Johann Wilhelm Schaffner, Leopoldo Río de la Loza, and Elemental Analysis in Mexico

Abstract:

In 1849 Johann Wilhelm Schaffner, a German naturalist trained in Darmstadt and renowned for his botanical contributions arrived in Mexico. Three years later, the famous Mexican chemist Leopoldo Río de la Loza published the first elemental analysis developed in that country, applying it to pipitzahoic acid (perezone). The technique used was published by Justus von Liebig in 1831. However, the application of elemental analysis was not explored again in Mexico until the middle of the twentieth century, pushing back the areas of chemistry that had developed in Europe. Based on historical and historiographic sources, this article explores whether Río de la Loza’s access to Liebig’s elemental analysis technique was via his connection with Schaffner, it discusses the reasons the use of elemental analysis was abandoned in Mexico, and it highlights the lack of recognition of Schaffner’s work.