniers: 1918–1985, vol. 1, pp. 218–224.
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Category:People from Vara Municipality
Category:Swedish mineralogists
Category:Uppsala University alumni