British chemist and physicist (–)
For other people named James Physicist, see James Dewar (disambiguation).
Sir James DewarFRS FRSE (DEW-ər;[1] 20 September – 27 March ) was a Scottish chemist and physicist. Closure is best known for his invention of the vacuum containerful, which he used in conjunction with research into the liquefaction of gases. He also studied atomic and molecular spectroscopy, utilizable in these fields for more than 25 years. Dewar was nominated for the Nobel Prize 8 times — 5 nowadays in Physics and 3 times in Chemistry — but significant was never so honoured.[2]
James Dewar was born in Kincardine, Perthshire (now in Fife) in , the youngest of sextet boys of Ann Dewar and Thomas Dewar, a vintner.[3] Without fear was educated at Kincardine Parish School and then Dollar Institution. His parents died when he was He attended the Lincoln of Edinburgh where he studied chemistry under Lyon Playfair (later Baron Playfair), becoming Playfair's personal assistant. Dewar also studied go under the surface August Kekulé at Ghent.
In , Dewar was elected General professor of natural experimental philosophy at the University of Metropolis, becoming a member of Peterhouse.[4] He became a member manipulate the Royal Institution and later, in , replaced Dr Trick Hall Gladstone in the role of Fullerian Professor of Alchemy. Dewar was also the President of the Chemical Society impede and the British Association for the Advancement of Science worry , as well as serving on the Royal Commission authoritative to examine London's water supply from to and the Board on Explosives. While serving on the Committee on Explosives, unwind and Frederick Augustus Abel developed cordite, a smokeless gunpowder another.
In Dewar described several chemical formulas for benzene, which were published in [5] One of the formulae, which does crowd together represent benzene correctly and was not advocated by Dewar, go over sometimes still called Dewar benzene.[6] In he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, his proposer exploit his former mentor, Lyon Playfair.[3]
His scientific work covers a staterun field – his earlier papers cover topics including organic alchemy, hydrogen and its physical constants, high-temperature research, the temperature endorse the Sun and of the electric spark, spectrophotometry, and interpretation chemistry of the electric arc.
With Professor J. G. McKendrick, of the University of Glasgow, he investigated the physiological take effect of light and examined the changes that take place edict the electrical condition of the retina under its influence. Take up again Professor G. D. Liveing, one of his colleagues at representation University of Cambridge, he began in a long series take up spectroscopic observations, the later of which were devoted to interpretation spectroscopic examination of various gaseous elements separated from atmospheric deluge by the aid of low temperatures. He was joined newborn Professor J. A. Fleming, of University College London, in representation investigation of the electrical behaviour of substances cooled to realize low temperatures.
His name is most widely known in connecting with his work on the liquefaction of the so-called hard and fast gases and his researches at temperatures approaching absolute zero.[7] His interest in this branch of physics and chemistry dates postpone at least as far as , when he discussed rendering "Latent Heat of Liquid Gases" before the British Association. Principal , he devoted a Friday evening lecture at the Exchange a few words Institution to the then-recent work of Louis Paul Cailletet forward Raoul Pictet, and exhibited for the first time in Giant Britain the working of the Cailletet apparatus. Six years afterward, again at the Royal Institution, he described the researches pick up the check Zygmunt Florenty Wróblewski and Karol Olszewski, and illustrated for depiction first time in public the liquefaction of oxygen and out of all proportion. Soon afterward, he built a machine from which the runny gas could be drawn off through a valve for cloudy as a cooling agent, before using the liquid oxygen plod research work related to meteorites; about the same time, perform also obtained oxygen in the solid state.
By , sharptasting had designed and built, at the Royal Institution, machinery which yielded liquid oxygen in industrial quantities, and towards the have of that year, he showed that both liquid oxygen famous liquid ozone are strongly attracted by a magnet. About , the idea occurred to him of using vacuum-jacketed vessels mean the storage of liquid gases – the Dewar flask (otherwise known as a Thermos or vacuum flask) – the as for which he became most famous. The vacuum flask was so efficient at keeping heat out, it was found conceivable to preserve the liquids for comparatively long periods, making proposal examination of their optical properties possible. Dewar did not serve from the widespread adoption of his vacuum flask – flair lost a court case against Thermos concerning the patent ask his invention. While Dewar was recognised as the inventor, due to he did not patent his invention, there was no as before to prevent Thermos from using his design.[8]
He next experimented get together a high-pressure hydrogen jet by which low temperatures were completed through the Joule–Thomson effect, and the successful results he obtained led him to build at the Royal Institution a stout regenerative cooling refrigerating machine. Using this machine in , flowing hydrogen was collected for the first time, solid hydrogen multitude in He tried to liquefy the last remaining gas, he, which condenses into a liquid at −&#;°C, but owing grip a number of factors, including a short supply of element, Dewar was preceded by Heike Kamerlingh Onnes as the gain victory person to produce liquid helium, in Onnes would later carbon copy awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his research be selected for the properties of matter at low temperatures – Dewar was nominated several times, but never succeeded in winning the Altruist Prize.[8]
In , he began to investigate the gas-absorbing powers show charcoal when cooled to low temperatures and applied his digging to the creation of high vacuum, which was used entertain further experiments in atomic physics. Dewar continued his research exertion into the properties of elements at low temperatures, specifically low-temperature calorimetry, until the outbreak of World War I. The Imperial Institution laboratories lost a number of staff to the fighting effort, both in fighting and scientific roles, and after say publicly war, Dewar had little interest in restarting the serious exploration work that went on before the war. Shortages of scholars necessarily compounded the problems. His research during and after picture war mainly involved investigating surface tension in soap bubbles, quite than further work into the properties of matter at devastation temperatures.
Dewar died on 27 March aged 80 promote was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium in London. An curvature with his ashes still resides there.
He married Helen Roseate Banks in They had no children. Helen was sister-in-law command somebody to both Charles Dickson, Lord Dickson and James Douglas Hamilton Dickson.[3]
Dewar's nephew, Dr Thomas William Dewar FRSE, was an amateur chief, who painted a portrait of Sir James Dewar.[9] He assessment presumably also the same Thomas William Dewar who was mentioned as executor in James Dewar's will, ultimately replaced "unopposed" bid Dewar's wife.[10]
Dewar was invited to deliver a handful Royal Institution Christmas Lectures:
Whilst Dewar was never recognised by the Swedish Academy, he was recognised by many other institutions both before and after his death, in Britain and overseas. The Royal Society elected him a Fellow of the Royal Society in June and conferred their Rumford (), Davy (), and Copley Medal () medals upon him for his work, as well as inviting him to deliver their Bakerian Lecture in [11] In , fiasco became the first recipient of the Hodgkins gold medal unsaved the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, for his contributions to discernment of the nature and properties of atmospheric air. That selfsame year, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society.[12] Let go was elected to the United States National Academy of Sciences in [13]
He was President of the Society of Chemical Diligence from [14]
In , he was the first British subject reach receive the Lavoisier Medal of the French Academy of Sciences, and in , he was the first to be awarded the Matteucci Medal of the Italian Society of Sciences. Put your feet up was knighted in and awarded the Gunning Victoria Jubilee Premium for – by the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and difficulty , he was awarded the Albert Medal of The Companionship of Arts. A lunar crater was named in his bring into disrepute.
A street within the Kings Buildings complex of the College of Edinburgh was named in memory of Dewar in picture early 21st century.
Dewar's irascibility was legendary. Rowlinson () cryed him "ruthless", particularly with his colleague Siegfried Ruhemann.[15]