Soret, Louis

In the 1800s chemists searched for new elements by fractionating the oxides of rare-earths. Carl Gustaf Mosander s experiments indicated that pure ceria ores were actually contaminated with oxides of lanthanum, a new element. Mosander also fractionated the oxides of yttria into two new elements, erbium and terbium. In 1878 J. Louis Soret (1827—1890) and Marc Delafontaine (1837-1911), through spectroscopic analysis, found evidence of the element holmium, but it was contaminated by the rare-earth dysprosia. Since they could not isolate it and were unable to separate holmium as a pure rare-earth, they did not receive credit for its discovery. 

Louis Soret was a professor of physics at the University of Geneva He studied the laws of electrolysis, defined the conditions for the production of ozone and determined its density and chemical constitution devised ingenious optical instruments and was the first scientist to make actinometnc measurements on the summit of Mont Blanc (67). In 1878 he recognized the presence of a new earth X in erbia and characterized it by its absorption spectrum, but later accepted the name holmia which Cleve gave it (67). He died in Geneva in 1890 at the age of sixty -three... 

Four rare-earth elements (yttrium, ytterbium, erbium, and terbium) have been named in honor of this village. A year later, the Swedish chemist Lars Fredrik Nilson (1840-1899), discovered another element in "erbia" and he named it scandium (Sc) in honor of Scandinavia. At the same time, Nilson s compatriot, the geologist and chemist Per Theodor Cleve (1840-1905) succeeded in resolving the "erbia" earths yet another step further, when he separated it into three components erbium, "holmium" (Flo) and thulium (Tm). The name "holmium" refers to Stockholm (Qeve s native city) and had been independently discovered by the Swiss chemists Marc Dela-fontame (1838-1911) and Jacques-Louis Soret (1827-1890), who had coined the metal element X on the basis of its absorption spectrum. 

The name is from the Latin Holmia for the city of Stockholm, the region where the original minerals were found. The discovery of holmium was part of the complex yttria rare-earths research. A new element was suggested by Jacques-Louis Soret (1827-1890) in 1878 and was named by Per Theodor Cleve (1840-1905) in 1880 its oxide was isolated in 1886 by Lecoq de Boisbaudran. The pure metal was isolated in 1911 by 0. Holmberg. It is a rare element and does not occur in pure form in nature. The silvery metal has unusual magnetic properties but no current commercial uses. 

Swiss scientists Jacques-Louis Soret and Marc Delafontaine discover the element holmium, which also is independently discovered by Swedish chemist Per Theodor Cleve. Swiss chemist Jean-Charles de Marignac discovers the element ytterbium. 

Holmium 1878 Marc Delafontaine (Switzerland) and Jacques (Switzerland) Per Theodor Cleve (Sweden) -Louis Soret... 

Per T. Cleve, Uppsala Marc Delafontaine, Geneva Louis Soret, Geneva Holmium 1878 Spectroscopy was invented about 1850. It was of great benefit in REM discoveries... 

Two other Swiss, also from Geneva, had considerable achievements in the discovery of rare earth elements. They were Louis Soret (1827-1890) and Marc Delafontaine (1837-1911). The former was professor of physics at the univer-... 

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