Victor Grignard
François Auguste Victor Grignard (May 6, 1871, Cherbourg-Octeville - December 13, 1935, Lyon) was a French chemist and university professor who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1912., shared with his compatriot Paul Sabatier.
Biography
The son of a Cherbourg shipyard worker, Victor Grignard studied at the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Lyon. He achieved the degree of Doctor of Science in 1901, being professor of chemistry at the same university until 1909. From 1910 to 1919 he taught at the University of Nancy, returning again to Lyon, where he would teach from 1919 to 1935.
During World War I, he was mobilized and in charge of guarding the railways, before participating in the search for military gases (phosgene and mustard gas) and explosives.
Scientific research
His most important discovery was that of organomagnesian compounds, called Grignard reagents. This discovery provided organic chemistry with a new method of synthesis known as the Grignard reaction.
In 1912 he was awarded half the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his studies in the chemistry of alcohols using the Grignard reaction. The other half of the prize went to Paul Sabatier for his method of hydrogenation of organic compounds in the presence of metals.
On June 7, 1926, he was elected a non-resident member of the French Academy of Sciences.
Under his direction and with great contributions from him, the Traité de chimie organique (Treatise on organic chemistry, 23 vols., 1935-1954) was published.
Eponymy
- Grignard and Grignard Reaction
- Asteroid (10305) Grignard
- Grignard lunar crater