Chemistry and mineral analysis · 1745–1818
Johan Gottlieb Gahn
Gahn was a Swedish chemist whose work connected mineral analysis with practical metallurgy. In Falun, he investigated smelting. His exchanges with Scheele helped direct experiments on mineral and biological materials, including the inorganic constituents of bones. Their correspondence and shared problems place manganese isolation within a network of laboratory and industrial knowledge.
Contribution & context
In 1774 he obtained manganese metal by heating its with charcoal. This was the isolation step in a wider investigation involving Scheele, rather than the beginning of human use of manganese .
J Gottlieb Gahn — Svenskt biografiskt lexikonJohan Gottlieb GahnRediscovery of the Elements: A Historical Sketch of the Discoveries
Discoveries in context
A familiar black mineral, an unfamiliar metal ↗
Manganese became an element through chemical investigation and metal isolation, long after people had learned to use its ores.
Sources & further reading
- J Gottlieb Gahn — Svenskt biografiskt lexikon ↗Riksarkivet (Swedish National Archives)Historical account · Source checked
- Johan Gottlieb Gahn ↗University of North Texas — James and Virginia MarshallHistorical account · Source checked
- Rediscovery of the Elements: A Historical Sketch of the Discoveries ↗University of North Texas — James and Virginia MarshallHistorical account · Source checked Where to look: PDF viewer p. 16, manganese entry.The entry supports the Gahn isolation account and subsequent steel, dry-cell and glass uses.
Sources and further reading. What the review labels mean