Antal Ruprecht | |
---|---|
Anton Leopold von Rupprecht | |
Born | 1748 |
Died | 1818 |
Citizenship | Hungarian |
Alma mater | Mining Academy of Selmecbánya/Schemnitz |
Scientific career | |
Institutions | Mining Academy of Selmecbánya/Schemnitz |
Antal Ruprecht (1748–1818) was a Hungarian Chemist.
He was born in Szomolnok, Hungary in 1748. He graduated from the Mining Academy of Selmecbánya where he later became a professor of chemistry and metallurgy in 1779. He was the first to melt platinum and contributed to the discovery of tellurium in 1784. [1] [2] Ruprecht was the first to theorise that alkaline earth metals were compounds rather than elements; later proved by Humphry Davy. [3] This theory caused some controversy in the chemistry community due to the previous assumption of earths being fundamental substances. [4]