THORPE, SIR THOMAS EDWARD (1845-1925), Brit ish chemist, was born at Harpurhey, Manchester, on Dec. 8, 5845; he studied at Owen's college and then under Bunsen at Heidelberg. In 1870 he became professor of chemistry at Ander son's college, Glasgow, and four years later at the Yorkshire college, Leeds. In 1885 he obtained the chair at the Normal School of Science (now the Imperial College of Science), Lon don, and remained there until appointed director of the Govern ment laboratories in 1894. On his retirement, in 1909, he returned to the Imperial college for a period of three years. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1876, was made a C.B. in 1900 and knighted in 1909. He died on Feb. 23, 1925.
Thorpe is perhaps best known for his work as an organizer in connection with the Government laboratories, and as a brilliant lecturer and writer. His Essays in Historical Chemistry is an at tractive and interesting work. He also brought out, with the co
operation of a number of specialists, the well-known Dictionary of Applied Chemistry, a new edition of which was completed in 1927 (1st ed., 1890). His contributions to chemical knowledge in clude a very accurate series of measurements of the specific volumes of chemical substances of related composition. With A.E.H. Tutton, he studied the oxides of phosphorous (q.v.) (i886 et seq.) ; they discovered P204 and investigated this and P406. From 1884 to 1886 he made a long series of measurements (with J. W. Rodger) of the viscosities of organic substances, and at tempted to correlate fluidity and composition. With Sir A. Riicker, he carried out a magnetic survey of the British Isles.
See Proc. Roy. Soc. (1925).