Marko Leko
Encyclopedia
Marko T. Leko was a notable Serbian scientist, chemist, professor and president of the Serbian Red Cross.
Marko T. Leko was born in Belgrade
, Serbia
, on September the 17th, 1853 to a merchant family. He attended and graduated from Polytechnic school in Zurich
and obtained his doctoral degree in 1875. For a short period he was employed in Hoffmman's laboratory. His teaching posts include:
and analytical chemistry
. Thanks to work he dedicated in writing his doctoral dissertation and number of works that followed, he was able to solve one of the most sought problems of the time: does ammonium chloride
and its closely related compounds belong to compounds of five valence nitrogen
, N
H
4Cl
, or to compounds such as NH3·HCl.
At the time of the founding of Belgrade University in 1905 he was elected as an associate professor. He was deeply offended by this decision and on his own request retired early, on May 26 of 1905.
His work in analytical chemistry had two main interests: researching natural resources of Earth (mineral waters), and finding and improving new analytical methods. He was also interested in chemical properties of natural spas and streams, and a stream located in Palanački Kiseljak bears his name Marko Leko. In 1899 he was promoting spas in Obrenovac
region.
Leko was an active member of Serbian Red Cross. At first he was a treasurer (1915–1920), vice president (1921) and president (1924).
was a renowned architect.
, members of the Royal government, members of the central committee of Red Cross and members of academia and Belgrade University.
One of Belgrade's street, close to National Theater
, bears his name. Before being renamed after him, the street bore the name Golden angel after the little family store owned by his father.
Marko T. Leko was born in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, on September the 17th, 1853 to a merchant family. He attended and graduated from Polytechnic school in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
and obtained his doctoral degree in 1875. For a short period he was employed in Hoffmman's laboratory. His teaching posts include:
- 1880-1884 professor of chemistry in Belgrade's secondary schools
- 1881-1894 professor of chemistry in Serbia's Military Academy
- 1894-1905 professor of chemistry in then Belgrade Higher School
- 1884 became a member of Serbian Academic Society
- 1892 became a member of Serbian Royal Academy
- 1902/3 and 1903/4 was the Dean of then Great School
- 1904-1920 state chemist and superintendent of State's Chemical Laboratory in Belgrade
- 1897-1907 was a confounder and president of the Serbian Chemical Society
Career
He has 52 publications mostly in the areas of organicOrganic 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...
and analytical chemistry
Analytical chemistry
Analytical chemistry is the study of the separation, identification, and quantification of the chemical components of natural and artificial materials. Qualitative analysis gives an indication of the identity of the chemical species in the sample and quantitative analysis determines the amount of...
. Thanks to work he dedicated in writing his doctoral dissertation and number of works that followed, he was able to solve one of the most sought problems of the time: does ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride NH4Cl is an inorganic compound with the formula NH4Cl. It is a white crystalline salt that is highly soluble in water. Solutions of ammonium chloride are mildly acidic. Sal ammoniac is a name of natural, mineralogical form of ammonium chloride...
and its closely related compounds belong to compounds of five valence nitrogen
Nitrogen
Nitrogen is a chemical element that has the symbol N, atomic number of 7 and atomic mass 14.00674 u. Elemental nitrogen is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions, constituting 78.08% by volume of Earth's atmosphere...
, N
Nitrogen
Nitrogen is a chemical element that has the symbol N, atomic number of 7 and atomic mass 14.00674 u. Elemental nitrogen is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions, constituting 78.08% by volume of Earth's atmosphere...
H
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
4Cl
Chlorine
Chlorine is the chemical element with atomic number 17 and symbol Cl. It is the second lightest halogen, found in the periodic table in group 17. The element forms diatomic molecules under standard conditions, called dichlorine...
, or to compounds such as NH3·HCl.
At the time of the founding of Belgrade University in 1905 he was elected as an associate professor. He was deeply offended by this decision and on his own request retired early, on May 26 of 1905.
His work in analytical chemistry had two main interests: researching natural resources of Earth (mineral waters), and finding and improving new analytical methods. He was also interested in chemical properties of natural spas and streams, and a stream located in Palanački Kiseljak bears his name Marko Leko. In 1899 he was promoting spas in Obrenovac
Obrenovac
Obrenovac is a town and municipality located in Serbia at 44°40′ North, 20°13′ East. Its name stems from last name "Obrenović" which in turn stems from name "Obren" in Serbian language. In 2003 the municipality has total population of 75,949...
region.
Leko was an active member of Serbian Red Cross. At first he was a treasurer (1915–1920), vice president (1921) and president (1924).
Personal life
Leko had a large family. With his wife Danica (née Antula) he had eleven children. As parents they dedicated much of their time to their children education: five of his sons were noted jurist (Dušan M. Leko), chemist (Aleksandar M. Leko), architect (Dimitrije M. Leko), general (Jovan Leko), banker and financier (Dragoljub M. Leko). His brother Dimitrije T. LekoDimitrije T. Leko
Dimitrije T. Leko was a renowned Serbian architect and urbanist. He has spent most of his life outside Serbia – he had finished high school in Winterthur, before studying architecture at the universities in Zürich, Aachen and Munich...
was a renowned architect.
Death
He died on 4 November 1932 in Belgrade. Many important dignitaries of the time paid tribute to the scientist: the King Alexander IAlexander I of Yugoslavia
Alexander I , also known as Alexander the Unifier was the first king of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as well as the last king of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes .-Childhood:...
, members of the Royal government, members of the central committee of Red Cross and members of academia and Belgrade University.
One of Belgrade's street, close to National Theater
National Theatre in Belgrade
The National Theatre was founded in the latter half of the 19th century. It is located on Republic Square, in Belgrade, Serbia.The National Theatre was declared a Monument of Culture of Great Importance in 1983, and it is protected by the Republic of Serbia....
, bears his name. Before being renamed after him, the street bore the name Golden angel after the little family store owned by his father.