ERDMANN, Otto Linne, German chemist: b. Dresden, 11 April 1804; d. Leipzig, 9 Oct. 1869. He studied at the universities of Dresden and Leipzig, first medicine and then chemistry, and was graduated from the latter institution in 1824. In 1825 he began the teaching of chemistry at his alma mater, a profession to which he devoted his entire life and in which he was highly successful, being one of the most brilliant lecturers of his day. In 1827 he be came an extraordinary professor and in 1830 was given the chair of technical chemistry which he occupied until his death. He also acted as rector of the university at various times, notably so in 1848-49 when he managed by his great tact to steer the university un harmed through the troublous times of the German revolution. With the exception of a few years devoted to travel he spent practi cally his entire life in Leipzig, taking a deep interest in art and its public affairs. As early as 1835 he was elected a director of the Leip zig-Dresden Railway, the first important Ger man railway, for the development of which he did much and in whose affairs he was actively interested throughout his life. His chief claim to fame, however, rests on his chemical re searches which embraced a wide range of sub jects. He examined minutely the technology of nickel., and described some of its compounds; analyzed a number of minerals and slags, and experimented on several other points of inor ganic chemistry. In inorganic chemistry his
chief research is upon indigo, in the course of which he discovered isatin. His work in this direction formed the principal foundation of most of the wonderful later discoveries in con nection with indigo. The most important work in which he engaged was the exact determina tion of atomic weights. In company with Marchand (q.v.) he made determinations of oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, sulphur, calcium, copper, mercury and some others, and his num bers have been fully confirmed by subsequent experimenters. In 1828 he founded and from then on conducted the Journal fir Technische und Okonomische Chemie, of which 18 volumes were published. In 1833 its title was changed to Journal fir Praktische Chemie. After his death it was continued by others and is still one of the most important scientific pub lications of its kind; the name Erdmann con tinues to be used in connection with the pub lication to this day. He also published in 1828 'Lehrbuch der Chernie' which has since then gone through a number of editions. Of his der Allgemeinen Waarenkunde, etc.,' the 15th revised edition was edited by E. Remenovsky (Leipzig 1915). Of note is also 'tiber das Studium der Chemie' (Leipzig 1861). Consult Berichte der Deutschen Chem ischen Gesellschaft (Vol. III, p. 374, Berlin 1870) • Journal of the Chemical Society of Lon don (Vol. XXIII, p. 306, London 1870).