author
Carl Wilhelm Scheele
1742–1786
An 18th-century chemist with a gift for careful experiment, he helped uncover some of the building blocks of modern chemistry. Best known for work on oxygen and chlorine, he made major discoveries while working as a pharmacist with modest equipment.
1 Audiobook
Discovery of Oxygen, Part 2
by Carl Wilhelm Scheele
About the author
Born in Stralsund in 1742 and later active in Sweden, Carl Wilhelm Scheele was a pharmaceutical chemist whose sharp eye for experiment made him one of the standout scientists of the 1700s. He trained in pharmacy and spent much of his career working in apothecaries, where everyday laboratory practice fed directly into his scientific work.
Scheele is widely remembered for discovering oxygen independently and for identifying chlorine, along with important work on substances connected to barium, manganese, molybdenum, tungsten, and nitrogen. He also isolated several organic acids and built a reputation for getting remarkable results from simple apparatus and patient, methodical testing.
In 1775 he established himself in Köping, Sweden, where he remained for the rest of his life. Though some of his discoveries were published later than those of other scientists, his range, accuracy, and influence have made him a lasting figure in the history of chemistry.