The Significant Events in the Development of Science of Geochemistry

8/13/2019 The Significant Events in the Development of Science of Geochemistry

1/15

ASSIGNMENTJanuary 3, 2012

Submitted To: Dr Tehseenullah Khan Bangash

The Significant

Events In TheDevelopment of

Science Of

Geochemistry

Geochemistry


2/15

The Significant Events In The Development of Science Of

Geochemistry

1

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

The Significant Events In The Development

of Science Of Geochemistry

Geochemistry

Group Members: Awais Nisar

Zulqarnain Khaliq

Hassam Mustafa

Rana Bilal Ahmed


3/15

2

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

Table Of Contents

Title: Page No:

The Creation Of Earth 3

Discovery Of Hydrogen 5

Discovery Of Oxygen 6

The Nineteenth Century 7

F. W. Clarke 10

Carnegie Institution, Washington. 11

V. M. Goldschmidt 11

V. I. Vernadsky 12

References

13


4/15


5/15

4

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

the matter that was squeezed inside it flew

about. After that, the pieces of matter joined

together to first form atoms, then from thoseatoms, stars, our sun, earth and the other

planets. The scientists named this explosion the

Big Bang. Everything in the universe was formed

as a result of this Big Bang.

Allah is the Maker of the Big Bang, the

Organiser of the matter that scattered in space

after the Big Bang. By bringing together all this

matter, He is also the Creator of the sun, earth,

planets and stars.


6/15


Geochemistry

5

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

Discovery Of Hydrogen:

Geochemistry did not come into its own as a

science until the 1800s. The discovery

of hydrogen opened the door for understanding


7/15

6

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

chemical elements and the concept of the atom.

Hydrogen was first recognized as a distinct

element in 1766 by Henry Cavendish, when heprepared it by reacting hydrochloric acid with

zinc. He described hydrogen as "inflammable air

from metals" and established that it was the

same material regardless of which metal and

which acid he used to produce it. Cavendish also

observed that when the substance was burned, itproduced water.

Lavoisier later named the element hydrogen

(1783). The name comes from the Greek 'hydro'

meaning water and 'genes' meaning forming -

hydrogen is one of the two water formingelements.

Discovery Of Oxygen:After the discovery of hydrogen, Oxygens

discovery also played a vital role in setting a

different label for the Geochemisterysience.

on August 1, 1774, an experiment conducted

by the british clergyman Joseph
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Priestleyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Priestley


8/15


Geochemistry

7

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

Priestleyfocused sunlight on mercuric

oxide(HgO) inside a glass tube, whichliberated a gas he named "dephlogisticated

air". He noted that candles burned brighter

in the gas and that a mouse was more active

and lived longer while breathing it. This gas

was named Oxygen by Antoine Lavoisier in1777.

Discoveries Of Antoine Lavoisier:

Before the end of the eighteenth centuryLavoisier recognized some 39 elements.

These elements included oxygen, nitrogen,

hydrogen, phosphorus, mercury, zinc

and sulfur.

The Nineteenth Century:

Completion Of The Periodic Table of D. I.Mendeleev.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Priestleyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury(II)_oxidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury(II)_oxidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury(II)_oxidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury(II)_oxidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Priestley


9/15

8

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

On 6 March 1869, Mendeleev made a formal

presentation to the Russian Chemical Society,entitled The Dependence between the Properties

of the Atomic Weights of the Elements, which

described elements according to both atomic

weight andvalence.This presentation stated that

1.Theelements, if arranged according to theiratomic weight, exhibit an apparent periodicity

of properties.

2.Elements which are similar in regards to their

chemical properties have atomic weights

which are either of nearly the same value

(e.g., Pt, Ir, Os) or which increase regularly(e.g., K, Rb, Cs).

3.The arrangement of the elements in groups

of elements in the order of their atomic

weights corresponds to their so-called

valencies, as well as, to some extent, to theirdistinctive chemical properties; as is

apparent among other series in that of Li, Be,

B, C, N, O, and F.
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Russian_Chemical_Society&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_weighthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_weighthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valence_(chemistry)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_elementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_elementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valence_(chemistry)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_weighthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_weighthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Russian_Chemical_Society&action=edit&redlink=1


10/15


Geochemistry

9

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

4.The elements which are the most widely

diffused have small atomic weights.5.The magnitude of the atomic weight

determines the character of the element,

just as the magnitude of the molecule

determines the character of a compound

body.6.We must expect the discovery of many yet

unknown elementsfor example, two elements,

analogous to aluminium andsilicon,whose

atomic weights would be between 65 and 75.

7.The atomic weight of an element may

sometimes be amended by a knowledge of

those of its contiguous elements. Thus the

atomic weight of telluriummust lie between

123 and 126, and cannot be 128. Here

Mendeleev seems to be wrong as the "atomic

mass" of tellurium (127.6) remains higherthan that of iodine(126.9) as displayed on

modern periodic tables, but this is due to the

way atomic masses are calculated, based on a
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siliconhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telluriumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iodinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iodinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telluriumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon


11/15

10

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

weighted average of all of an element's

common isotopes, not just the one-to-one

proton/neutron-ratio version of the elementto which Mendeleev was referring.

8.Certain characteristic properties of elements

can be foretold from their atomic weights.

Mendeleev published his periodic table of all

known elements and predicted several new

elements to complete the table.

Discovery of the Radioactive Elements:

Many Radioactive elements and isotopes had

been discovered by the end of nineteenth

century hich led to the separartion and

building of the science if the geochemistry.

F. W. Clarke:

In 1884, the US Geological Survey

appointed a Chief Chemist, F. W. Clarke,

and set up a laboratory to investigate thechemistry of the planet.

It was to be concerned with analyses of all

kinds of materials sent in by the Survey's


12/15


Geochemistry

11

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

field officers, and it amassed a wealth of

sample data.

Carnegie Institution, Washington:

In 1904, the Geophysical Laboratory was

established in Carnegie Institution,Washington.

The reason was to apply the principles of

physical chemistry on the study of

geological processes, especially the

evolution of the rock-forming minerals.

V. M. Goldschmidt:

A few years later V. M. Goldschmidt at the

University of Oslo applied the phase rule to

mineralogical changes brought about duringcontact metamorphism of sedimentary rocks.

His subsequent studies in metamorphism all

showed that metamorphic changes could be


13/15

12

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

interpreted in terms of the principles of

chemical equilibrium.

V. I. Vernadsky:

In 1915 in the USSR, a school of

geochemistry was developed energetically

by V. I. Vernadsky and his successors, suchas A. P. Vinogradov.

Their work was largely directed towards

the search for and exploration of mineral

resources.

Vernadsky was an expert in mineralogy and

was the first to relate chemical elements

to the formation of minerals in nature.

Russia stakes claim V. I. Vernadsky to the

founder of geochemistry.


14/15


Geochemistry

13

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

After the Second World War, there was a

surge of interest in radioactivity withinthe Earth, and new methods of analysis and

instrumentation, such as the electron

probe, were invented.

Two of the most significant and rapidly

expanding fields of research today areorganic geochemistry and biogeochemistry

Organic materials are found in many

sedimentary rocks of all ages from the

Archaean onwards.

Organic geochemical research has beenconcerned primarily with the origin and

evolution of living materials and their fate

after burial.


15/15

14

The

Sign

ificant

Events

In

The

Deve

lopmento

fSc

ience

OfGeo

chem

istry

|1

/3/2012

References: http://www.geo.cornell.edu

http://en.wikipedia.org

http://science.jrank.org http://www.encyclopedia.com

http://geofrontiers.com

http://sustainability.asu.edu

Thank

You
http://www.geo.cornell.edu/http://www.geo.cornell.edu/http://en.wikipedia.org/http://en.wikipedia.org/http://science.jrank.org/http://science.jrank.org/http://www.encyclopedia.com/http://www.encyclopedia.com/http://geofrontiers.com/http://geofrontiers.com/http://sustainability.asu.edu/http://sustainability.asu.edu/http://sustainability.asu.edu/http://geofrontiers.com/http://www.encyclopedia.com/http://science.jrank.org/http://en.wikipedia.org/http://www.geo.cornell.edu/

Documents

The Significant Events in the Development of Science of Geochemistry