Of all the scientific fields, chemistry has undoubtedly been the most influential and important to mankind throughout history. It has given us new materials and methods of production, allowed us to understand the world around us on a deeper level, and has led to countless other discoveries that would not have been possible without it. In this article, we will take you through its evolution from ancient alchemy to modern science, highlighting some of its most significant milestones along the way.
MIDDLE AGES
Chemistry as a branch of science grew out of ancient art and science are known as alchemy. Alchemists sought to turn base metals into gold or find a way to create life from dead matter. They performed their experiments in secrecy, usually at night, with the hope that they would not be caught and killed by the authorities for practicing witchcraft. The early chemists used impure substances such as sulfur and lead in their experiments, which made them sick and led them to believe incorrectly that sulfur was combustible. One of the most famous chemists during this period was Basil Valentine who wrote several books on alchemy (most likely including one called The Twelve Keys).
THE EARLY MODERN PERIOD
This period is defined by the use of the scientific method. Scientists started using controlled experiments and observations to test hypotheses about natural phenomena. This allowed for a more systematic analysis than had been possible before, and it led to major breakthroughs in chemistry, physics, and astronomy. The first chemical reaction was documented in 1669 when John Mayow used acids to extract lead from ores. One year later, Robert Boyle published his law describing the relationship between pressure and volume in gases.
THE BEGINNING OF MODERN CHEMISTRY
We have come a long way from the days of alchemy. In fact, modern chemistry as we know it is only about 300 years old. It all began in 1787 when Antoine Lavoisier first identified oxygen, nitric acid, and sulfuric acid. He also introduced the idea that matter was made up of atoms that combined with one another to form molecules. His experiments are still relevant today since chemists are still discovering new properties of elements based on his findings. Next came Dmitri Mendeleev’s periodic table in 1869 which classified elements into seven groups according to their atomic weights.
Later on, came the birth of quantum mechanics which expanded our understanding of the atom's nucleus and electrons.
The concept of quantum mechanics was introduced by German physicist Max Planck in 1900. It states that an atom and its subatomic particles (electrons, protons, neutrons) can only be in certain energy states, or ‘energy levels. When they absorb or release energy, they move between these states. When this occurs, the change in energy state is called a quantum leap. Quantum leaps occur very quickly and then return back to where they were before, making them unpredictable and hard to measure experimentally.
ALCHEMY AS SCIENCE
Alchemy is the earliest form of chemistry and it was used as a way to turn base metals into gold. It was considered a science because it relies on experimentation and observation, but lacked any kind of theory or mathematical system. The history of chemistry is the evolution from alchemy to the modern science that we know today.
In ancient China, chemists were interested in different chemical reactions including the decomposition of organic substances and plants. A famous Chinese chemist named Ge Hong invented an entire field called wet-chemical experiments by combining wet animal carcasses with metal ores in order to produce valuable minerals like iron, lead, copper, and zinc. In Persia (Iran), chemists would grind herbs into a powder so they could extract their medicinal properties. Persian chemists also found out how to create alcohols which led to the invention of perfumes and medicines for a variety of illnesses like arthritis and heart disease.
In Europe, medieval scientists were primarily focused on the subject of metallurgy which is essentially the study of metals.
ANCIENT TIMES
Studying chemistry can be traced back to ancient times. The ancient Greeks, Romans, and Chinese all contributed to the development of modern chemistry, but it wasn't until the 19th century that the field came into its own. In 1807, British chemist John Dalton published his Atomic Theory and proposed that all matter is composed of tiny building blocks called atoms. This discovery transformed chemistry from a qualitative science focused on making things look pretty or smell nice, into a quantitative science concerned with understanding how atoms are arranged in molecules and materials.
In 1827, German chemist Friedrich Wohler created a substance called urea by chemically combining carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen—three elements that had never before been found together in nature. Urea is an essential component of urine, so it was thought at first that it came from animal urine; but chemists soon realized that if they heated ammonium cyanate with coal, they could make their own urea. It became clear that chemicals produced in a lab could be very different from those found in nature. As one historian put it, Wohler's experiments sparked off a veritable explosion in synthetic organic chemistry. By realizing how to artificially synthesize complex substances from simple ones, chemists laid some important foundations for modern science and technology.