Dobereiner's hydrogen lighter

Williams, William D.

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/126154 Copy

Description

Title

Dobereiner's hydrogen lighter

Author(s)

Williams, William D.

Issue Date

1999-09-15

Keyword(s)

• History
• Chemistry
• History Hydrogen Lighter Dobereiner

Abstract

The Dobereiner Hydrogen Lamp was an ingenious device that provided an instantaneous flame. It was a common household device before the advent of matches. It was developed by Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner who obsd. that a jet of hydrogen gas flowing into spongy platinum caused the platinum to become so hot it ignited the hydrogen stream. When activated, the Dobereiner hydrogen lighter causes a piece of zinc hanging on a piece of platinum wire to react with sulfuric acid to form hydrogen gas which would ignite. With the stopcock closed, the gas pressure would push the sulfuric acid below the zinc and stop the reaction. Dobereiner first demonstrated it before a scientific gathering in Halle, Germany on Sept. 18, 1823.

Publisher

Division of the History of Chemistry

ISSN

1053-4385

Type of Resource

text

Genre of Resource

article

Language

eng

Permalink

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/126154

DOI

https://doi.org/10.70359/bhc1999n24p066

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 1999 Division of the History of Chemistry

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