Alfred Bernhard Nobel, chemist and entrepreneur, surely known to many for the Nobel Prize, was born in Stockholm on Oct. 21, 1833. He left Stockholm at a young age and moved with his parents to St. Petersburg. There he received private lessons in languages, literature and natural sciences. After a few years abroad, where he completed his education in engineering and chemistry, he returned to his father’s factory in St. Petersburg.
Beginnings of the explosive
At this time he began to work on the development of explosives. His father was already experimenting with nitroglycerin, which was common at the time and exploded very easily by itself. Alfred Nobel set himself the task of finding a solution to use this explosive for controlled blasting. In 1862, Alfred Nobel carried out the first successful blasting with nitroglycerin. He mixed the explosive with diatomaceous earth, a sand made from skeletons of single-celled plant organisms called diatoms.
“Dynamic” researcher years
In 1867, he produced dynamite for the first time, and the first dynamite factory was established in a small community called Krümmel, near Hamburg. In 1875, Nobel developed another explosive that had a firmer consistency, was less dangerous, and exceeded the explosive power of nitroglycerin. In 1887, he patented the powder “Ballistit.” He established explosives factories in various countries.
Sad result
Numerous wars quickly made him a rich man. Some chroniclers report that Alfred Nobel detested war. He would have thought only of the safety of miners and blasters when he invented dynamite. In contradiction to the fact that his invention was intended exclusively for military purposes, there is also his active contact with the peace campaigner of the time, Bertha von Suttner. With her, he discussed peace policy and an alliance of states, similar to today’s United Nations.
Nobel Peace Prize
Alfred Nobel died on December 10, 1896 in San Remo, Italy. He owned 355 patents and 90 factories in 20 countries at that time. He bequeathed his entire fortune to the Nobel Foundation, which finances the Nobel Prize for Physics, Chemistry and Medicine to this day. Furthermore, a prize for literature and one for the person who has “worked most for the fraternization of peoples” are awarded. The Nobel Prize is presented annually in a ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.
