John Ulric NefBorn 14 Jun 1862; died 13 Aug 1915 at age 53.Swiss-American chemist whose studies demonstrated that carbon can have a valence (i.e., affinity for electrons) of two (such as quinone) as well as a valence of four, thus greatly advancing the understanding of theoretical organic chemistry. He provided a basis for the modern system of chemical notation. He studied tautomerism, especially of nitroparaffins, and discovered what is now called the "Nef reaction"; the acid-catalyzed conversion of primary and secondary nitroalkanes to aldehydes and ketones, respectively. His major research was on bivalent carbon, including isonitriles, carbon monoxide, fulminates and methylene. In later years, he studied the complex reactions of sugars in alkali and acid. |
