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This contributed volume is based on presentations made at the 2024 Symposium on the sesquicentennial of the independent proposals of the tetrahedral carbon by van 't Hoff and Le Bel (1874), presented to the Division of the History of Chemistry of the American Chemical Society in March 2024. In 1874, the Dutch chemist, Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff (1852-1911), and the French chemist, Joseph-Achille Le Bel (1847-1930), independently proposed that the phenomenon of optical activity could be rationalized on the basis of non-superimposable mirror image molecules in particular, the tetrahedral carbon atom. The book features chapters dedicated to the life and work of Le Bel and the history of stereochemistry. The expansion of the van 't Hoff-Le Bel theory to elements beyond carbon, such as metals and chiral centers based on sulfur and selenium, is also explored. Additionally, the book discusses the visualization of organic molecules in three dimensions through molecular models, the limits of bonding and stereochemistry in organic molecules, and the role of crystallography in stereochemistry development. Specific topics include hydrocarbons with severely distorted geometry, the quantum chemical revolution, the effects of substituents on tetrahedral carbons, the Walden inversion, and the Fischer elucidation of monosaccharide configurations. A chapter by Kahr and Rossi includes the only English translation of the undergraduate thesis of the world-renowned author Primo Levi, a Jewish, Italian-born chemist and Holocaust survivor, and provides historical and scientific context. The book also examines the public celebration of stereochemistry through postage stamps. This title offers a comprehensive overview of the evolution and significance of stereochemistry in both chemistry and scientific thought, serving as a valuable resource for students and researchers interested in history of chemistry topics.
List of contents
Part I: Introductory Chapters.- Stamps are Planar, Carbon is Not: A Philatelic History of Chemistry.- The History of Stereochemistry: Progress and Prospects.- Part II: Stereochemical Pioneers.- Joseph-Achille Le Bel: Polymath Extraordinary.- Alfred Werner: Coordination Theory and the Stereochemistry of Metal Complexes.- Studies of Chiral Centers Other than Carbon. William Jackson Pope and Kurt Mislow: Pioneers of Stereochemistry.- Missed It by That Much! How Butlerov Almost Proposed the Tetrahedral Carbon.- Rene Just Hauy and the Contribution of Crystallography to 3-Dimensional Chemistry.- Part III: Using Stereochemistry to Study Reactions and Structure.- L'Inversione di Walden: The Undergraduate Thesis of Primo Levi, Chemist and Writer.- ''How Sweet It Is! Emil Fischer s Stereochemical Studies of Glucose.- Part IV: Exploring the Limits of Organic Structure.- Historical Evolution, Stereochemistry, and Structural Limitations for the C=C Bond.- Exploring Variation in Bonding and Structure for Tetrahedral Carbon: [1.1.1]Propellane and Inverted Carbons.- Expansion of the Definition of Stereochemistry to Include Quantum Chemistry. When Funny is Fun but not Funny.- Although sp3 Hybridization is Not Found for The Carbon in Methane Nor in Isoelectronically Related Species. The Concept of Hybridization is Still Useful and Powerful.
