Fritz Pregl
Encyclopedia
Fritz Pregl (3 September 1869 – 13 December 1930), was an Austria
n chemist
and physician
from a mixed Slovene-German
-speaking background. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
in 1923 for making important contributions to quantitative
organic
microanalysis
, one of which was the improvement of the combustion train technique for elemental analysis
.
within Austria-Hungary
to a Slovene-speaking father and German-speaking mother. He died in Graz
, Austria
in 1930.
Pregl started his career as physician
after he studied medicine at the University of Graz
. With his focus on physiology
and especially chemical physiology, he suffered from the limitations of quantitative
organic
microanalysis
. The small quantities of substances he obtained during the research of bile acid
made it necessary to improve the process of elemental analysis
by reducing the necessary components. At the end of his research, he had lowered the minimal amount of substance necessary for the analysis process by a factor of 50. He invited chemists to learn his method of elemental analysis, so that the method was soon widely accepted.
where Fritz Pregl had worked was named the Institute of Medical Chemistry and Pregl Laboratory. Streets in Graz, Innsbruck, Vienna and Klagenfurt were named after him. In Slovenia, Pregl Awards have been bestowed annually since 2007 by the National Institute of Chemistry for the research work and for outstanding doctorate
s. Slovenian pupils are conferred Pregl Recognition Awards, whereas secondary school students are conferred Pregl Citations for excellent results in national competitions in chemistry. A square in Ljubljana is named after Pregl.
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
n chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
and physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
from a mixed Slovene-German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
-speaking background. He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
in 1923 for making important contributions to quantitative
Quantitative analysis (chemistry)
In chemistry, quantitative analysis is the determination of the absolute or relative abundance of one, several or all particular substance present in a sample....
organic
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
microanalysis
Microanalysis
Microanalysis is the chemical identification and quantitative analysis of very small amounts of chemical substances or very small surfaces of material...
, one of which was the improvement of the combustion train technique for elemental analysis
Elemental analysis
Percent Composition is a process where a sample of some material is analyzed for its elemental and sometimes isotopic composition. Elemental analysis can be qualitative , and it can be quantitative...
.
Biography
Pregl was born in LjubljanaLjubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
within Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
to a Slovene-speaking father and German-speaking mother. He died in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in 1930.
Pregl started his career as physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
after he studied medicine at the University of Graz
University of Graz
The University of Graz , a university located in Graz, Austria, is the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria....
. With his focus on physiology
Physiology
Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
and especially chemical physiology, he suffered from the limitations of quantitative
Quantitative analysis (chemistry)
In chemistry, quantitative analysis is the determination of the absolute or relative abundance of one, several or all particular substance present in a sample....
organic
Organic chemistry
Organic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation of carbon-based compounds, hydrocarbons, and their derivatives...
microanalysis
Microanalysis
Microanalysis is the chemical identification and quantitative analysis of very small amounts of chemical substances or very small surfaces of material...
. The small quantities of substances he obtained during the research of bile acid
Bile acid
Bile acids are steroid acids found predominantly in the bile of mammals. Bile salts are bile acids compounded with a cation, usually sodium. In humans, the salts of taurocholic acid and glycocholic acid represent approximately eighty percent of all bile salts. The two major bile acids are cholic...
made it necessary to improve the process of elemental analysis
Elemental analysis
Percent Composition is a process where a sample of some material is analyzed for its elemental and sometimes isotopic composition. Elemental analysis can be qualitative , and it can be quantitative...
by reducing the necessary components. At the end of his research, he had lowered the minimal amount of substance necessary for the analysis process by a factor of 50. He invited chemists to learn his method of elemental analysis, so that the method was soon widely accepted.
Commemoration
In 1950, the department of the University of GrazUniversity of Graz
The University of Graz , a university located in Graz, Austria, is the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria....
where Fritz Pregl had worked was named the Institute of Medical Chemistry and Pregl Laboratory. Streets in Graz, Innsbruck, Vienna and Klagenfurt were named after him. In Slovenia, Pregl Awards have been bestowed annually since 2007 by the National Institute of Chemistry for the research work and for outstanding doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
s. Slovenian pupils are conferred Pregl Recognition Awards, whereas secondary school students are conferred Pregl Citations for excellent results in national competitions in chemistry. A square in Ljubljana is named after Pregl.