William Giauque
Encyclopedia
William Francis Giauque was an American
chemist and Nobel laureate recognised in 1949 for his studies in the properties of matter
at temperatures close to absolute zero
. He spent virtually all of his educational and professional career at the University of California, Berkeley.
, on May 12, 1895.
As his parents were U.S.
citizens, they returned to the U.S. where he attended public schools primarily in Michigan. Following the death of his father in 1908, the family returned to Niagara Falls, where he studied at the Niagara Falls Collegiate Institute. After graduation, he looked for work in various power plants at Niagara Falls both for financial reasons and to pursue a career in electrical engineering. He was widely unsuccessful.
Eventually, however, his application was accepted by the Hooker Electro-Chemical Company in Niagara Falls, New York
, which led him to employment in their laboratory. He enjoyed the work, and decided to become a chemical engineer.
After two years of employment, he entered the College of Chemistry
of the University of California, Berkeley
, where he received a bachelor of science degree with honors in 1920. He entered graduate school at Berkeley, becoming a University Fellow (1920–1921) and a James M. Goewey Fellow (1921–1922). He received the Ph.D. degree in chemistry with a minor in physics in 1922.
. Due to his outstanding performance as a student, he became an Instructor of Chemistry at Berkeley in 1922 and after passing through various grades of professorship, he became a full Professor of Chemistry in 1934. He retired in 1962.
as a field of research during his experimental research for his Ph.D. research under Professor George Ernest Gibson
comparing the relative entropies of glycerine crystals and glass.
The principal objective of his researches was to demonstrate through range of appropriate tests that the third law of thermodynamics is a basic natural law. In 1926, he proposed a method for observing temperatures considerably below one kelvin (−457.87 degrees Fahrenheit or −272.15 degrees Celsius). His work with D.P. MacDougall between 1933 and 1935 successfully employed them.
He developed a magnetic refrigeration
device of his own design in order to achieve this outcome, getting closer to absolute zero than many scientists had thought possible. This trailblazing work, apart from proving one of the fundamental laws of nature led to stronger steel, better gasoline and more efficient processes in a range of industries.
His researches and that of his students included a large number of entropy determinations from low temperature measurements, particularly on condensed gases. The entropies and other thermodynamic properties of many gases were also determined from quantum statistics and molecular energy levels available from band spectra as well as other sources.
His correlated investigations of the entropy of oxygen with Dr. Herrick. L. Johnston
, led to the discovery of oxygen isotopes 17 and 18 in the Earth's atmosphere and showed that physicists and chemists had been using different scales of atomic weight for years without recognising it.
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chemist and Nobel laureate recognised in 1949 for his studies in the properties of matter
Matter
Matter is a general term for the substance of which all physical objects consist. Typically, matter includes atoms and other particles which have mass. A common way of defining matter is as anything that has mass and occupies volume...
at temperatures close to absolute zero
Absolute zero
Absolute zero is the theoretical temperature at which entropy reaches its minimum value. The laws of thermodynamics state that absolute zero cannot be reached using only thermodynamic means....
. He spent virtually all of his educational and professional career at the University of California, Berkeley.
Biography
William Francis Giauque was born in Niagara Falls, OntarioNiagara Falls, Ontario
Niagara Falls is a Canadian city on the Niagara River in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The municipality was incorporated on June 12, 1903...
, on May 12, 1895.
As his parents were U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
citizens, they returned to the U.S. where he attended public schools primarily in Michigan. Following the death of his father in 1908, the family returned to Niagara Falls, where he studied at the Niagara Falls Collegiate Institute. After graduation, he looked for work in various power plants at Niagara Falls both for financial reasons and to pursue a career in electrical engineering. He was widely unsuccessful.
Eventually, however, his application was accepted by the Hooker Electro-Chemical Company in Niagara Falls, New York
Niagara Falls, New York
Niagara Falls is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 50,193, down from the 55,593 recorded in the 2000 census. It is across the Niagara River from Niagara Falls, Ontario , both named after the famed Niagara Falls which they...
, which led him to employment in their laboratory. He enjoyed the work, and decided to become a chemical engineer.
After two years of employment, he entered the College of Chemistry
UC Berkeley College of Chemistry
The UC Berkeley College of Chemistry is one of 14 schools and colleges at the University of California, Berkeley. It houses the departments of chemistry and chemical and biomolecular engineering and occupies six buildings flanking central plaza. US News and World Report has ranked its chemistry and...
of the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, where he received a bachelor of science degree with honors in 1920. He entered graduate school at Berkeley, becoming a University Fellow (1920–1921) and a James M. Goewey Fellow (1921–1922). He received the Ph.D. degree in chemistry with a minor in physics in 1922.
Research
Although he began university study with an interest in becoming an engineer, he soon developed an interest in research under the influence of Professor Gilbert N. LewisGilbert N. Lewis
Gilbert Newton Lewis was an American physical chemist known for the discovery of the covalent bond , his purification of heavy water, his reformulation of chemical thermodynamics in a mathematically rigorous manner accessible to ordinary chemists, his theory of Lewis acids and...
. Due to his outstanding performance as a student, he became an Instructor of Chemistry at Berkeley in 1922 and after passing through various grades of professorship, he became a full Professor of Chemistry in 1934. He retired in 1962.
Absolute zero
He became interested in the third law of thermodynamicsThird law of thermodynamics
The third law of thermodynamics is a statistical law of nature regarding entropy:For other materials, the residual entropy is not necessarily zero, although it is always zero for a perfect crystal in which there is only one possible ground state.-History:...
as a field of research during his experimental research for his Ph.D. research under Professor George Ernest Gibson
George Ernest Gibson
George Ernest Gibson was a Scottish born American nuclear chemist.-Early years:George Ernest Gibson was born Edinburgh, Scotland and educated partly in Germany where attended a gymnasium in Darmstadt, finishing his schooling in Edinburgh. He studied chemistry at the University of Edinburgh...
comparing the relative entropies of glycerine crystals and glass.
The principal objective of his researches was to demonstrate through range of appropriate tests that the third law of thermodynamics is a basic natural law. In 1926, he proposed a method for observing temperatures considerably below one kelvin (−457.87 degrees Fahrenheit or −272.15 degrees Celsius). His work with D.P. MacDougall between 1933 and 1935 successfully employed them.
He developed a magnetic refrigeration
Magnetic refrigeration
Magnetic refrigeration is a cooling technology based on the magnetocaloric effect. This technique can be used to attain extremely low temperatures , as well as the ranges used in common refrigerators, depending on the design of the system.The effect was first observed by the German physicist Emil...
device of his own design in order to achieve this outcome, getting closer to absolute zero than many scientists had thought possible. This trailblazing work, apart from proving one of the fundamental laws of nature led to stronger steel, better gasoline and more efficient processes in a range of industries.
His researches and that of his students included a large number of entropy determinations from low temperature measurements, particularly on condensed gases. The entropies and other thermodynamic properties of many gases were also determined from quantum statistics and molecular energy levels available from band spectra as well as other sources.
His correlated investigations of the entropy of oxygen with Dr. Herrick. L. Johnston
Herrick. L. Johnston
Herrick Lee Johnston was an American scientist specializing in cryogenics, born in Jacksonville, OhioHe was a researcher at the University of California at Berkeley 1925-28 and an associate of cryogenics pioneer William Giauque when his experiments proved the existence of oxygen isotopes with...
, led to the discovery of oxygen isotopes 17 and 18 in the Earth's atmosphere and showed that physicists and chemists had been using different scales of atomic weight for years without recognising it.
Personal life
In 1932, Giauque married Dr. Muriel Frances Ashley and they had two sons. He died on March 28, 1982 in Berkeley, CaliforniaBerkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
.
External links
- http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/biomems/wgiauque.html National Academy of Sciences biography
- http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1949/giauque-bio.html William Giauque Nobel Prize biography
- contributions in the field of chemical thermodynamics, particularly concerning the behaviour of substances at extremely low temperatures.