Auguste Victor Louis Verneuil
Encyclopedia
Auguste Victor Louis Verneuil (3 November 1856 – 27 April 1913) was a French chemist
best known for inventing the first commercially viable process for the manufacture of synthetic gemstone
s. In 1902 he discovered the "flame fusion" process, today called the Verneuil process
, which remains in use today as an inexpensive means of making artificial corundum
, or rubies
.
accepted him as a laboratory assistant. He received his bachelor degree in 1875, his master's in 1880 and his PhD in 1886. In 1892 he became a professor of applied chemistry in the organic chemistry section of the Museum of Natural History in Paris, where he worked for 13 years. He studied methods to synthesize ruby
, the chemistry of selenium
, the phosphorescence
of zincblende, the chemistry of rare earth element
s, the purification of glycerine and the production of high refractive index glass
. He also taught chemistry at various high schools and colleges.
Verneuil began working on the synthesis of rubies by flame fusion as far back as 1886 and came to a result within six years, depositing his sealed notes at the Paris Academy of Science in 1891 and 1892, but only announcing his discovery in 1902.
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
best known for inventing the first commercially viable process for the manufacture of synthetic gemstone
Gemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
s. In 1902 he discovered the "flame fusion" process, today called the Verneuil process
Verneuil process
The Verneuil process, also called flame fusion, was the first commercially successful method of manufacturing synthetic gemstones, developed in 1902 by the French chemist Auguste Verneuil. It is primarily used to produce the ruby and sapphire varieties of corundum, as well as the diamond simulants...
, which remains in use today as an inexpensive means of making artificial corundum
Corundum
Corundum is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide with traces of iron, titanium and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. It is one of the naturally clear transparent materials, but can have different colors when impurities are present. Transparent specimens are used as gems, called ruby if red...
, or rubies
Ruby
A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum . The red color is caused mainly by the presence of the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires...
.
Biography
Verneuil was born in Dunkirk, France, in 1856. He was the son of a watchmaker-mechanic. When he was 17, chemist Edmond FremyEdmond Fremy
Edmond Frémy was a French chemist. He is perhaps best known today for Frémy's salt, a strong oxidizing agent which he discovered in 1845...
accepted him as a laboratory assistant. He received his bachelor degree in 1875, his master's in 1880 and his PhD in 1886. In 1892 he became a professor of applied chemistry in the organic chemistry section of the Museum of Natural History in Paris, where he worked for 13 years. He studied methods to synthesize ruby
Ruby
A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum . The red color is caused mainly by the presence of the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires...
, the chemistry of selenium
Selenium
Selenium is a chemical element with atomic number 34, chemical symbol Se, and an atomic mass of 78.96. It is a nonmetal, whose properties are intermediate between those of adjacent chalcogen elements sulfur and tellurium...
, the phosphorescence
Phosphorescence
Phosphorescence is a specific type of photoluminescence related to fluorescence. Unlike fluorescence, a phosphorescent material does not immediately re-emit the radiation it absorbs. The slower time scales of the re-emission are associated with "forbidden" energy state transitions in quantum...
of zincblende, the chemistry of rare earth element
Rare earth element
As defined by IUPAC, rare earth elements or rare earth metals are a set of seventeen chemical elements in the periodic table, specifically the fifteen lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium...
s, the purification of glycerine and the production of high refractive index glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
. He also taught chemistry at various high schools and colleges.
Verneuil began working on the synthesis of rubies by flame fusion as far back as 1886 and came to a result within six years, depositing his sealed notes at the Paris Academy of Science in 1891 and 1892, but only announcing his discovery in 1902.