Henry Chatelier

Henry Louis Chatelier (Paris the October 8th 1850, Miribel-the-Scales the September 17th 1936) is a French chemist. He is known inter alia for the principle of chemical balances said Principe of Chatelier .

Childhood and studies

Henry was born the October 8th 1850 in Paris. He is the son of Louis Chatelier and Louise Durand. His/her father was engineer polytechnician. He played a great part in French industry at the 19th century. He took part in the birth of French industry, in particular of the industry of the Aluminum, with the introduction of the Martin-Siemens processes into the iron and steel industry and to the rise of the rail-bound transports. His/her father had a great influence on the future career of his Henry son.

He had a sister (Marie) and four brothers (Louis 1853-1928, Alfred 1855-1929, Georges 1857-1935 and André 1861-1929). His/her mother exempted a very rigorous and strict education to him. He will say: “I was accustomed to a very strict discipline: it was necessary to rise per hour, to prepare its duties in good time and his lessons, to eat of all to the meals, etc I preserved all my life the respect of the order and the law. The order is one of the most perfect forms of civilization” (quoted by Louis Guillet, Henry Chatelier, its life, its work in “the metallurgy review” special issue 1937).

It carried out its schooling with the Rollin College in Paris. After only one year of special mathematics, it entered like his father to the Polytechnic school on October 25th 1869. After a brilliant Polytechnique schooling (it was first of its promotion), it entered to the École des Mines of Paris in 1871 (left third). He attended the laboratory of Henri Holy-Claire Deville, with the National university. At that time, it also followed literary studies. It allotted a great value to humanities and defended with many recoveries the importance of the literary studies in education.

Like all the pupils of the Polytechnic school, it was named second lieutenant the September 11th 1870, and took part in the head office of Paris.

He married Genièvre Nicolas, family friend and sister of four polytechnicians. They will have four girls and three wire.

The career

In spite of its training of engineer, and even if it were interested of close with the industrial problems, it preferred to rather follow a career of research professor in chemistry than to follow a career in industry.

In 1887, it was in charge of the course of general chemistry to the preparatory course of the École des Mines of Paris. It obtains in this school in 1897, the pulpit of industrial chemistry which it preserves until its retirement.

It vainly tried to obtain the pulpit of chemistry at the Polytechnic school in 1884 and 1897.

He was the successor of Schützenberger to the pulpit of inorganic chemistry to the Collège de France. Then it succeeded Henri Moissan with the pulpit of general chemistry of the Faculty of Science of Paris until 1925 when it fur replaced by André Job.

The subjects which it covered with the Collège de France were:

*Phenomenes of combustion (1898),

*Théorie of chemical balances, measurements of high temperatures and phenomena of dissociation (1898-1899),

*Propriétés of metal alloys (1899-1900),

*Alliages of iron (1900-1901),

*Méthodes general of analytical chemistry (1901-1902),

*Lois general of analytical chemistry (1901-1902),

*Lois general of chemical mechanics (1903),

*La silica and its compounds (1905-1906),

*Quelques practical applications of the basic principles of chemistry (1906-1907),

*Propriétés of metals and some alloys (1907).

He was elected with the Academy of Science in 1907 after four unhappy attempts (1884, 1897,1898 and 1900)

Scientific work

Its work

In chemistry, Henry Chatelier is known for:

the principle of chemical balance (known as Principle of Chatelier),
variation of the solubility of salts in an ideal solution.

He published approximately thirty communications on these subjects between 1884 and 1914.

Its results on chemical balances were presented in 1885 to the Academy of Science in Paris.

It carried out many work in Métallurgie. It created into 1893 within the Company of Encouragement for National industry a committee of alloys. It thus created for itself around him a pole of studies and research on the alloys in which for example Georges Charpy took part.

The principle of chemical balance

It owes its fame with the law on chemical balances:

“Any modification of a factor of a reversible chemical balance causes, if it only occurs, a displacement of balance in a direction which tends to be opposed to the variation of the factor considered” (stated current according to G.Germain, R.Mari, D.Brunel- Abrégé of chemistry, 1, general chemistry, edition Masson 1980).

This qualitative law makes it possible to envisage the displacement of balance of a chemical reaction.

Example: influence concentration

That is to say reaction in balance

SO₂ (Gases) + 1/2 O₂ = SO₃ (gas).

If one increases the Pression partial of Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) balance will tend to move towards the line to decrease the pressure partial of sulfur dioxide (experimental Loi of Chatelier).

See the experimental Law of Van' T Hoff for the influence of the temperature on the balance of a reaction.

Henry Chatelier in his time

Part of its work were devoted to industry. He was for example consulting engineer near the Company of the lime and cements Pavin de Lafarge. Its thesis of doctorate was devoted to this subject: “Constitution of the hydraulic mortars”.

In a typical way of the scientists and engineers of his time, it had a very scientific vision of industry. In the number one of the Metallurgy Review, it published a leading article describing its convictions on the subject (H. Châtelier - role of science in industry - Review of Metallurgy, n°1, 1904 pages 1 to 10). It was one of those which diffused the theories of Frederick Winslow Taylor. Besides it published in 1928 a book on the subject entitled: “The Taylorism”.

Politically, it was preserving. In 1934, it gave an opinion in the review of Brussels “Re-examined Economic International” against the French law over the weekly duration of forty hours work. Contrary to other scientists of its time and in spite of certain anti-parlementaristes convictions, it kept away from the movements from Extrême right-hand side.

It was one of the founders of the Metallurgy Review.

It was decorated with the Légion of honor (knight) in 1887 high then with the rank of officer in 1908, commander in 1919 and large officer in 1927. He was prize winner of the Davy Médaille in 1916.

Work

He published very many articles, publications and scientific papers. He also published eleven books:

*Combustion of the explosive gas mixtures (with Mallard), 1883

*Constitution of the hydraulic mortars (thesis), 1887

*Les chemical balances (1888)

*Les measurements of high temperatures, (in collaboration with Boudouard), ED. Square and Naud, 1900

*Sur the constitution of the hydraulic mortars, ED. Dunod, 1904

*Le carbon and general laws of chemistry, EDI. Hermann, 1908

*L' introduction to the study of the metallurgy: industrial heating, ED. Dunod and Pinat, 1912

*La silica and silicates, ED. Hermann and wire, 1914

*Sciences and industry, scientific Library of philosophy, ED. Flammarion, 1925 (288 p.). Republished in 2001 by the ED. CTHS (Paris), ISBN 2-7355-0488-3

*Le Taylorism, ED. Dunod, 1934

* Of the method in the applied sciences, ED. Dunod, 1936.

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