Famous Swedish Chemists

Alfred Nobel was a Swedish chemist, engineer, and inventor. A prolific inventor, he held 355 different patents. Most popular as the inventor of dynamite, he was concerned with how he would be remembered after his death and bequeathed his fortune to the Nobel Prize institution. A wide traveler, he was proficient in several languages.

Svante Arrhenius was a Swedish scientist who became the first Swedish person to win a Nobel Prize when he won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1903. Although he was originally a physicist, Arrhenius is widely accepted as a chemist and is best remembered for co-founding physical chemistry. Stockholm University houses the Arrhenius Labs, which is named in his honor.

Jöns Jacob Berzelius was a Swedish chemist who is often counted among the founders of modern chemistry alongside Robert Boyle, Antoine Lavoisier, and John Dalton. He is also referred to as the Father of Swedish Chemistry. Jöns Jacob Berzelius is also credited with making immense contributions to the field of stoichiometry. In 1836, he was honored with the Copley Medal.

Born to a German merchant, Carl Wilhelm Scheele was initially trained as a pharmacist but later switched to chemistry. He began his academic career in Sweden. He is best known for discovering oxygen, apart from countless chemical elements such as barium and chlorine and many organic acids.

Georg Brandt was a Swedish mineralogist and chemist best remembered for discovering cobalt. He is also credited with identifying and exposing fraudulent alchemists. Georg Brandt also served as a professor at Uppsala University.

Axel Fredrik Cronstedt was a Swedish chemist and mineralogist. He is best remembered for discovering nickel in 1751. Widely regarded as a founder of modern mineralogy, Cronstedt is credited with introducing the blowpipe for mineralogists. In 1753, Axel Fredrik Cronstedt was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Well-known Swedish biochemist Arne Tiselius won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry (1948) for his research on electrophoresis and adsorption analysis, especially for discoveries related to the complex nature of serum proteins. During his career, he worked as a biochemistry professor at the Uppsala University, chaired the Swedish Natural Science Research Council and also became the president of the Nobel Foundation. 

Torbern Olof Bergman was a Swedish mineralogist and chemist. He is best remembered for his 1775 work Dissertation on Elective Attractions, which contains the largest chemical affinity tables. He also contributed immensely to the development of quantitative analysis. Torbern Olof Bergman also taught physics and mathematics at the University of Uppsala.

Per Teodor Cleve was a Swedish biologist, chemist, oceanographer, and mineralogist. He is best remembered for his discovery of holmium and thulium. He is also credited with discovering aminonaphthalenesulfonic acids. Per Teodor Cleve is also remembered for his service as professor of general and agricultural chemistry at Uppsala University. His contributions were honored with the Davy Medal.

Johan Gottlieb Gahn was a Swedish metallurgist and chemist best remembered for discovering manganese in 1774. He is also credited with introducing improvements in copper smelting. In 1784, Johan Gottlieb Gahn was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

A Swedish chemist, Carl Gustaf Mosander is recognised for discovering rare earth element - lanthanum, erbium and terbium. He worked a lot with well-known Swedish chemist J. J. Berzelius as his assistant, became a curator of minerals at the Stockholm Academy of Sciences and later also worked as a professor of Chemistry and Mineralogy in the Karolinska Institute.

Swedish analytical chemist Anders Gustav Ekeberg is primarily known for his discovery of tantalum in 1802. He first studied at and later taught at the University of Uppsala. He was also a member of Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. In 2018, Tantalum-Niobium International Study Center started an award in his name to acknowledge work in the field of tantalum research. 

Peter Jacob Hjelm was a Swedish chemist best remembered for isolating the element molybdenum; he became the first person to do so in 1781, four years after it was discovered by Carl Wilhelm Scheele. In 1784, Peter Jacob Hjelm was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.