Andres Manuel del Rio
| Andrés Manuel del Río | |
|---|---|
Andrés Manuel del Río
|
|
| Born |
10 November 1764 Madrid |
| Died | 23 March 1849 (aged 84) Mexico City |
| Nationality | Spanish-Mexican |
| Fields |
natural history chemistry |
| Alma mater | University of Alcalá de Henares |
| Known for | vanadium |
| Influences |
Jean Darcet Antoine Lavoisier René Just Haüy |
Andrés Manuel del Río Fernández (10 November 1764 – 23 March 1849) was a Spanish–Mexican scientist and naturalist who discovered compounds of vanadium in 1801.
Andrés del Río studied analytical chemistry and metallurgy in Spain, where he was born. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Alcalá de Henares in 1780. The government gave him a scholarship to enter the School of Mines in Almadén, Spain, where he showed great aptitude. Later he moved to Paris, where he studied under the chemist Jean Darcet. He continued his studies in Freiberg, Germany, under the direction of Abraham Gottlob Werner. In Freiberg he got to know Baron Alexander von Humboldt. He then returned to Paris as a student of Antoine Lavoisier. During the French Revolution Lavoisier, considered the founder of modern chemistry, was executed on the guillotine. Del Río was forced to flee to England. He also collaborated with Abbé René Just Haüy, considered the founder of crystallography.
In 1792, the Real Seminario de Minería (College of Mines) was founded in New Spain by a decree of King Charles III of Spain, with the object of reforming the study of mining and metallurgy in the colony. The institution was initially headed by Fausto Elhúyar (1755–1833), the discoverer of tungsten. The young del Río was named to the chair of chemistry and mineralogy. Del Río arrived at the port of Veracruz on 20 October 1794, on the ship San Francisco de Alcántara out of Cádiz.
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