Ronald Sydney Nyholm facts for kids

Sir Ronald Sydney Nyholm (born January 29, 1917 – died December 4, 1971) was an important Australian chemist. He was a top expert in inorganic chemistry during the 1950s and 1960s. His work helped us understand how different chemicals react. He also helped improve how chemistry is taught in schools.

Early Life and Education

Ronald Nyholm was born on January 29, 1917. He was one of six children in his family. His father worked for the railway. Ronald's grandfather came from Finland. Ronald was proud of his Finnish background. He was especially happy when he became a member of the Finnish Chemical Society in 1959.

Ronald grew up in Broken Hill, a mining town in New South Wales, Australia. Living there, he saw how important inorganic chemistry was. He went to Burke Ward Public School and Broken Hill High School. Later, he married Maureen Richardson in London in 1948.

After high school, Ronald studied at the University of Sydney. He earned his first degree in 1938 and a master's degree in 1942. He then went to University College London for his PhD, which he finished in 1950. His teacher there was Sir Christopher Ingold. After university, Ronald first worked as a high school teacher. This was part of the agreement for his scholarship.

Career and Research

After teaching, Ronald Nyholm worked as a chemist at the Eveready Battery Company. He wanted to make batteries last longer. However, the marketing team did not like his ideas. This made him feel frustrated.

He then returned to teaching, but this time at universities. During World War II, he served as a Gas Officer. This was because people worried about possible gas attacks. From 1940 to 1951, he taught chemistry at Sydney Technical College. He also taught at the New South Wales University of Technology. In 1954, he became President of the Royal Society of New South Wales.

In 1955, Nyholm moved to England. He became a Professor of Chemistry at University College London. He worked there until he died in a car accident in 1971.

Exploring Inorganic Chemistry

Ronald Nyholm's main research was in inorganic chemistry. He focused on creating new transition metal compounds. These are special types of metals. He was very interested in compounds that contained arsenic. His teacher, George Joseph Burrows, first sparked this interest.

Nyholm used a special chemical called diars. With diars, he showed that transition metals could exist in many different forms. He explained that "unusual valence states" were not really unusual. They just depended on the other chemicals around the metal. He showed that metals could have many different "oxidation states" or ways of bonding.

Nyholm worked closely with Francis Dwyer at Sydney Technology College. They became good friends. Despite having many teaching duties, they published many papers together. Their research looked at compounds of metals like rhodium, iridium, and osmium.

One of Nyholm's big achievements was making a special nickel compound. He also created stable compounds of nickel in a higher oxidation state. This work was important for the Nyholm-Rail reaction. In this reaction, diars changes into a different chemical called triars. Nyholm also made many other metal compounds using diars. These included compounds of chromium, iron, and platinum.

Some of these compounds react easily with air. For example, the chromium compound reacts with water. Earlier attempts to make these chromium compounds had failed. His co-worker, Anthony Nicholl Rail, finally made them. He used very careful air-free techniques just before Nyholm's death.

Nyholm also worked with Professor Ronald Gillespie. Together, they developed the VSEPR (Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion) theory. This theory helps predict the molecular geometry or shape of molecules. It uses simple ideas about how electrons push each other away.

Teaching Ideas

Ronald Nyholm cared a lot about teaching chemistry. In 1957, he started summer schools at University College. These schools taught new ideas in chemistry. They also showed new equipment.

In the 1960s, the Nuffield Foundation started a science teaching project. Nyholm was a key person in this project. He led the Chemistry Consultative Committee. This project helped create new science courses for schools. These courses focused on how chemistry works, not just memorizing facts. They also explored how chemistry affects society.

In 1971, Nyholm wrote an article called 'Education for Change'. He explained the difference between education and training. He said education helps a person live a "full life" in a changing world. It helps people develop their own personality. He believed that learning should not just be about remembering facts.

Nyholm thought that a good education for a full life should include:

• Understanding yourself as an individual. This means developing your own moral standards.
• Learning about the society you live in.
• Being able to communicate well, both by speaking and writing.
• Understanding numbers and quantitative thinking.

Working with Industry

Nyholm always had connections with industry. His first job was at Eveready Batteries. He believed that science should be used to make useful products. He admired the DuPont company's motto: "Better things for better living through chemistry." He worked as a consultant for many companies. These included ICI and Johnson Matthey in the UK, and DuPont in the US.

Awards and Recognition

Ronald Nyholm received many awards for his work. Here are some of them:

• 1950: Corday-Morgan medal and Prize from the Chemical Society.
• 1955: H G Smith Medal from the Royal Australian Chemical Institute.
• 1959: Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.
• 1959: Royal Medal from the Royal Society of New South Wales.
• 1961: Tilden Lecturer for the Chemical Society.
• 1967: Made a Knight Bachelor for his work in science.
• 1968: Gold Medal from the Italian Chemical Society.
• 1968: Honorary Doctor of Science from the University of East Anglia.
• 1968: Honorary Doctor of Science from City University, London.
• 1969: Sigillum Magnum Medal from the University of Bologna.
• 1969: Honorary Doctor of Science from the University of New South Wales.

After his death, two awards were created in his honor. The Nyholm Prize for Inorganic Chemistry and the Nyholm Prize for Education are given out every two years.

A mineral found in Broken Hill in 2009 was also named after him. It is called Nyholmite.