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Article: Haber, Fritz
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- Chemistry: Foundations and Applications
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Haber, Fritz
GERMAN PHYSICAL CHEMIST
1868
–
1934
Fritz Haber, born in Breslau, Prussia (now Wroclaw, Poland), successfully applied physical chemistry to technological problems. In 1918 he won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his
synthesis
of ammonia from the elements, an important starting material in the production of fertilizers and explosives.
Haber, whose father was a natural dyestuff importer, was destined to enter the family business at a time when synthetic dyes began to dominate the market, and his fortunes soon floundered. In 1894 the young Haber became assistant to Hans Bunte at the Technical University of Karlsruhe. Self-taught in physical and electrochemistry, he ...