Johan Afzelius

Johan Afzelius (1753 - 1837) was a Swedish chemist and notable as the doctoral advisor of Jöns Jacob Berzelius.

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Afzelius received his MS degree at Uppsala University in 1776 under Torbern Olof Bergman.

Afzelius did mineral analyses (e.g., barium selenite) and he is notable for having isolated formic acid from ants and showed it was different from acetic acid. He also studied the chemistry of nickel and oxalic acid.

References

• J.R. Partington, A History of Chemistry, Macmillan: 1962, vol. 3, p. 200.
• Svenskt biografiskt lexikon, Albert Bonniers: 1918-1985, vol. 1, pp. 218-224.