Cadmium was identified as a distinct element by Friedrich Stromeyer in 1817 while he was investigating impurities in zinc carbonate samples. This finding established his reputation in early nineteenth-century chemistry, a field he pursued throughout his career within the academic environment of the University of Göttingen in the Kingdom of Hanover.
Academic Background and Early Career
Born in Göttingen on 2 August 1776, Stromeyer was the son of Dr. Ernerst Johann Friedrich Stromeyer, a professor of medicine. He pursued formal training in chemistry and medicine at the University of Göttingen and in Paris. His mentors included Johann Friedrich Gmelin and Louis Nicolas Vauquelin. In 1800, he earned an MD degree from the University of Göttingen. Following his studies, he joined the university faculty, where he balanced teaching responsibilities with his duties as an inspector of apothecaries. Robert Bunsen was among his students during this tenure.
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Beyond the isolation of cadmium, Stromeyer contributed to chemical methodology and mineralogy. He identified the practical utility of starch as a reagent for detecting free iodine. His laboratory research also covered the properties of bismuthate salts and arsine. In 1819, he provided the first formal scientific description of the mineral eudialyte. The scientific community recognized his influence on mineralogy in 1832 when mineralogist François Sulpice Beudant named the mineral stromeyerite in his honour.
Institutional Recognition and Later Life
Stromeyer maintained active memberships in several academic bodies, including the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences, the Académie Nationale de Médecine, the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Lower Saxony, the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and the Towarzystwo Naukowe Krakowskie. In 1826, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. The following year, he was appointed a Foreign Member of the Royal Society of London. He remained in Göttingen until his death on 18 August 1835.
Fast facts
- Born: 2 August 1776, Göttingen
- Died: 18 August 1835, Göttingen
- Citizenship: Kingdom of Hanover
- Known for: Discovery of cadmium
- Notable student: Robert Bunsen
- Awarded: Foreign Member of the Royal Society, 1827
- Named for him: Stromeyerite
Questions readers ask
What element did Friedrich Stromeyer discover?
He discovered the element cadmium in 1817 while studying zinc carbonate compounds.
Where did Friedrich Stromeyer spend his career?
He spent his career as a teacher and chemist at the University of Göttingen in the Kingdom of Hanover.
Achievements
- Foreign Member of the Royal Society — 1827
- Held posts at University of Göttingen
- Educated at University of Göttingen
- Fields of research: chemistry
