Döbereiner, Johann Wolfgang (1780–1849)

German chemist who did important work on catalysts and the atomic weight of elements. Largely self-taught in chemistry, he rose to become professor of chemistry, pharmacy, and technology at the university of Jena from 1810–49.

Döbereiner's principal invention was the ‘Dobereiner lamp’, in which he demonstrated that spongy platinum in the presence of oxygen can ignite hydrogen; this process was applied in many self-igniting coal-gas burners. In 1829, while studying the chemical relations between the elements calcium, strontium, and barium, and chlorine, bromine, and iodine, he formulated a ‘law of triads’. This was one of the first attempts to group elements according to their atomic weights, and anticipated Dmitri Mendeleyev's periodic table.

Döbereiner was born at Bug, near Hof an der Saale, in Bavaria. His work on catalysts led to the discovery of the crystalline compound of alcohol with ammonia, and the catalytic effect of manganese dioxide upon the decomposition of potassium chlorate by heat. His works include treatises on pneumatic chemistry (1821–25), and the chemistry of fermentation (1822). While in Jena, he made the acquaintance of the writer and amateur scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.