Contents
Dmitri Mendeleev
Creating a periodic table that predicted the properties of elements before they were discovered.
Principles of Chemistry · Periodic system
- Born
- 8 February 1834
- Birthplace
- Tobolsk, Russia
- Died
- 2 February 1907
More people
Dmitri Mendeleev
Dmitri Mendeleev organised chemical elements by recurring properties and atomic weight. Rather than force every known element into place, he left gaps and made predictions that helped establish the periodic system’s explanatory power.
Early life
Siberian childhood
Grew up in Tobolsk; family hardship followed his father’s loss of sight and the destruction of his mother’s glassworks.
Teacher training
Studied at the Main Pedagogical Institute in Saint Petersburg before developing a research career.
Career
- 1850s–1861
Study and research abroad
Qualified as a teacher and pursued chemical research, including a period in Heidelberg.
- 1860s–1890
Saint Petersburg professor
Taught chemistry and wrote textbooks that helped prompt his periodic classification.
- 1893–1907
Weights and measures
Led Russia’s bureau responsible for measurement standards.
Contributions
Principles of Chemistry
A textbook that organised chemical knowledge around systematic relationships.
Periodic system
Arranged elements so that repeating chemical properties became visible.
Predicted elements
Described missing elements whose later discovery strongly supported his system.
Beyond chemistry
Industrial interests
Worked on practical questions involving petroleum, agriculture and economic development.
Balloon ascent
Undertook a balloon flight in 1887 to observe a solar eclipse.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Institutional biography and research ↗Photo: Original: Unknown author Unknown author Upload: Germansociety2014. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
