Avogadro Chemists Use Avogadro\'s Number

Avogadro

Chemists use Avogadro's Number on a daily basis and it is therefore necessary to not only know and understand what the number signifies, but also to know who created it, why it was created, and of what use it is in today's chemical society.

The name "Avogadro's Number" is just an honorary name attached to the calculated value of the number of atoms, molecules, etc. In a gram mole of any chemical substance. Of course if we used some other mass unit for the mole such as "pound mole," the "number" would be different than 6.022 x 1023."(Furtsch)

The title honors Amedeo Avogadro, an eighteenth century scientist born in Turin, Italy on August 9, 1776. His family was comprised of successful lawyers, and he followed the family's tradition by graduating in ecclesiastical law.

Lorenzo Romano Amedeo Carlo Avogadro, known as Amedeo Avogadro, one of the many creative Italians that have enriched our lives, was born in 1776 - a memorable date hitherto for other reasons. Possibly of aristocratic descent, he was a lawyer until he decided to devote himself to one of his other interests: in his late twenties he was appointed to the first chair in mathematical physics in Italy, at L' Universita' di Torino." (Avogadro)

His interest in law never waned but was supplanted by his interest in natural science. This interest compelled him to attend private lessons in both mathematics and physics. Following and intense period of study, he wrote a hypothesis that contributed several facets to the science community.

Avogadro was the first to publish (in 1811) the idea that elements could exist as molecules - a latin word that he adopted for his hypothesis (which he wrote in French): explaining why mixing a volume of hydrogen gas with an equal volume of chlorine gas does not result in a doubling in the volume of gas." (Avogadro)

His most well-known contribution to the field of chemistry was the statement titled; the Avogadro constant or Avogadro number. Avogadro stated that "a mole equals 6.022 x 1023." (American) It also states that equal volumes of gases, at the same temperature and pressure have the same amount of molecules.