Alfred Bernhard Nobel. Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on October 21, 1833 from the couple Immanuel Nobel and Andriette Ahlsell. The father is an engineer and businessman in the construction field who also likes to experiment, especially in terms of destruction of buildings and the stone which is strongly associated with the profession. Later, the path is what encourages businesses to Alfred Nobel discovered dynamite as an explosive.
When Alfred was born, Immanuel businesses experiencing adversity. This led him to move to other countries, namely Finland and Russia. His family was left in Stockholm. Although derived from a wealthy family, Andriette has tenacity and ability to work hard are awesome. In order to survive his family, he opened a grocery store in Stockholm and reap no small treasure.
Immanuel Nobel in 1842, the family reunited in Russia. Immanuel is a new business, namely the field of machinery on the rise and success because of the contract with the Russian military as a provider of equipment used in the Crimean War against England. His company also makes landmines and the sea are necessary for the Russian government.
Nobel family settled in Saint Petersburg and the simple life although it may be involved in luxury. Immanuel wealth invested in their children's education. Alfred and his brother did not undergo any formal education in schools. They were educated in private homes under the instruction of teachers who are competent in their respective fields.
The results of such education is very visible in Alfred. Under the guidance of a Swedish teacher, Lars Santesson, he finally has a very deep interest in literature and philosophy. Ivan Peterov Immanuel teaching children mathematics, physics, and chemistry. All children Immanuel fluent in Swedish, Russian, Russia, France, Britain, and Germany. Alfred himself mastered the language at the age of 17.
Although the base received the same education, Alfred chose a different path with his brothers. Ludvig and Robert dabbling in the fields of engineering, while Alfred chose to explore the science of chemistry. Professor Nikolai N. Zinin, the chemistry teacher, is the person who introduced Alfred and Immanuel will nitroglycerin at a later date.
Study chemical engineering
Alfred Nobel was very interested youth will be literature, physics, and chemistry. He also classified as personal as it is very melancholy love to make poems. After his death, he recorded a personal library of 1,500 books ranging from science, philosophy, to theology and history. The works of Lord Byron, poet of England, is liked by the child.
Philosophy helped fill in his youth. Just because you want to test the language skills (and of course the intellectual as well), Alfred Nobel Voltaire translated from French to Swedish language and re-wrote it in French. Thought Locke, Alexander von Humboldt, and Benedict Spinoza were dilahapnya easily.
Apparently, Immanuel did not agree with a penchant Alfred. He hoped that Alfred joined the family company, especially as an engineer. Immanuel effort to divert attention from the literary world realized Alfred by Alfred sent overseas. Immanuel wanted her child to a quiet, slightly introverted that explore the science of chemical engineering and opened to his view.
Alfred began traveled the world since 1850 until 1852. The first country he visited the United States. There he learned the latest technologies. His education was continued in Paris, France. Professor T.J. Pelouze accept to work in his private laboratory on the recommendation given by Professor Zinin, a former chemistry teacher.
Zinin himself was a pupil of Pelouze. Pelouze is a professor at the Collge de France and also a close friend of Berzelius, Swedish chemist.
What happened in Paris was long tails on the business of Alfred Nobel later. The city is also makes a chemist Alfred acquainted with a young student who comes from Italy Pelouze, Ascanio Sobrero. Sobrero three years earlier, in 1847, found a liquid chemical called with pyroglicerine (now named with nitroglycerin). He explains to Alfred, this material has a high explosive power, but he did not know how to control the resulting explosion.
Nitroglycerin produced from mixing the glycerin with nitric and sulfuric acid or glycerol nitration process. This material is very dangerous because it is explosive. Although it has destroyed the power of gunpowder exceeding (Gunpowder), but this liquid can easily explode if subjected to pressure and temperature increase. Alfred Nobel was interested in knowing more about nitroglycerin and want to involve their use in the construction business.
Insolvent
In 1852 Immanuel Nobel businesses are progressing very rapidly in line with the increasing severity of the Crimean War. The Russian government will order the equipment of war increases. Immanuel was sent Alfred to return to Russia to help the family business.
Based on the knowledge gained while in Paris, Alfred and his father conducted a series of experiments to produce nitroglycerine in large quantities and can be used in commercial purposes.
The idea would be research on nitroglycerin comes also from Professor Zinin who held a demonstration to the use of nitroglycerin for military purposes. At the demonstration, pour a few drops of nitroglycerin Zinin who then hit causing a loud explosion. Nevertheless, it is simply a fluid which reacts in contact with the pressure, the rest remain.
Immanuel also tried to involve him in the Crimean War, but all failed and do not work. According to Alfred at a later date, his father performed experiments by mixing nitroglycerin with gunpowder only done on a small scale.
Crimean War was finally ended after the signing of the Treaty of Paris on March 30, 1856. These events resulted in bankruptcy for Immanuel second and forced him to leave Russia and return to Sweden. Robert and Ludvig settled in Russia and develop a business machine that would later set up a Russian oil company called Brothers Nobel, or Branobel.
"Kieselguhr"
Approximately 1860, Alfred held a series of personal experiments. Eventually he began successfully producing nitroglycerine without any significant problems. This success is the first advantage over Sobrero.
Alfred then mixing nitroglycerin with gunpowder and burning her with the help of axes. The father who perform similar experiments is quite grim. He thought it was his idea. Alfred had explained what he was doing, so that Immanuel's anger subsided. The work of Alfred Nobel will be called by blasting liquid oil is also contained in the patent in October 1863, at the age of 30.
After that, the shadows of success Alferd Nobel began to appear gradually. In the spring and next summer, he returned the research and finally find out the mechanism of nitroglycerin production simpler and introduce the use of detonators in the blasting. Both of these patented inventions eventually anyway.
Although classified as melancholic, Alfred Nobel was not a man who is slow to recover from grief. In September 1864, Alfred in Stockholm factory exploded and killed his brother, Emil Nobel. One month later, he included the company in the stock market.
Great success was achieved. The factory is even more scattered throughout the world. He bought a plot of land in Hamburg, Germany, and setting up factories there. Factory in the United States was built in 1866 after fighting a variety of bureaucratic obstacles and similar business practices.
The success did not deter the attention of Alfred in the field of highly digemarinya, ie researching. He eventually learned, nitroglycerin can be absorbed by a porous material that has a shape that are portable, can be taken anywhere, and secure.
Currently living in Germany, he finally found the material. This material is known as kieselguhr, which is made from silica sand pengabsorb derived from algae shells diatomae. Kieselguhr to make nitroglycerine has the form, being able mengabsorb liquid chemicals. Thus, this mixture can be easily placed in the target blasting and taken anywhere without fear of an explosion.
This is where the dynamite came from. Dynamite comes from the Greek word dynamis, meaning power or power. Year 1867 is also the golden period for the Alfred Nobel patents dynamite for approval in various countries such as Sweden, Britain and the United States. The dynamite was found at the time of engine pneumatic drills and diamond are used for similar purposes. It is not surprising that the involvement of dynamite greatly reduce the time, effort, and cost in construction projects.
In 1868 Alfred Nobel and his father was awarded Letterstedt Prize from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The award is given to anyone who produce valuable discoveries for mankind. The idea also comes from the Nobel Prize awards received by Alfred Nobel in Sweden.
The bustle of business and often he travels abroad, leaving only a little time for personal life. At the age of 43 she was feeling lonely. This led him to search for friends at home and also a private secretary with a way to advertise in the newspaper. Applicants came. But the choice finally fell on Countess Bertha Kinsky, an Austrian noblewoman.
His introduction to the Countess did not last long because the Countess Bertha Kinsky should marry Count Arthur von Suttner. Nevertheless, they remain in touch by letter. Bertha von Suttner was not a woman at random. He was classified as a thinker and world peace activist who later produced a book titled "Lay Down Your Arms". Many people who do not doubt the influence of Bertha von Suttner in shaping the ideas of Alfred Nobel to give his wealth in the form of prizes for those who strongly support world peace. Bertha von Suttner himself received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1905.
Excess Alfred Nobel a very prominent is its ability to combine style deep thinking philosopher and scientist-style with his view that far-sighted and dynamic that is often owned by an industrialist. He is also interested in social issues and not infrequently also catapult ideas that are categorized as radical for its time. Literature and writing of poetry as well they do.
Abundant wealth and the absence of offspring make him confused about to be given to whom he possessed. On 27 November 1895 he wrote his will in the presence of the Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris. In 1891 moved from Paris to San Remo, Italy where he died of a brain hemorrhage on December 10, 1896. He produced 355 patents during his lifetime .***
Farid Solana,
Student Department of Chemical Engineering ITB FTI
Ref : http://klipingut.wordpress.com/2008/01/02/alfred-bernhard-nobel-1833-1896penggemar-filsafat-yang-kreatif-dan-suka-puisi/