Wilhelm Ostwald (1853-1932)

Awarded the Prize “in recognition of his work on catalysis for his investigations into the fundamental principles governing chemical equilibria rates of reaction.”

German chemist. Ostwald was born at Riga in Latvia on September 2, 1853. He was educated at the University of Dorpat the Riga Polytechnic, where he was Professor of physics from 1881 until he left to take the Chair of Physical Chemistry at Leipzig in 1887. Ostwald died on April 4, 1932 in Grossbothen, Germany.