Revisiting Robert Bunsen’s Facts and his Life

On March 13, 1811, Robert Wilhelm Eberhard von Bunsen was born in Göttingen, Germany. His dad was a linguist at the University of Gottingen and even the head librarian, whereas his mom was a homemaker. Thanks to his father, Bunsen grew up with an educational experience. He went to school in Gottingen until he was 15, when he transferred to Holzminden’s grammar school. He began his undergraduate studies at the University of Gottingen when he was just 17 years old. Shortly afterwards, he got his PhD in biochemistry for his research on a moisture metre.

Bunsen earned a governmental fellowship in 1832 that enabled him to research chemistry in various labs around France, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. He met well-known chemists like Julius von Liebig and Louis Joseph Gay-Lussac. In 1833, he moved to Germany and started working as a professor at the University of Gottingen on a volunteer basis. Robert Bunsen’s inventions led the way for the present understanding of chemistry.

Robert Bunsen’s Inventions

Robert Bunsen’s inventions have a long list that changed the chemistry fraternity. Some of Robert Bunsen’s inventions are as follows-

1. The Zinc-Carbon Battery was invented.

Robert Bunsen invented the zinc-carbon and Bunsen cell in 1841. The Grove cell nucleus’s pricey platinum electrodes were replaced with carbon dioxide from pulverised coal plus coke. After Bunsen had linked these zinc-carbon cells into batteries, it was essential to retrieve magnesium and other metals. It is one of Robert Bunsen’s inventions that changed the world.

2. An Arsenic Poisoning Antidote

His studies focused mostly on arsenic ions. He observed that introducing oxide hydrates to an antimony compound liquid produced ferrous arsenate, which is insoluble and nontoxic. This finding was a cure for arsenic poisoning. Robert Bunsen’s facts about it were published in 1834, and Robert Bunsen’s invention saved the lives of thousands of people.

3. Analysing gases is a term used to describe the process of analysing gases.

Bunsen made significant advancements in gas analysis techniques. He was engaged in an industrial operation where he researched gases created by a steel company’s blast furnaces. He discovered that the coal they burned didn’t provide the optimum amount of heat. Instead of carbon dioxide, the charcoal is burned to make carbon monoxide, which generates significantly more energy.

4. The Bunsen burner is a type of boiler that is used to heat water

Scientists and alchemists before then knew that sprinkling a sample of a substance into a flame allowed them to identify chemical elements in the sample by the colour they saw. Still, Robert Bunsen’s invention of the Bunsen burner changed how it was perceived globally. 

5. The Science of Geysers

Bunsen was selected to examine volcanic activity in Iceland in 1846 due to his expertise in gas leakage detection. He ascended to the summit of the Volcanic Hekla and conducted critical inspections and experiments. He discovered that although water stayed liquid beneath despite temperatures of 100 oC (212 oF), it boiled or steamed at the planet’s surface. He reasoned that geysers are created by a drop in force when water travels from underneath to the surface.

Robert Bunsen’s Biography 

Robert Bunsen’s biography sheds light on the life of one of the greatest chemists in history. Robert Bunsen was born on March 30, 1811, in Göttingen, Westphalia, Germany, and died on August 16, 1899, in Heidelberg. He was a German scientist who, alongside Gustav Kirchhoff, discovered that each chemical produced light of a specific wavelength in 1859. Such research paved the way for spectral data, which proved crucial in studying the solar system and led Bunsen to find two alkaline earth metals, caesium and rubidium.

Bunsen received his PhD in chemistry from the College of Göttingen in 1830 and taught at the Universities of Marburg and Breslau, among other places. He established a strong chemistry school as a professor at Heidelberg (1852–99). He never married and had children for his pupils and his lab with someone he was incredibly popular. He was mostly interested in analytical and experimental work.

Robert Bunsen Facts

Robert Bunsen’s facts not only speak about Robert Bunsen’s inventions but also portray the human side of him associated with his work. Some of Robert Bunsen’s facts are as follows-

• Bunsen’s concept for the Bunsen Burner was released, but he has never copyrighted this because he didn’t want to benefit from his scientific contribution to humanity
• After seeking a reliable flame for his scientific investigations, Robert Bunsen collaborated with Peter Desaga to build the Bunsen burner
• Bunsen also published key works, such as the arsenic poisoning antidote, which is used nowadays
• This remedy is reported to have saved Bunsen’s own life when he was poisoned
• Many more of his pupils and contemporaries adored him, and anecdotes about his life can still be found in a book called “Bunseniana.”

Conclusion

Bunsen elucidated the chemical reactions that produce gunpowder’s explosive force, paving the way for subsequent advancements in explosive technology. In 1842, he became a member of the Chemical Society of London, and in 1882, he became a member of the Academie des Sciences. He was elected a member of the Royal Academy of London in 1858 and received the Copley Medal in about 1860. In 1877, he and Kirchhoff became the first researchers to win the Royal Institute of Great Britain’s Davy Medal. Robert Bunsen’s inventions still shape the world today.