Eric Rideal facts for kids

Sir Eric Keightley Rideal (born April 11, 1890 – died September 25, 1974) was an important British physical chemist. He studied many different areas of chemistry. These included how electricity and chemistry mix (electrochemistry). He also looked at how fast chemical reactions happen (chemical kinetics). He was very interested in catalysis, which is about speeding up reactions. He also studied colloids and how chemicals behave on surfaces (surface chemistry).

He is most famous for something called the Eley–Rideal mechanism. This idea helps explain how some chemical reactions happen on surfaces. He came up with it in 1938 with Daniel D. Eley. Eric Rideal also wrote a well-known book. It was called An Introduction to Surface Chemistry. He received many awards for his important research. This research helped during both World War I and World War II.

Early Life and Education

Eric Keightley Rideal was born on April 11, 1890. His birthplace was Sydenham, which is in London. His father, Samuel Rideal, was also a chemist. Samuel Rideal worked on making water clean and safe.

Eric went to Farnham Grammar School and then Oundle School. In 1907, he won a scholarship. This allowed him to study Natural Sciences at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. After finishing his studies there in 1910, he went to Germany. He earned his PhD in chemistry in 1912 from the University of Bonn.

World War I Contributions

When World War I started, Eric Rideal was working in Ecuador. He was helping with water supplies there. He quickly returned home to join the army. He served with the Artists Rifles and later the Royal Engineers. He fought on the Western Front in 1916.

He became ill and returned home that same year. For the rest of the war, he did important research. He studied catalysis at University College London. During this time, he also wrote a key book. It was called Catalysis in Theory and Practice (1919). This book was very important in the field of chemistry. For his work during the war, he was made a MBE in 1918.

Career and Research Discoveries

After World War I, Rideal went to the United States in 1919. He was a visiting professor at the University of Illinois for a year. He then came back to the UK. He became a lecturer in physical chemistry at Trinity Hall, Cambridge.

Cambridge University Work

Eric Rideal stayed at Cambridge for 26 years. In 1930, he became a Professor of Colloid Science. He also became a Fellow of the Royal Society that same year. He started the Colloid Science Laboratory at Cambridge. This lab became a world-famous center for surface chemistry. It was also used for important war work during World War II.

Many famous students learned from Rideal at Cambridge. These included the writer C. P. Snow and future Nobel Prize winner Ronald G. W. Norrish.

Later Career and Books

After World War II, Rideal moved to London. He worked at the Royal Institution from 1946 to 1949. Then he was at King's College London from 1950 to 1955. Even after retiring in 1955, he kept working. He became a senior research fellow at Imperial College. This allowed him to write another book, Concepts in Catalysis (1968).

Over his long career, Eric Rideal wrote or helped write almost 300 papers. He also wrote about 12 books. He gave many public lectures too. These included the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures in 1947. They were titled 'Chemical Reactions: How They Work'. In 1949, he helped start a new science journal. It was called Advances in Catalysis.

Awards and Special Honours

Eric Rideal received many important awards. In 1951, he was given the Davy Medal by the Royal Society. This award was for his great work in surface chemistry.

He was also made a knight in 1951. This was to honor his important help to the government during World War II. He also received honorary degrees from several universities. These included Dublin, Birmingham, and Bonn.

He led several important scientific groups. He was President of the Faraday Society (1938–1945). He also led the Society of Chemical Industry (1945–1946) and the Chemical Society (1950–1952). In 1963, he became a Fellow of King's College London.

Later Years and Legacy

Sir Eric Rideal passed away on September 25, 1974. He died in West Kensington, London.

His name is still remembered today in science. There are special grants, lectures, and conferences named after him. The Rideal Trust helps students with travel bursaries. These are managed by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

The Tadion–Rideal Prize is a yearly award given by King's College London. The Sir Eric Rideal Lecture is given every year by the Society of Chemical Industry. The Rideal Conference is a big meeting held every three years. It focuses on surface chemistry and catalysis. This conference was renamed in his honor in 1971.

Selected Works

• Catalysis in Theory and Practice (1919, co-author)
• Industrial electrometallurgy (1919)
• Ozone (1920)
• An Introduction to Surface Chemistry (1926)
• Interfacial Phenomena (1963, co-author)
• Concepts in Catalysis (1968)
• Sixty Years of Chemistry (1970)