Adolf von Baeyer

Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer (October 31, 1835 – August 20, 1917) was a German chemist who synthesized indigo, and was the 1905 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Quotes about Baeyer Chemists in the late 1800s knew that cyclic molecules existed, but the limitations on ring size were unclear. Although numerous compounds containing five-membered and six-membered rings were known, smaller and larger ring sizes had not been prepared, despite many efforts.A theoretical interpretation of this observation was proposed in 1885 by Adolf von Baeyer, who suggested that small and large rings might be unstable due to angle strain. … The data … show that Baeyer’s theory is only partially correct. Cyclopropane and cyclobutane are indeed strained, just as predicted, but cyclopentane is more strained than predicted, and cyclohexane is strain-free. Cycloalkanes of intermediate size have only modest strain, and rings of 14 carbons or more are strain-free. Why is Baeyer’s theory wrong? Baeyer’s theory is wrong for the simple reason that he assumed all cycloalkanes to be flat. John McMurry, Organic Chemistry 8th ed. (2012), Ch. 4: Organic Compounds: Cycloalkanes and Their Stereochemistry External links Category:Chemists from Germany Category:1917 deaths Category:1835 births Category:Nobel laureates from Germany Category:Nobel laureates in Chemistry Category:Lutherans