standards of agriculture and the well-being of mankind … ’, played its part in
his rejuvenation. After the war Haber’s Institute became a centre of world
class research. Fundamental advances were made in atomic physics, spectroscopy and colloid chemistry. In his own field, he covered new ground in
the mechanisms of chemical and photochemical reactions incorporating
quantum aspects such as the photoelectric effect, and he continued his lifelong studies on flames and combustion, for which he had originally engaged
Robert Le Rossignol at Karlsruhe. With the coming of the German
hyper-inflation of 1921–1923 Haber once again leapt to the service of his
country and spent the next few years re-investigating the ‘gold from seawater’
problem that had enticed Ramsay in 1905. In an attempt to alleviate
Germany’s dire financial predicament caused by the heavy war reparations
demanded by the Allies, he devised a series of analytical and micro chemical
techniques that were novel and pioneering and used much later by others
such as in the extraction of bromine from sea-water.
65 His intervention
however was a failure, and in 1926 he abandoned the work. But at last he
established the truth about gold from the sea, viz, that it occurs at a concentration of about 1/1000th milligram per ton, mainly as the metal, and that
samples are very variable, making the whole recovery process economically
unviable.
In the period from 1912 to 1933, Haber’s Institute published more that
700 papers. By 1929 he had gathered together more than sixty members—
over a half of whom were ‘foreigners’—and he remained ‘in touch’ with each
diverse group even though there were heavy external demands on his time.
Later life was not kind to Haber, from both a reputational and personal point
of view. Towards the end of his life Clara returned more and more to his
thoughts. He fell at her feet … and her tears rained down on him.
Notes
1. There is no doubt that chemistry played a huge part in the war, for the
refining of metals, for photography, for dyes for uniforms and the care of the
wounded such as with antiseptics, analgesics and the treatment of typhoid
and cholera. Morphine was used as a painkiller from 1916 and opium as a
painkiller and sedative. However, nitrogen fixation and gas agents were primarily responsible for the description ‘the chemists war.’ See Michael
Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick Boys! How Chemistry changed the First World
War. The History Press, (2012). ISBN-10 0750953756. ISBN-13
9780752466019.
2. Records of the Great War, I, Ed. Charles F. Horne, National Alumni (1923).
266
D. Sheppard
his rejuvenation. After the war Haber’s Institute became a centre of world
class research. Fundamental advances were made in atomic physics, spectroscopy and colloid chemistry. In his own field, he covered new ground in
the mechanisms of chemical and photochemical reactions incorporating
quantum aspects such as the photoelectric effect, and he continued his lifelong studies on flames and combustion, for which he had originally engaged
Robert Le Rossignol at Karlsruhe. With the coming of the German
hyper-inflation of 1921–1923 Haber once again leapt to the service of his
country and spent the next few years re-investigating the ‘gold from seawater’
problem that had enticed Ramsay in 1905. In an attempt to alleviate
Germany’s dire financial predicament caused by the heavy war reparations
demanded by the Allies, he devised a series of analytical and micro chemical
techniques that were novel and pioneering and used much later by others
such as in the extraction of bromine from sea-water.
65 His intervention
however was a failure, and in 1926 he abandoned the work. But at last he
established the truth about gold from the sea, viz, that it occurs at a concentration of about 1/1000th milligram per ton, mainly as the metal, and that
samples are very variable, making the whole recovery process economically
unviable.
In the period from 1912 to 1933, Haber’s Institute published more that
700 papers. By 1929 he had gathered together more than sixty members—
over a half of whom were ‘foreigners’—and he remained ‘in touch’ with each
diverse group even though there were heavy external demands on his time.
Later life was not kind to Haber, from both a reputational and personal point
of view. Towards the end of his life Clara returned more and more to his
thoughts. He fell at her feet … and her tears rained down on him.
Notes
1. There is no doubt that chemistry played a huge part in the war, for the
refining of metals, for photography, for dyes for uniforms and the care of the
wounded such as with antiseptics, analgesics and the treatment of typhoid
and cholera. Morphine was used as a painkiller from 1916 and opium as a
painkiller and sedative. However, nitrogen fixation and gas agents were primarily responsible for the description ‘the chemists war.’ See Michael
Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick Boys! How Chemistry changed the First World
War. The History Press, (2012). ISBN-10 0750953756. ISBN-13
9780752466019.
2. Records of the Great War, I, Ed. Charles F. Horne, National Alumni (1923).
266
D. Sheppard