Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich discoveries. Outstanding achievements and discoveries of Butlerov in chemistry

We all perfectly understand how important knowledge about various chemical elements and their properties is in our time. But at the same time, not every person knows about scientists living and working for the development of chemistry. This article will talk about the great Russian figure named Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich, short biography which is given below. His achievements and work will not go unnoticed.

Birth and education

An outstanding researcher of the world of molecules and small particles was born on September 15, 1828 in the family of a former officer who took part in the battles Patriotic War 1812. The birthplace of our hero is Kazan province, Chistopol. Alexander Mikhailovich Butlerov (his brief biography is available in many sources) spent the first years of his life in the village, and a little later he began to live directly in Kazan.

The young man received his primary education within the walls of a private boarding school, which was led by Toporin - a teacher French from the Kazan gymnasium. In the period 1844 - 1849 he was a student at Kazan University. In this university, Alexander became very interested in zoology and botany, and as a final work he wrote a diploma on a topic related to butterflies of the Volga-Ural fauna. Subsequently, the gifted chemist did not stop loving nature and was even one of the founders of the magazine called "Bee Leaf".

The work of a scientist at his native university

After Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich, whose brief biography is very often studied by modern students, graduated from the university, he remained at his native department. His main goal at that moment was the preparation and defense of a dissertation. The successful defense of this scientific work occurred in 1854, and he became a doctor of chemistry. This was followed by many years of work aimed at the theoretical side of chemistry. In 1858, while at a meeting of a scientific society in Paris, he voiced his views, which three years later he already stated in a more extensive format - in the form of a report.

From 1860 to 1863 Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich - a Russian chemist - was the rector of Kazan University.

New period in life

In 1868, the scientist became the owner of the Lomonosov Prize, and was also elected professor of chemistry at St. Petersburg University. In this educational institution, he launched work aimed at the analysis of unsaturated compounds. Various theoretical works, begun in Kazan, were also continued.

In 1885, the chemist retired, but did not stop lecturing. In 1874 he was awarded the title of ordinary academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Also, the scientist was an honorary member of many scientific societies, both in Russia itself and abroad.

Personal life of a scientist

A brief biography of Alexander Butlerov allows readers to find out that he was married to a woman named Nadezhda Mikhailovna. The couple raised their son Vladimir Alexandrovich, who, as an adult, was honored to be elected to State Council Russian Empire. He himself was a well-known businessman and landowner.

Scientific work

Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich, whose biography and biography contain interesting moments, while still a student at the boarding school, together with fellow students made both gunpowder and "sparklers". It is authentically known that once such an active activity ended in a strong explosion. For this, the teachers put the still young Alexander in a corner for lunch, and hung a board around his neck with the inscription "The Great Chemist."

In 1851, Butlerov managed to defend a master's thesis, and in 1854 - a doctoral thesis. In the period 1857 - 1858, the scientist was abroad, where he was able to find a common language and get close to such prominent chemists as Kekule and Erlenmeyer. In Paris, Butlerov managed to discover a new method aimed at obtaining methylene iodide. Also, the Russian husband was able to explore the numerous derivatives of this component. A little later, he synthesized urotropine and trioxymethylene. By the way, the scientist was even able to convert the last named element into a sugary substance called methylenenitane after treating it with lime water.

Also Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich (1828-1886 - the years of his life) was one of those who stood at the origins of the creation of the theory of polymerization, on the basis of which his student by the name of Lebedev was later able to discover an industrial method for creating rubber.

Pedagogy and work with students

It is certainly worth noting that Butlerov managed to create the first Russian school of chemists. Even during the life of a scientist, his former students were able to become professors at various institutes. It is noteworthy that all these great researchers had an excellent opportunity to follow how their mentor independently conducted various experiments. Alexander Mikhailovich not only did not forbid, but even, on the contrary, encouraged in every possible way that his students always watched him during numerous practical work in the laboratory.

Also, one cannot ignore the fact that the legendary chemist was an ardent supporter of the fact that women must receive higher education. It was he who in 1878 became the organizer of the Higher Women's Courses.

But the great scientist lived not only in chemistry. Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich, whose brief biography does not allow him to fully reveal his many-sided personality, was also an avid gardener and beekeeper. In addition, the professor was involved in the cultivation of tea in the Caucasus. And in the late 1860s, he began to pay very close attention to spiritualism.

Addresses in St. Petersburg

Scientific contribution

Pedagogical activity

Social activity

Compositions

(September 3 (15), 1828, Chistopol - August 5 (17), 1886, Butlerovka village, Alekseevsky district of Tatarstan) - Russian chemist, creator of the theory of chemical structure, founder of the "Butler school" of Russian chemists, beekeeper and lepidopterologist, public figure.

Biography

Born in the family of a landowner, a retired officer - a participant in the Patriotic War of 1812. He received his initial education in a private boarding school, and then in a gymnasium in Kazan, in 1844-1849. student of Kazan University "discharge natural sciences". Since 1849 he was a teacher, since 1854 he was an extraordinary, and since 1857 an ordinary professor of chemistry at the same university. In 1860-1863 he was twice its rector. In 1868-1885 he was an ordinary professor of chemistry at St. Petersburg University. In 1885 he retired, but continued to read special courses of lectures at the university. In 1870 he was elected adjunct, in 1871 extraordinary, and in 1874 ordinary academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. In 1878-1882, N. N. Zinin's successor as chairman of the Department of Chemistry of the Russian Physical and Chemical Society. Honorary member of many other scientific societies in Russia and abroad.

While still a pupil of the boarding school, he began to be interested in chemistry: together with his comrades, they tried to make either gunpowder or “sparklers”. Once, when one of the experiments led to a strong explosion, the teacher severely punished him. For three days in a row, Sasha was taken out and put in a corner for the whole time while the others were having dinner. A black board was hung around his neck, on which "The Great Chemist" was written. Subsequently, these words became prophetic. At Kazan University, Butlerov became interested in teaching chemistry, whose professors were K. K. Klaus and N. N. Zinin. Since 1852, after Klaus moved to Dorpat University, Butlerov headed the teaching of all chemistry at Kazan University. In 1851 Butlerov defended his master's thesis "On the oxidation organic compounds”, and in 1854 at Moscow University - his doctoral dissertation “On Essential Oils”. During a trip abroad in 1857-1858, he became close friends with many prominent chemists, including F. A. Kekule and E. Erlenmeyer, and spent about six months in Paris, actively participating in meetings of the newly organized Paris Chemical Society. In Paris, in the laboratory of S. A. Wurtz, Butlerov began the first cycle of experimental research. Having discovered a new method for obtaining methylene iodide, Butlerov obtained and investigated its numerous derivatives; he was the first to synthesize hexamethylenetetramine (urotropine) and a polymer of formaldehyde, which, when treated with lime water, turned into a sugary substance (containing, as was established by E. Fischer, a-acrosis). According to Butlerov, this is the first complete synthesis of a sugary substance.

Addresses in St. Petersburg

1870 - 08/05/1886 - 8th line, 17, apt. 2.

Scientific contribution

Key Ideas theories of chemical structure Butlerov first stated in 1861. He outlined the main provisions of his theory in the report "On the chemical structure of matter", read at the chemical section of the Congress of German Naturalists and Physicians in Speyer (September 1861). The foundations of this theory are formulated as follows:

1. "Believing that everyone chemical atom only a certain and limited amount of chemical force (affinity) with which it takes part in the formation of the body is characteristic, I would call this chemical bond, or the method of interconnection of atoms in a complex body, a chemical structure.
2. "... the chemical nature of a complex particle is determined by the nature of the elementary constituents, their quantity and chemical structure"

All other provisions of the classical theory of chemical structure are directly or indirectly connected with this postulate. Butlerov outlines the way to determine the chemical structure and formulates the rules that can be followed in this. He gives preference to synthetic reactions carried out under conditions when the radicals involved in them retain their chemical structure. However, Butlerov also foresees the possibility of regroupings, believing that subsequently "general laws" will be derived for these cases as well. Leaving open the question of the preferred form of chemical structure formulas, Butlerov spoke about their meaning: “... when the general laws of dependence become known chemical properties bodies from their chemical structure, then such a formula will be an expression of all these properties ”(ibid., pp. 73-74).

Butlerov was the first to explain the phenomenon of isomerism by the fact that isomers are compounds that have the same elemental composition, but different chemical structure. In turn, the dependence of the properties of isomers and organic compounds in general on their chemical structure is explained by the existence in them of the “mutual influence of atoms” transmitted along the bonds, as a result of which the atoms, depending on their structural environment, acquire different “chemical significance”. Butlerov himself and especially his students V.V. Markovnikov and A.N. Popov general position was concretized in the form of numerous "rules". Already in the XX century. these rules, like the whole concept of the mutual influence of atoms, received an electronic interpretation.

Great importance for the formation of the theory of chemical structure had its experimental confirmation in the works of both Butlerov himself and his school. He foresaw and then proved the existence of positional and skeletal isomerism. Having received tertiary butyl alcohol, he managed to decipher its structure and proved (together with his students) that it has isomers. In 1864 Butlerov predicted the existence of two butanes and three pentanes, and later also isobutylene. In order to carry the ideas of the theory of chemical structure through the whole of organic chemistry, Butlerov published in 1864-1866 in Kazan in 3 editions "Introduction to the complete study of organic chemistry", 2nd ed. which was published in 1867-1868 in German.

Butlerov was the first to start a systematic study of polymerization based on the theory of chemical structure, which was continued in Russia by his followers and culminated in the discovery by S. V. Lebedev of an industrial method for producing synthetic rubber.

Pedagogical activity

Butlerov's great merit is the creation of the first Russian school of chemists. Even during his lifetime, Butlerov's students at Kazan University V. V. Markovnikov, A. N. Popov, A. M. Zaitsev occupied professorial departments at universities. Of the students of Butlerov at St. Petersburg University, the most famous are A. E. Favorsky, M. D. Lvov and I. L. Kondakov. IN different time E. E. Vagner, D. P. Konovalov, F. M. Flavitsky, A. I. Bazarov, A. A. Krakau, and other prominent Russian chemists worked as trainees in the Butlerov laboratory. hallmark Butlerov as a leader was what he taught by example - students could always observe for themselves what and how the professor was working on.

Social activity

A lot of strength was taken away from Butlerov by the struggle for recognition by the Academy of Sciences of the merits of Russian scientists. In 1882, in connection with the academic elections, Butlerov turned directly to public opinion by publishing an accusatory article in the Moscow newspaper "Rus" "Russian or only the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg?".

Butlerov was a champion higher education for women, participated in the organization of the Higher Women's Courses in 1878, created the chemical laboratories of these courses. In Kazan and St. Petersburg, Butlerov gave many popular lectures, mainly on chemical and technical topics.

In addition to chemistry, Butlerov paid much attention to the practical issues of agriculture, horticulture, beekeeping, and later also tea cultivation in the Caucasus. He was the founder and, at first, the editor-in-chief of the Russian Bee-Leaf. Being one of the organizers of the Russian Society for the Acclimatization of Animals and Plants, he made a great contribution to the development of horticulture and beekeeping. The book “Bee, its life and the main rules of intelligent beekeeping” written by him went through more than 10 reprints before the revolution, and was also published in Soviet time. From the end of the 1860s. showed interest in mediumship - spiritualism.

Memory

The memory of Butlerov was immortalized only under Soviet rule; academic edition of his works.

• In 1953, a monument was unveiled to him in front of the building of the Faculty of Chemistry of Moscow State University.
• There is Butlerova street in Kazan.
• In 1965, Butlerova Street appeared in Moscow.
• There is Butlerova street in St. Petersburg.
• In Daugavpils (Latvia), in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe Village of Chemists, there is Butlerov Street.
• In Kyiv, in the area of ​​the Khimvolokno Production Association (Darnitsa industrial zone), there is Butlerova Street.
• In Dzerzhinsk, Nizhny Novgorod region, there is Butlerov street

Compositions

1. An Introduction to the Complete Study of Organic Chemistry, c. 1-3, Kazan, 1864-1866;
2. Articles on beekeeping, St. Petersburg, 1891;
3. Selected Works on Organic Chemistry, Moscow, 1951 (biblical works on chemistry);
4. Works, vols. 1-3, M., 1953-1958 (bibl. works);
5. Scientific and pedagogical activity. Sat. documents, M., 1961.

Essay

Discipline: chemistry

Topic: “The great scientist A.M. Butlerov"

G. Tolyatti

Biography of A.M. Butlerov…………………………………………………….…3

Pension………………………………………………………………………………3

Gymnasium. University………………………………………………………..….4

Road to Chemistry………………………………………………………………..….4

A trip to Western Europe……………………………………………………..5

Petersburg……………………………………………………………………...……..7

How to lead bees and how to prepare Caucasian tea……………………….…8

Butlerovka……………………………………………………………………………8

References…………………………………………………………..…..10

Butlerov Alexander Mikhailovich

Butlerov, Alexander Mikhailovich (1828–1886), Russian chemist, creator of the theory of chemical structure, founder of the famous Kazan ("Butlerov") school of organic chemists.

Born September 3, 1828 in Chistopol, Kazan province. A.M. Butlerov’s father, Mikhail Vasilyevich, was a participant in the Patriotic War of 1812, retired with the rank of lieutenant colonel and settled in the village of Butlerovka. The mother of A.M. Butlerov, Sofya Alexandrovna, died a few days after the birth of her only son.

After the death of his mother, the boy was taken into the family of his maternal grandfather, but when he grew up, he spent time in the village with his father, an educated, inquisitive and well-read man.

A.M. Butlerov from childhood was “forced” to study foreign languages, he repeatedly recalled this with gratitude, because it helped him in his scientific work and in communication with foreign scientists, especially when traveling abroad.

BOARDING HOUSE

The private boarding school where A.M. Butlerov studied was opened by a French teacher at the First Kazan Gymnasium. The first time in the boarding house A.M. Butlerov brightened up the troubles of his incessant desire for activity. First, he became interested in drawing, then a physics teacher, introduced an inquisitive student to the beginnings of chemistry.

One of his experiments, conducted in the kitchen, ended in a deafening explosion. The guilty boy was placed in a punishment cell. He was taken to the dining hall with a black board on his chest, on which was written "The Great Chemist". The teachers thought that by ridiculing his hobby, they would beat off the desire to engage in chemical experiments.

However, history laughed at them, because their pupil devoted his life to chemistry.

GYMNASIUM. UNIVERSITY

The boarding house in which A.M. Butlerov was staying lasted four years. In 1842, during a fire, the boarding house building was damaged and A.M. Butlerov was transferred to the 6th grade of the First Kazan Gymnasium. Among the teachers there were several professors of Kazan University, and they gave excellent training to their students. In the gymnasium, A.M. Butlerov wrote a competitive essay “Letter on the fire on August 24, 1842”, recognized as “the most excellent” of the submitted essays.

At the age of 16, A.M. Butlerov entered Kazan University in the department of physics and mathematics, but soon transferred to the category of natural sciences. In the first years of his student days, he was fond of botany and zoology, and then, under the influence of lectures by K.K. Klaus and N.N. Zinin, he became interested in chemistry and decided to devote himself to this science.

Even in his first year, A.M. Butlerov became interested in collecting beetles, and then diurnal butterflies. As a result, he assembled a collection containing 1133 species of butterflies, which he then donated to Kazan University. He compiled the guide "Daytime butterflies of the Volga-Ural fauna", which was published in 1848. For this work, A.M. Butlerov was awarded the degree of candidate of natural sciences.

ROAD TO CHEMISTRY

In 1849, A.M. Butlerov graduated from the university and, at the suggestion of K.K. Klaus, was left at the department as a teacher. He was offered to lecture on inorganic and organic chemistry. For "gratuitous, diligent and successful" teaching, in which A.M. Butlerov showed his pedagogical abilities, the university council expressed gratitude to him. In 1851 he prepared and defended his master's thesis "On the oxidation of organic compounds", and in 1854 A.M. Butlerov arrived in Moscow, passed the exams and defended his doctoral dissertation "On essential oils" at Moscow University ... extraordinary professor of chemistry at Kazan University, in 1857 - ordinary professor. The young scientist worked hard in his office, in the laboratory, and at home.

In the opinion of his aunts, their old apartment was uncomfortable, so they rented another, more spacious one from Sofya Timofeevna Aksakova, an energetic and determined woman. She received Butlerov with maternal care, seeing him as a suitable match for her daughter. Despite being constantly busy at the university, Alexander Mikhailovich remained a cheerful and sociable person. He was by no means distinguished by the notorious "professorial absent-mindedness", and his friendly smile and ease of address made him a welcome guest everywhere. Sofya Timofeevna noted with satisfaction that the young scientist was clearly not indifferent to Nadenka. The girl was really good: a high intelligent forehead, large shiny eyes, strict regular features and some special charm. Young people became good friends, and over time they began to increasingly feel the need to be together, sharing their most intimate thoughts. Soon Nadezhda Mikhailovna Glumilina, the niece of the writer S.T. Aksakova became the wife of Alexander Mikhailovich.

A.M. Butlerov was known not only as an outstanding chemist, but also as a talented botanist. He conducted various experiments in his greenhouses in Kazan and Butlerovka, wrote articles on the problems of horticulture, floriculture and agriculture. With rare patience and love, he watched the development of delicate camellias, lush roses, brought out new varieties of flowers.

TRIP IN WESTERN EUROPE

A.M. Butlerov arrived in Berlin at the end of the summer of 1857. He then continued to tour Germany, Switzerland, Italy and France. The ultimate goal of his journey was Paris - the world center of chemical science of that time. He was attracted, first of all, by a meeting with Adolf Würz. A.M.Butlerov worked in the laboratory of A.Wurtz for two months. It was here that he began his experimental research, which over the next twenty years was crowned with the discovery of dozens of new substances and reactions. Numerous exemplary syntheses of Butler's ethanol and ethylene, tertiary alcohols, polymerization of ethylene hydrocarbons lie at the origins of a number of industries and, thus, had the most direct stimulating effect on it.

Being engaged in the study of hydrocarbons, A.M. Butlerov realized that they represent a completely special class of chemicals. Analyzing their structure and properties, the scientist noticed that there is a strict pattern here. It formed the basis of the theory of chemical structure he created.

His report at the Paris Academy of Sciences aroused general interest and lively debate. A.M. Butlerov said: “Perhaps the time has come when our research should become the basis of a new theory of the chemical structure of substances. This theory will be distinguished by the accuracy of mathematical laws and will make it possible to foresee the properties of organic compounds. No one has yet expressed such thoughts.

A few years later, during the second trip abroad, A.M. Butlerov presented the theory he had created for discussion. He made the announcement at the 36th Congress of German Naturalists and Physicians in Speyer. The convention took place in September 1861.

He made a presentation before the chemical section. The topic had a more than modest name: "Something about the chemical structure of bodies."

A. M. Butlerov spoke simply and clearly. Without going into unnecessary details, he introduced the audience to a new theory of the chemical structure of organic substances: his report aroused unprecedented interest.

The term “chemical structure” was also encountered before A.M. Butlerov, but he rethought it and applied it to define a new concept of the order of interatomic bonds in molecules. The theory of chemical structure now serves as the basis for all modern branches of synthetic chemistry without exception.

So, the theory has declared its right to exist. It required further development, and where, if not in Kazan, should this be done, because a new theory was born there, its creator worked there. For A.M. Butlerov, rector's duties turned out to be a heavy and unbearable burden. He several times asked to be relieved of this position, but all his requests remained unsatisfied. Worries did not leave him at home. Only in the garden, taking care of his favorite flowers, did he forget the anxieties and troubles of the past day. Often, his son Misha worked with him in the garden; Alexander Mikhailovich asked the boy about the events at school, and told curious details about the flowers.

Scientists have known isobutyl alcohol since 1852, when it was first isolated from natural vegetable oil. Now there was no question of any dispute, since there were four different butyl alcohols, and all of them are isomers.

The year 1863 came - the happiest year in the life of the great scientist. A.M. Butlerov was at the right way. For the first time in the history of chemistry, he managed to obtain the simplest tertiary alcohol - tertiary butyl alcohol, or trimethylcarbinol. Shortly thereafter, reports appeared in the literature about the successful synthesis of primary and secondary butyl alcohols.

In 1862 - 1865, A.M. Butlerov expressed the main position of the theory of reversible isomerization of tautomerism, the mechanism of which, according to Butlerov, consisted in the splitting of molecules of one structure and the combination of their residues with the formation of molecules of another structure. It was a brilliant idea. The great scientist argued the need for a dynamic approach to chemical processes, that is, to consider them as equilibrium.

Success brought confidence to the scientist, but at the same time presented him with a new, more difficult task. It was necessary to apply the structural theory to all reactions and compounds of organic chemistry, and most importantly, to write a new textbook on organic chemistry, where all phenomena would be considered from the point of view of a new theory of structure.

A.M. Butlerov worked on the textbook for almost two years without a break. The book "Introduction to the Complete Study of Organic Chemistry" was published in three editions in 1864-1866. She did not go in any comparison, with any of the then known textbooks. This inspired work was the revelation of Butlerov, a chemist, experimenter and philosopher, who rebuilt all the material accumulated by science according to a new principle, according to the principle of chemical structure.

The book caused a real revolution in chemical science. Already in 1867, work began on its translation and publication in German. Shortly thereafter, editions appeared in almost all major European languages. According to the German researcher Victor Meyer, she became the "guiding star" in the vast majority of research in organic chemistry.

Since Alexander Mikhailovich finished work on the textbook, he increasingly spent time in Butlerovka. Even during school year the family went to the village several times a week. Butlerov felt free from worries here and devoted himself entirely to his favorite hobbies: flowers and collections of insects. He started breeding new varieties. fruit trees trying to improve fruit growing. I crossed different varieties to get hybrids.

In a secluded corner of the garden, he set up several beehives. The apiary was at first very tiny, but thanks to his care, it began to grow rapidly. Breeding bees requires knowledge and great skill. Fascinated by new problems, he wrote several articles on beekeeping.

Now A. M. Butlerov worked less in the laboratory, but closely followed new discoveries.

PETERSBURG

In the spring of 1868, at the initiative of the famous chemist D.I. Mendeleev, Alexander Mikhailovich was invited to St. Petersburg University, where he began to lecture and got the opportunity to organize his own chemical laboratory. A.M. Butlerov developed a new methodology for teaching students by proposing the now universally accepted laboratory practice, in which students were taught how to work with a variety of chemical equipment.

Simultaneously with his scientific activities, Butlerov is actively involved in the public life of St. Petersburg. At that time, the progressive public was particularly concerned about the education of women. Women should have free access to higher education! The Higher Women's Courses were organized at the Medical-Surgical Academy, classes began at the Bestuzhev Women's Courses, where A.M. Butlerov lectured on chemistry.

The multilateral scientific activity of A.M. Butlerov was recognized by the Academy of Sciences. In 1871 he was elected an extraordinary academician, and three years later - an ordinary academician, which gave him the right to receive an apartment in the Academy building. Nikolai Nikolaevich Zinin also lived there. Close proximity further strengthened a long-standing friendship.

A. M. Butlerov pulled out two thick volumes from the cabinet and got ready to write. For several minutes he sat motionless, staring somewhere with an unseeing gaze... Then he rubbed his forehead. “Here comes old age. Increasingly, I want to just sit, be silent. I didn’t get tired before, but now…”

The years passed inexorably. Work with students became too difficult for him, and A.M. Butlerov decided to leave the university. He delivered his farewell lecture on April 4, 1880, to the second-year students. They greeted the news of the departure of their beloved professor with deep chagrin. The students organized a committee, wrote a petition and solemnly handed it to their beloved professor: “You leave the university - the audience will lose an irreplaceable lecturer, the laboratory - an irreplaceable leader ... we, students, your students, do not leave the University! ... do not leave us!”

The Academic Council decided to ask A.M. Butlerov to stay and elected him for another five years.

The scientist decided to limit his activities at the university only to reading the main course. And yet, several times a week, he appeared in the laboratory and supervised the work.

HOW TO LEAD BEE AND HOW TO PREPARE CAUCASIAN TEA

Throughout his life, A.M. Butlerov carried another passion - beekeeping. He developed rational methods for caring for bees, building hives, processing honeycombs, treating bees from the foulbrood disease common in central Russia. A.M. Butlerov studied the instincts of bees. Getting acquainted with various breeds of bees, he drew the attention of beekeepers to the Caucasian breed, which is distinguished by a "more calm disposition" and immunity to diseases. With youthful enthusiasm, A.M. Butlerov organized an expedition to the Caucasus to get several species of Caucasian bees.

A.M. Butlerov took part in the All-Russian Exhibition of 1882, organizing a beekeeping department there. His book "The Bee, Its Life and the Main Rules of Intelligent Beekeeping" was a huge success and played a big role in the development of this branch of the economy, and in 1885 his most popular book on beekeeping, "How to Lead Bees", was published. Despite his age, the scientist did not stop this activity either.

On his estate, he organized a model apiary, and on last years life a real school for peasant beekeepers. A. M. Butlerov was proud of his book “The Bee, Its Life and the Rules of Intelligent Beekeeping” almost more than his scientific work. The development of beekeeping in Russia is due to A.M. Butlerov no less than chemistry - A.M. Butlerov stood at the beginning of a scientific approach to this area of ​​agriculture.

A. M. Butlerov became interested in the possibility of making tea from the leaves of the Caucasian (Sukhumi) tea bushes. The knowledge of chemistry and botany and the experience of the experimenter allowed A.M. Butlerov to use various methods of making tea from the leaves of tea bushes that were brought and settled down in the Caucasus. A. M. Butlerov demonstrated the prepared tea at the meeting of the Free Economic Society, and experts approved this tea. “Thus, A.M. Butlerov was one of the first to prove the possibility of obtaining tea in our country.”

Butlerov believed that a real scientist should also be a popularizer of his science. In parallel with scientific articles, he published public brochures in which he vividly and colorfully spoke about his discoveries. He completed the last of them six months before his death.

BOTTLEROVKA

A.M. Butlerov not only work hard and hard, but also have a good rest. Living in the city, every free evening he sought to go to the opera or to an art exhibition. But he got the best rest in the countryside, "Beekeeping, floriculture, construction, treatment of the sick, hunting, and in recent years, agriculture - that's what filled Alexander Mikhailovich's leisure time in the village." Chemistry was given here only as much time as was required for a cursory glance at the most important chemical journals.

A.M. Butlerov often devoted his afternoon leisure to hunting: an excellent shooter, a tireless walker, in his youth and even in his mature years he easily walked such spaces that young people, i.e. sons and nephews, gave in to him. He was easy-going and sometimes left Butlerovka for one and a half to two weeks to visit relatives in the Samara or Ufa province to hunt there.

The ability to rest can explain the amazing performance of A.M. Butlerov, which he retained until the end of his days.

In January 1886, A.M. Butlerov, taking a book from the cabinet, made an awkward movement and felt severe pain in his leg. A tumor has developed. One of the doctors suggested that a blood clot formed in the leg. The leg was bandaged in a tire, and the patient was prescribed bed rest. The treatment went well. A.M. Butlerov was allowed to get up, and he rushed to the village, he was allowed to go there using crutches. Doctors forbade A.M. Butlerov to go hunting or squat in front of the beehives.

During the stay in the village, the swelling of the leg did not go away. Nevertheless, A.M. Butlerov decided to violate the prescription of doctors and went hunting for swamp game. The next day, in the morning, A.M. Butlerov visited the field, he returned home in a good mood, but after dinner he began to experience severe dizziness, and then unbearable pain in his hands and weakening of the heart. Two or three hours after the onset of the attack, A.M. Butlerov died. The doctor who arrived could only ascertain death from an embolism: from walking, a blood clot in the leg moved, broke into pieces, and they led to blockage of blood vessels.

Lightning flashed, and thunder rolled over the earth. A storm began ... Nature seemed to mourn for him. Who loved her so passionately and dedicated his whole life to unlocking her secrets. One of the brilliant Russian chemists has died. This happened on August 17, 1886. A.M. Butlerov was buried at the local cemetery in the family crypt.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Bykov G.V. A.M. Butlerov. Founder of the theory of the structure of organic compounds. Student aid. M., "Enlightenment", 1978

2. Kritsman V.A., Stanzo V.V. Encyclopedic Dictionary of a Young Chemist. M.: Pedagogy, 1982

3. Manolov K. Great chemists. In 2 volumes. T. II. Per. from Bulgarian 3rd ed. correct, add. – M.: Mir., 1985

4. Soloviev Yu.I. History of chemistry in Russia: Scientific centers and main directions of research. – M.: Nauka, 1985

5. Volkov V.A., Vonskii E.V., Kuznetsova G.I. Outstanding Chemists of the World: A Biographical Guide. M.: Higher. school, 1991

The cultures of antiquity (the civilization of Egypt, ... the worldview of one or another scientist. For some, this is ... I.I. Mechnikov, K.A. Timiryazev - biologists D.I. Mendeleev, A.M. Butlerov- chemists A.G. Stoletov, A.N. Lodygin, P.N. Yablochkov, ...

Alexander Mikhailovich Butlerov

Chemist, creator of the theory of chemical structure.

The mother died, the grandfather and grandmother took over the upbringing of the grandson. early years Butlerov spent in the remote village of Podlesnaya Shantala. The father, although he lived on a nearby estate, practically did not take part in raising his son. Knowing the forest well, Butlerov early became addicted to hunting, he enjoyed catching butterflies, collecting a herbarium. The family archive has preserved an amazing document written by Butlerov himself when he was just twelve years old. "My Life" is a short story, which is preceded by an epigraph: “Our life passes and does not return, like waters flowing into the sea.”

“Our surname, as some say and think, is of English origin, and according to others, we come from the German nation: for one German, our namesake, found the same coat of arms as ours, which, among other things, represents a mug (it’s true, our ancestors were addicted to beer, like all the British and Germans).

But the point is not in the genealogical list of our surname, but in the description of my life, which I decided to describe briefly.

I lost my mother when I was only 11 days old and I couldn't feel my loss; at first, as usual, I only knew how to run and frolic, in which I had freedom, but with all the indulgence towards me, I was flogged twice, once with a garter, the other I don’t remember what, since I probably don’t remember the number of executions , which, however, I received only when I was small; and after that I never deserved it from my mentors.

The time came when they put me in jail for learning, and having learned the alphabet, I began to add ba, wa, and then sconce, vra, and finally began to read on top. After that, I had to start writing: and as soon as I learned to write in Russian large on the rulers, I was forced to study in French and German. I remember that people used to say to me: “If you study, then we will give you all the pleasures,” and it’s as if this has always been the case, they tell me the same today.

Maybe a year and a half passed after that, and I already knew a few phrases by heart and wrote pretty well, albeit large, in these languages, when suddenly they decided to take me to a boarding school in Kazan to study. This was already a completely thunderous blow for me: for at that time I did not yet understand my usefulness, but, despite this, I was taken to a boarding school; there at first I wept a lot, but then I got used to it, my tears stopped flowing, and I began to think more about learning and about how, through this, to bring comfort to papa and my relatives, than about returning home to the village. Here I live and to this time safely, having passed the exam twice, this terrible and at the same time cheerful era for boarders.

In 1844, after graduating from the gymnasium, Butlerov entered the natural category of the physics and mathematics department of the philosophical faculty of Kazan University. The blond, broad-shouldered student enjoyed studying chemistry, but still devoted all his free time to nature. Botany and entomology remained his passion. Once, while hunting in the Kyrgyz steppes, Butlerov fell ill with typhoid fever. Half-dead he was taken to Simbirsk, where his father could hardly get out. But the father himself fell ill and died. This event had a strong impact on the previously lively character of Butlerov. He grew gloomy, lost his former vivacity. But his studies have become more in-depth. The stubborn student was noticed by professors of Kazan University - K. K. Klaus (it was he who first isolated the chemical element ruthenium), and N. N. Zinin. With their help, Butlerov equipped a good home laboratory, in which he managed to get quite complex chemicals, such as, for example, caffeine, isatin or alloxanthin. Moreover, he even received benzidine and gallic acid in his home laboratory.

In 1849 Butlerov graduated from Kazan University.

At the suggestion of Professor Klaus, he was left at the university to prepare for a professorship. “The faculty is absolutely sure,” the relevant resolution said, “that Butlerov will honor the university with his knowledge and deserve fame in the scientific world, if circumstances favor his academic vocation.”

Oddly enough, Butlerov began his university activities by lecturing on physics and physical geography. However, he received the degree of candidate for his work on the butterflies of the Volga and the Urals. True, Butlerov soon began to lecture on inorganic chemistry - for students of natural sciences and mathematics.

Butlerov defended his master's thesis in February 1851. It was called “On the Oxidation of Organic Compounds” and represented, according to Butlerov himself, “... a collection of all hitherto known facts oxidation of organic bodies and the experience of their systematization. But already in this work, Butlerov prophetically stated: “...Looking back, one cannot help but wonder what a huge step organic chemistry has taken in a short time of its existence. Incomparably more, however, is ahead of her and there will finally be a time when, little by little, true, exact laws will be revealed and determined ... and bodies will take their natural places in the chemical system. Then the chemist, by some known properties of the given body, knowing General terms certain transformations, predict in advance and without error the appearance of certain products and determine in advance not only the composition, but also their properties.

In 1851, Butlerov was elected an adjunct in the Department of Chemistry, and the following year he completed the experimental work "On the Action of Osmic Acid on Organic Compounds."

In 1854, he defended his doctoral dissertation "On Essential Oils" at Moscow State University. Immediately after the defense, he went to St. Petersburg - to see his teacher N. N. Zinin, who by that time had moved to the capital. “... Short conversations with N. N. Zinin during this my stay in St. Petersburg,” Butlerov later wrote, “was enough for this time to become an era in my scientific development.”

In 1857, Butlerov received a position as an ordinary professor at Kazan University. The students treated the young professor with interest. Famous writer Boborykin, who studied with Butlerov, recalled:

“In the laboratory, during the whole course, we took a closer look at A. M. and agreed with him. After two or three months, the relationship became the simplest, but without the familiarity that began to start later. In A. M., an unusual tact was always felt, which did not allow either himself or his student to anything banal or too unceremonious ...

He did not drill his students at all, did not interfere in their work, gave them complete freedom, but answered every question with unfailing attentiveness and good nature. He liked to chat with us, talked about the ideas of his works, joked, shared his impressions of the fiction he had read. That winter, he went to Moscow to take an exam for a doctor of chemistry and often repeated to me: - Boborykin, if you want to quickly become a master, do not rush to get married. So I got married too early, and how many years I can’t stand the doctor ... ”.

In the same year, Butlerov went on his first business trip abroad.

He visited many laboratories and scientific centers in Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Switzerland and England and got to know the well-known scientists of that time - M. Bussengo, C. Bernard, A. Becquerel, E. Peligot, A. Saint-Clair-Deville, G. Rose, A. Balara. In Heidelberg, Butlerov met the young chemist Kekule, who came close to the topic of his main discovery.

“Butlerov,” wrote the chemist Markovnikov about this trip, “was one of the first young Russian scientists who took the opportunity to get to know science more closely at the place of its birth. But he went abroad already with such a stock of knowledge that he did not need to complete his studies, as most of those sent abroad later did. He needed to see how the masters of science work, trace the origin and enter into that intimate circle of ideas that scientists easily exchange in personal conversations, but very often keep them to themselves and do not make them the subject of publication. Under such conditions, it is natural that Butlerov could easily orient himself in everything new that appeared to his mental eyes. Love for his science and a correct, honest understanding of the matter that lay on him as a professor did not allow him to be distracted by other questions, and he completely devoted himself to studying modern provisions chemistry and its immediate tasks. With a solid stock of scientific knowledge, and, moreover, completely fluent in French and German, it was not difficult for him to become on an equal footing with young European scientists and, thanks to his outstanding abilities, choose the right direction for himself.

Upon his return, Butlerov presented to the Council of Kazan University a detailed "Report on a trip to foreign lands in 1857-1858."

Written from critical analysis everything seen and heard, this report was a special kind of scientific work. For example, it is clearly seen from it that in Paris, in the laboratory of Professor A. Wurtz, Butlerov carefully studied the effect of sodium alcoholite on iodine and iodoform. This reaction was studied by chemists even before Butlerov, but he was the first, skillfully changing the reaction conditions, to manage to obtain methylene iodide, a compound with a density of 3.32, which soon found wide acceptance. practical use from mineralogists. As for methylene iodide, in the skilful hands of Butlerov it became the starting product for the synthesis of many organic compounds.

“The naturalness,” he wrote, “the necessity of theoretical conclusions arising from the actual development of science, also explains the fact that all the views that I met in Western Europe represented little new for me. Putting aside false modesty inappropriate here, I must note that these views and conclusions in recent years have already been more or less assimilated in the Kazan laboratory, which did not count on originality; they became in it a common walking property and were partly introduced into teaching. I can hardly be mistaken if I predict in the near future the confluence of controversial views and their liberation from the peculiar costumes in which they are still dressed and which often cover their inner content, their real meaning.

Having reorganized the chemical laboratory of Kazan University, Butlerov carried out a number of important experimental studies over the course of several years.

In 1859, for example, when methylene iodide was treated with silver acetate, he obtained methylene glycol acetic ester, and when the ether was saponified, instead of the expected methylene glycol, a formaldehyde polymer was obtained, which he gave the name dioxymethylene. This substance, which turned out to be a mixture of polymers, served for Butlerov as a product for other, even more brilliant synthesis experiments.

So, in 1860, when dioxymethylene was treated with ammonia, he obtained a complex nitrogen-containing compound, the so-called hexamethylenetetramine. The resulting substance called urotropin has found extensive use in medicine and in the chemical industry.

In 1861, Butlerov made a no less remarkable discovery: by the action of a lime solution on dioxymethylene, for the first time in the history of chemistry, he obtained a sugary substance by synthesis. With this, Butlerov, as it were, completed a series of classical studies of his contemporaries:

in 1826 Wöhler synthesized oxalic acid, in 1828 - urea,

Kolbe synthesized acetic acid in 1848.

Berthelot in 1854 - fats, and

Butlerov in 1861 - a sugary substance.

These experiments helped Butlerov to formulate the ideas and assumptions on which he worked in those years into a coherent theory. Believing in the reality of atoms, he came to the firm conviction that scientists were finally able to express the structure of the molecules of the most complex organic compounds with concrete formulas.

On September 19, 1861, at the XXXVI meeting of German naturalists and doctors in the German city of Speyer, in the presence of prominent chemists, Butlerov read the famous report - "On the chemical structure of substances."

Butlerov's report began with the statement that the theoretical side of chemistry has not corresponded to its actual development for a long time, and the theory of types, accepted by the majority of scientists, is clearly insufficient to explain many chemical processes. He argued that the properties of substances depend not only on their qualitative and quantitative composition, but also on the spatial arrangement of atoms in molecules. "The chemical nature of a complex particle is determined by the nature of the elementary constituents, their quantity and chemical structure." Assessing the significance of the theories that existed at that time in chemistry, Butlerov confidently stated that any true scientific theory should follow from the facts it is intended to explain.

Butlerov's report was received coldly by German chemists. Only Dr. Heinz and the young Privatdozent Erlenmeyer reacted to Butlerov's report with understanding. But this did not bother Butlerov at all. The closest result of his work was the synthesis of trimethylcarbinol, the first representative of the class of tertiary alcohols, followed by a series of experiments that made it possible to elucidate in detail the entire mechanism of the reaction for obtaining tertiary alcohols.

Based on the data obtained, Butlerov developed the theory of chemical structure developed by him, at the same time criticizing the mistakes made in the works of the well-known chemists Kekule, Kolbe, Erlenmeyer, who were close in approach. “With the opinion of Kekule,” he wrote, “that the position of atoms in space cannot be represented on the plane of paper, one can hardly agree. After all, the position of points in space is expressed by mathematical formulas, and one should, of course, hope that the laws that govern the formation and existence of chemical compounds will someday find their mathematical expression.

In 1867, while studying the properties and chemical reactions of trimethylcarbinol, Butlerov was the first to obtain trimethylcarbinol iodhydrin, and during the reduction of the latter, an unknown hydrocarbon, which he called isobutane. This hydrocarbon differed sharply from the hydrocarbon of the same composition previously known to chemists, the so-called diethyl (normal butane): while normal butane had a boiling point of plus one degree, isobutane already boiled at a temperature of minus seventeen.

The experimental preparation of compounds predicted on the basis of the theory of chemical structure developed by Butlerov was of decisive importance for its approval.

In 1867, having completed work on the textbook Introduction to the Complete Study of Organic Chemistry, Butlerov went abroad for the third and last time. The need for such a trip is ripe: some foreign chemists, who had not previously recognized Butlerov's theory, now began to attribute some of his discoveries to themselves. And some even reduced his role to the fact that Butlerov allegedly simply gave a new name to a theory already developed by others.

“Of course, it is not my intention to prove my claims with citations,” Butlerov wrote in response to the accusations of the chemist L. Mayer, a friend of Kekule, who claimed the priority of Butlerov’s ideas, “however, if we compare (in chronological order) my work, published since 1861, with the work of other chemists, it will be necessary to admit that these claims are not unfounded. I even allow myself to think that it will be much easier for me to prove their validity than to defend my point of view for someone who, like Mr. L. Meyer, would like to assert that my participation in the implementation of a new principle is limited to giving it the name of the principle of "chemical structure “and application known way writing formulas...

“Kekule,” Markovnikov supported Butlerov, “and in particular Cooper, really gave the first explanation of the atomic nature of carbon and its accumulation in complex particles. But this is still far from a theory that embraces not only carbonaceous substances, but all chemical compounds in general, and we have indeed already seen that Kekule himself initially attached only secondary importance to his considerations. Butlerov's merit lies in the fact that he understood true value this hypothesis and developed it into a coherent system.

“What Butlerov introduced here,” the Finnish chemist E. Gjelt pointed out even more clearly in his capital History of Organic Chemistry, “is not just a new term. The concept of chemical structure basically coincides with Kekule's concept of the adhesion of atoms and is consistent with Cooper's views on this issue. The foundations of this concept were given by these two researchers, however, its true content and boundaries were not clearly expressed, and it is possible that, precisely because of this, it was misunderstood. Thanks to Butlerov, it became clear that the chemical structure, on the one hand, is something completely different, that is, it is not only an expression of the relationship of analogies and transformation. On the other hand, the structure does not say anything about the mechanical arrangement of atoms in the molecule, i.e., it is not what Gerard, and also Kekule (at the beginning), understood by the “structure of the molecule”, namely, the “true arrangement of their atoms”. On the contrary, it means only the existing, but for each substance, a certain chemical bond of atoms in a molecule.

Despite this support, Butlerov returned to Russia disappointed.

“For us strangers,” he wrote bitterly, “one feature of the German congresses is especially striking, a feature so strange that I cannot keep silent about it; it is the desire to express one's nationality at every opportunity. And there is no doubt that this hypertrophy of national feeling does no little harm to the Germans: it makes them insufficiently recognize every foreign nationality.

In May 1868, Butlerov was elected an ordinary professor at St. Petersburg University. In this regard, he moved to the capital. In a presentation written by D. I. Mendeleev, it was said:

"A. M. Butlerov is one of the most remarkable Russian scientists.

He is Russian both in terms of his scientific education and the originality of his works.

A student of our famous Academician N. Zinin, he became a chemist not in foreign lands, but in Kazan, where he continues to develop an independent chemical school. The direction of the scientific works of A. M. does not constitute a continuation or development of the ideas of his predecessors, but belongs to him. In chemistry there is Butlerovskaya school, Butlerovskoye direction. I could count up to 30 new bodies discovered by Butlerov, but it was not this side of his work that brought him the greatest fame. With Butlerov, all discoveries expired and were guided by one general idea. It was she who created the school, it is she who allows us to assert that his name will forever remain in science. This is the idea of ​​the so-called chemical structure. In the 1850s, the revolutionary chemistry Gerard overthrew all the old idols, moved chemistry onto a new road, however, soon, with the wealth of new information, it was necessary to go further than Gerard. Several separate directions have revived here. And between them, a place of honor belongs to the direction of Butlerov. He again seeks, by studying chemical transformations, to penetrate into the very depths of the bonds that fasten heterogeneous elements into a single whole, gives each of them an innate ability to enter into a known number of compounds, and attributes the difference in properties different way element connections. No one carried these thoughts as consistently as he did, although they had been visible before. Butlerov, with his readings and the fascination of ideas, formed around him in Kazan a school of chemists working in his direction. The names of Markovnikov, Myasnikov, Popov, the two Zaitsevs, Morgunov and some others managed to gain fame for many discoveries made mainly due to the independence of the Butlerov trend. I can personally testify that such French and German scientists as Wurtz and Kolbe consider Butlerov one of the most influential movers of the theoretical trend in chemistry in our time.

In 1870, Butlerov was elected an adjunct of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, a year later - an extraordinary, and in 1874 - an ordinary academician.

In the works of the St. Petersburg period, Butlerov paid much attention to the study of methods for the formation and transformation of unsaturated hydrocarbons. It was of great industrial importance. Now, for example, the hydration of ethylene in the presence of sulfuric acid produces huge amounts of ethyl alcohol, and as a result of the compaction reaction of propylene at ordinary temperature, but at elevated pressure and in the presence of boron fluoride, various products with the properties of lubricating oils are obtained. Butlerov's work formed the basis for the production of synthetic rubber, as well as the industry of high-octane fuels.

Butlerov's merits in chemistry were duly appreciated.

He was elected a full and honorary member of the Kazan, Kyiv and Moscow universities, the Military Medical Academy and many other Russian and foreign scientific societies.

Butlerov devoted the last years of his scientific activity to proving the advantages of the theory he developed over the rapidly aging theory of substitution. This activity required a lot of strength from him, because even two such significant Russian chemists as Mendeleev and Menshutkin recognized the validity of most of his constructions only after Butlerov's death.

Butlerov brilliantly predicted many stages in the development of chemical science. For example, in the article “Basic Concepts of Chemistry,” he wrote back in 1886:

“I pose the question: would not Prout's conjecture, under certain conditions, be quite true?

To raise such a question is to decide to deny the absolute constancy of atomic weights, and I really think that there is no reason to accept such constancy. Atomic weight will be for the chemist, in the main, nothing more than an expression of that weight of matter which is the carrier of a certain amount of chemical energy. But we know well that with other types of energy, its amount is not determined by the mass of the substance at all: the mass can remain unchanged, but the amount of energy nevertheless changes, for example, due to a change in speed.

Why can't similar changes exist for chemical energy, at least within certain limits?

With his general materialistic views on nature, Butlerov in some respects adhered to some, undoubtedly, excessive views. For example, he sincerely believed in spiritualism, he even tried to bring a theoretical basis for it. Being a religious man, Butlerov was inclined to believe that it was spiritualism that provided some subtle opportunity to establish contact between living people and the souls of the dead. He even suggested that the mediumistic phenomena observed by spiritualists are just such attempts to establish contacts from the “other side”. Of course, the official church attributed Butlerov's unusual hypothesis to the category of direct heresy, and a special scientific commission of twelve people, both supporters and opponents of spiritualism, created in 1875 at the initiative of Mendeleev at the Russian Physical and Chemical Society, published in the popular newspaper "Voice" review, ending with the conclusion that "... spiritualistic phenomena come from unconscious movements or from conscious deception, and spiritualistic teaching is superstition."

Nevertheless, Butlerov until his death published numerous articles in Russian and foreign journals in defense of spiritualism. I wonder what shadows of what great predecessors he tried to evoke at mediumistic seances, what questions did he ask them? The ancient alchemists, for example, were seldom prepared to face the inexplicable they so stubbornly pursued. A story is known when one such alchemist, discouraged by the unexpected appearance of the devil, asked him: “What, in fact, did Aristotle want to say with his entelechy?” In response, the devil laughed and disappeared.

Butlerov always loved wildlife.

Towards the end of his life, he reached out to the land, to simple labor, tried to accustom his peasants to agricultural machinery, which he specially bought for them. In his large estate, located in the Spassky district of the Kazan province, he organized a large apiary. He could sit for hours near a beehive with a glass wall, made according to his special drawing. The result of long observations was the work “Bee, its life and the main rules of sensible beekeeping. Quick Guide for bees, mainly for peasants", and Butlerov's pamphlet "How to Lead the Bees", published by him in 1885, went through twelve editions.

Opekushin Alexander Mikhailovich Opekushin (Alexander Mikhailovich) - sculptor, b. in 1840, he was educated under the guidance of prof. D. Jensen, after which he studied at the Imp. accd. thin., which, in 1864, awarded him the title of non-class artist for sculptural sketches