Georg Wittig
Encyclopedia
Georg Wittig was a German chemist
who reported a method for synthesis of alkene
s from aldehyde
s and ketone
s using compounds called phosphonium
ylide
s in the Wittig reaction
. He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
with Herbert C. Brown
in 1979.
, where his father was professor at the applied arts high school. He attended school in Kassel and started studying chemistry at the University of Tübingen 1916. He was drafted and became a lieutenant in the cavalry of Hesse-Kassel
(or Hesse-Cassel). After being an English prisoner of war from 1918 till 1919 the restart of his chemistry studies was complicated, due to the overcrowded universities. By a direct plea to Karl von Auwers
, who was professor for organic chemistry at the University of Marburg at time, he was able rejoin a university. After 3 years he was rewarded his PhD in organic chemistry. Karl von Auwers was able to convince him to start an academic career, which yielded his habilitation in 1926. He became a close friend to Karl Ziegler
, who was also doing his habilitation with Auwers during that time. The successor of Karl von Auwers
Hans Meerwein
assumed Wittig as lecturer, partly because he was impressed by the new 400 page book on stereochemistry that Wittig had written. In 1931 he married Waltraud Ernst, a colleague from the Auwers working group. The invitation of Karl Fries
brought him as professor to the TU Braunschweig in 1932. The time in Braunschweig
became more and more problematic as the Nazis tried to get rid of Karl Fries and Wittig showed solidarity with him. After forced emeritation of Fries, in 1937 Hermann Staudinger
offered Wittig a position at the University of Freiburg
, partly because he knew Wittig from his book on stereochemistry in which he supported the highly criticized theory on macromolecules of Staudinger. The foundations of the carbanion chemistry was laid during the time in Freiburg. In 1944 Wittig succeeded the head of the organic department Wilhelm Schlenk
at the University of Tübingen. Most of the scientific work like the Wittig reaction
was done during the time at the University of Thübingen. The 1956 appointment of the nearly sixty year old Wittig as head of the organics department at the University of Heidelberg as successor of Karl Freudenberg was exceptional even at that time. The newly built department and the close connection to the BASF
convinced Wittig to take this opportunity. He worked at the University of Heidelberg even after his emeritation in 1967 and published papers until 1980. Most of his awards were presented in the time in Heidelberg, such as the honorary doctor of the Sorbonne
in 1956 and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
in 1979.
and the discovery of the 1,2-Wittig rearrangement
and the 2,3-Wittig rearrangement
.
Wittig was well known in the chemistry community for being a consummate experimenter and observer of chemical transformations, while caring very little for the theoretical and mechanistic underpinnings of the work he produced.
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...
who reported a method for synthesis of alkene
Alkene
In organic chemistry, an alkene, olefin, or olefine is an unsaturated chemical compound containing at least one carbon-to-carbon double bond...
s from aldehyde
Aldehyde
An aldehyde is an organic compound containing a formyl group. This functional group, with the structure R-CHO, consists of a carbonyl center bonded to hydrogen and an R group....
s and ketone
Ketone
In organic chemistry, a ketone is an organic compound with the structure RCR', where R and R' can be a variety of atoms and groups of atoms. It features a carbonyl group bonded to two other carbon atoms. Many ketones are known and many are of great importance in industry and in biology...
s using compounds called phosphonium
Phosphonium
The phosphonium cation describes positively charged polyatomic cations with the chemical formula . Salts of the parent PH4+ are rarely encountered, but this ion is an intermediate in the preparation of the industrially useful tetrakisphosphonium chloride:Organic phosphonium salts are common...
ylide
Ylide
An ylide or ylid is a neutral dipolar molecule containing a formally negatively charged atom directly attached to a hetero atom with a formal positive charge , and in which both atoms have full octets of electrons. Ylides are thus 1,2-dipolar compounds...
s in the Wittig reaction
Wittig reaction
The Wittig reaction is a chemical reaction of an aldehyde or ketone with a triphenyl phosphonium ylide to give an alkene and triphenylphosphine oxide....
. He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
with Herbert C. Brown
Herbert C. Brown
Herbert Charles Brown was a chemist and Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate for his work with organoboranes....
in 1979.
Biography
Wittig was born in Berlin, Germany and shortly after his birth he moved with his family to KasselKassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
, where his father was professor at the applied arts high school. He attended school in Kassel and started studying chemistry at the University of Tübingen 1916. He was drafted and became a lieutenant in the cavalry of Hesse-Kassel
Hesse-Kassel
The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel was a state in the Holy Roman Empire under Imperial immediacy that came into existence when the Landgraviate of Hesse was divided in 1567 upon the death of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. His eldest son William IV inherited the northern half and the...
(or Hesse-Cassel). After being an English prisoner of war from 1918 till 1919 the restart of his chemistry studies was complicated, due to the overcrowded universities. By a direct plea to Karl von Auwers
Karl von Auwers
Karl Friedrich von Auwers was a German chemist and the academic adviser of Karl Ziegler and Georg Wittig at the University of Marburg.-Life:...
, who was professor for organic chemistry at the University of Marburg at time, he was able rejoin a university. After 3 years he was rewarded his PhD in organic chemistry. Karl von Auwers was able to convince him to start an academic career, which yielded his habilitation in 1926. He became a close friend to Karl Ziegler
Karl Ziegler
Karl Waldemar Ziegler was a German chemist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1963, with Giulio Natta, for work on polymers. The Nobel Committee recognized his "excellent work on organometallic compounds [which]...led to new polymerization reactions and ... paved the way for new and highly...
, who was also doing his habilitation with Auwers during that time. The successor of Karl von Auwers
Karl von Auwers
Karl Friedrich von Auwers was a German chemist and the academic adviser of Karl Ziegler and Georg Wittig at the University of Marburg.-Life:...
Hans Meerwein
Hans Meerwein
Hans Meerwein was a German chemist.His name is present in the names of several reactions and reagents, for example the Meerwein-Ponndorf-Verley reduction, the Wagner-Meerwein rearrangement...
assumed Wittig as lecturer, partly because he was impressed by the new 400 page book on stereochemistry that Wittig had written. In 1931 he married Waltraud Ernst, a colleague from the Auwers working group. The invitation of Karl Fries
Karl Theophil Fries
Karl Theophil Fries was a German chemist.-Life:Karl Theophil Fries was born in Kiedrich, Germany on . After his family moved to Frankfurt he went to school there, but chose to study chemistry at the near University of Marburg in 1894.After one year in Darmstadt University of Technology to improve...
brought him as professor to the TU Braunschweig in 1932. The time in Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
became more and more problematic as the Nazis tried to get rid of Karl Fries and Wittig showed solidarity with him. After forced emeritation of Fries, in 1937 Hermann Staudinger
Hermann Staudinger
- External links :* Staudinger's * Staudinger's Nobel Lecture *....
offered Wittig a position at the University of Freiburg
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...
, partly because he knew Wittig from his book on stereochemistry in which he supported the highly criticized theory on macromolecules of Staudinger. The foundations of the carbanion chemistry was laid during the time in Freiburg. In 1944 Wittig succeeded the head of the organic department Wilhelm Schlenk
Wilhelm Schlenk
Wilhelm Johann Schlenk was a German chemist. He was born in Munich and also studied chemistry there. Schlenk succeeded Hermann Emil Fischer at the University of Berlin in 1919....
at the University of Tübingen. Most of the scientific work like the Wittig reaction
Wittig reaction
The Wittig reaction is a chemical reaction of an aldehyde or ketone with a triphenyl phosphonium ylide to give an alkene and triphenylphosphine oxide....
was done during the time at the University of Thübingen. The 1956 appointment of the nearly sixty year old Wittig as head of the organics department at the University of Heidelberg as successor of Karl Freudenberg was exceptional even at that time. The newly built department and the close connection to the BASF
BASF
BASF SE is the largest chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Germany. BASF originally stood for Badische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik . Today, the four letters are a registered trademark and the company is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Zurich Stock...
convinced Wittig to take this opportunity. He worked at the University of Heidelberg even after his emeritation in 1967 and published papers until 1980. Most of his awards were presented in the time in Heidelberg, such as the honorary doctor of the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
in 1956 and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
in 1979.
Work
Wittig's contributions also include the preparation of phenyllithiumPhenyllithium
Phenyllithium is an organometallic agent with the empirical formula C6H5Li. It is most commonly used as a metalating agent in organic syntheses and a substitute for Grignard reagents for introducing phenyl groups in organic syntheses...
and the discovery of the 1,2-Wittig rearrangement
1,2-Wittig rearrangement
A 1,2-Wittig rearrangement is a categorization of chemical reactions in organic chemistry, and consists of a 1,2-rearrangement of an ether with an alkyllithium compound. The reaction is named for Nobel Prize winning chemist Georg Wittig....
and the 2,3-Wittig rearrangement
2,3-Wittig rearrangement
The [2,3]-Wittig rearrangement is the transformation of an allylic ether into a homoallylic alcohol via a concerted, pericyclic process. Because the reaction is concerted, it exhibits a high degree of stereocontrol, and can be employed early in a synthetic route to establish stereochemistry...
.
Wittig was well known in the chemistry community for being a consummate experimenter and observer of chemical transformations, while caring very little for the theoretical and mechanistic underpinnings of the work he produced.