The first chemistry laureate
Van 't Hoff was born in 1852. In 1901, he received the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He died in 1911.
Literature
Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff
Pioneering work in stereochemistry and physical chemistry, including chemical dynamics, osmotic pressure, equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics.
Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff was a Dutch physical chemist and an influential theoretical chemist. His work helped establish modern theories of chemical affinity, equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics. In 1901, he received the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discoveries concerning chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions.
Worth knowing
The tetrahedral carbon atom
In an 1874 pamphlet, Van 't Hoff formulated the theory of the tetrahedral carbon atom, laying the foundations of stereochemistry.
A founder of physical chemistry
Van 't Hoff helped found modern theories of chemical affinity, equilibrium, kinetics and thermodynamics. He is widely considered one of the three co-founders of physical chemistry.
A journal for physical chemistry
In 1887, Van 't Hoff, Svante Arrhenius and Wilhelm Ostwald founded the Zeitschrift für physikalische Chemie at Leipzig University. It was the first scientific journal dedicated to physical chemistry.
The Nobel citation
The Nobel Prize honored Van 't Hoff "for his discovery of the laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions."
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