Meyer, Viktor

Born Sept. 8, 1848, in Berlin; died Aug. 8, 1897, in Heidelberg. German chemist. Graduated from the University of Heidelberg in 1868. Professor at the Zurich Polytechnic Institute from 1872 to 1885 and then at the Universities of Gottingen (1885–89) and Heidelberg (after 1889).

Meyer was the first (1872) to obtain and study aliphatic nitro compounds. He established that, under the action of nitric acid, primary nitro compounds form nitrolic acids and secondary nitro compounds form pseudonitroles. Meyer carried out the reduction of nitro compounds to alkyl hydroxylamines and amines. In 1882 he discovered thiophene in the benzene fraction of coal tar. He studied the properties of thiophene and several thiophene derivatives. He determined the interaction of aldehydes and ketones with hydroxylamine and was the first to obtain oximes. He was the first (1892) to isolate iodoso, iodo, and iodonium compounds. Meyer introduced the concept of “steric hindrances” in chemical reactions and proposed a method for determining the molecular weight of substances from their vapor density (1878–80).