CHEM1006 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Claude Louis Berthollet, Joseph Proust
Document Summary
History of the law of definite composition or proportions. French chemist joseph proust proposed the law of definite composition or proportions based on his experiments conducted between 1798 and 1804 on the elemental composition of water and copper carbonate. In 1806, proust summarized his observations in what is now called proust"s law. It stated that chemical compounds are formed of constant and defined ratios of elements, as determined by mass. Carbon dioxide is composed of one carbon atom and two oxygen atoms. By mass, carbon dioxide can be described by the fixed ratio of 12:32, or simplified as 3:8. At the time, proust"s theory was a controversial one and disputed by a number of chemists, most notably another french chemist, claude louis berthollet. Berthollet supported the concept that elements could mix in any ratio.
