August Sigmund Frobenius facts for kids
August Sigmund Frobenius (born around 1727, died 1741) was a German chemist from the 1700s. He is famous for being the first to describe in detail the properties of a substance called diethyl ether. He also gave it a name, Spiritus Vini Æthereus.
Not much is known about Frobenius's life. He worked in different cities like London, Paris, and places in Germany and Italy. In London, he worked in the laboratory of Ambrose Godfrey. There, he made ether by following a method that had been developed by Isaac Newton.
Discovering Ether
Frobenius published his first article about ether in 1729. It appeared in a scientific journal called the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. The article was titled An Account of a Spiritus Vini Æthereus, Together with Several Experiments Tried. This publication made other scientists very interested in ether.
What the Article Said
Frobenius's article gave a lot of information about what ether was like. It described its properties, such as how it looked, smelled, and reacted. However, the article did not explain exactly how to make ether.
Publishing the Method
The detailed instructions for making ether were kept at the Royal Society. They were finally published in 1741, after Frobenius had passed away. Cromwell Mortimer published these details. By that time, other chemists had already figured out and published their own ways to make ether.
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