13 Facts About Alfred Werner

Alfred Werner was a Swiss chemist who was a student at ETH Zurich and a professor at the University of Zurich.

Alfred Werner won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1913 for proposing the octahedral configuration of transition metal complexes.

Alfred Werner was the first inorganic chemist to win the Nobel Prize, and the only one prior to 1973.

Alfred Werner was the fourth and last child of Jean-Adam Werner, a foundry worker, and his second wife, Salome Jeannette Werner, who originated from a wealthy family.

Alfred Werner went to Switzerland to study chemistry at the Swiss Federal Institute in Zurich.

Still, since this institute was not empowered to grant doctorates until 1909, Alfred Werner received a doctorate formally from the University of Zurich in 1890.

Alfred Werner died on 15 November 1919 of arteriosclerosis in Zurich at the age of 52.

In 1893, Alfred Werner was the first to propose correct structures for coordination compounds containing complex ions, in which a central transition metal atom is surrounded by neutral or anionic ligands.

Alfred Werner proposed the structure [Co6]Cl3, with the Co ion surrounded by six NH3 at the vertices of an octahedron.

For complexes with more than one type of ligand, Alfred Werner succeeded in explaining the number of isomers observed.

Alfred Werner proposed that these are two geometric isomers of formula [Co4Cl2]Cl, with one Cl ion dissociated as confirmed by conductivity measurements.

Alfred Werner prepared complexes with optical isomers, and in 1914 he reported the first synthetic chiral compound lacking carbon, known as hexol with formula [Co3]Br6.

However, in complexes such as [Co6]Cl3 for example, Alfred Werner considered that the Co-Cl bonds correspond to a "primary" valence of 3 at long distance, while the Co-NH3 bonds which correspond to a "secondary" or weaker valence of 6 at shorter length.