Baron, Theodore

Let us consider a photochemical experiment as it was carried out by the baron Theodor Grotthuss, then living in his native Courland, a part of modem day Latvia [3-5] (Fig. 2.1). 

In 1747—48 Theodore Baron de Henouville (1715-1768) proved that borax is composed of sedative salt and soda (65). After A. S. Marggraf had investigated alumina ( the earth from alum ), Baron de Henouville in 1760 published a paper on the basis of alum. Although some of his observations were erroneous, he pointed out the close rela-... 

Baron de Henouville, Theodore, Ueber die Grundlage des Alauns, ... 

In pure water too, the activation barrier for PT is shallow or even absent. PT reactions in water have proven to be very fast and this is referred to as the Grotthuss effect. Theodore von Grotthuss (1785-1822) was a German-Lithuanian baron who contributed to both electrolysis and photochemistry. At this time, neither protons nor the electrodissociation theory was known, of course (it was not even known that the formula for water is H2O). Still, Grotthuss developed a primitive theory that H+ and OH ions are involved in conductivity. This depends on the fact that the water molecules form chains of hydrogen bonds. Protons move stepwise and are almost activationless. Covalent bonds become hydrogen bonds as the charge is passed from... 

The composition of borax, after its investigation by Geoffroy (p. 56), was finally settled by Theodore Baron. There were three physicians called Baron Hyacinthe Theodore Baron the father (Paris April 1686-28 July 1758) and his two sons, Hyacinthe Theodore Baron (Paris 12 August 1707-27 March 1787) and Theodore Baron d Henouville (Paris 17 June 1715-10 March 1768), a pupil of Rouelle, whom he succeeded as demonstrator in the Jardin du Roi. According to Hoefer the last is the one concerned here. The author of the papers calls himself M. Baron and in his edition of Lemery s Cows de Chymie simply Baron . He showed that borax is formed by the combination of soda with the substance (boric acid) previously called sel sedatif, etc. on... 

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