Contributions of Muslim Scientists to Chemistry

Before the 8th century, most "chemistry" was alchemy: secret attempts to turn cheap metals into gold. Muslim scholars changed this. They did experiments, recorded results and described methods clearly, so others could repeat them. Many words we use today come from Arabic: alkali (al-qali), alcohol (al-kuhl) and alembic (al-anbiq, a distilling flask).

1. Jabir ibn Hayyan (c. 721–815 CE)

Known in Europe as: Geber · Worked in: Kufa, Iraq

• Called the father of chemistry, because he made experiments the basis of chemistry.
• Described basic laboratory methods: distillation, crystallisation, sublimation, filtration, evaporation and calcination (strong heating).
• Credited with preparing nitric acid and hydrochloric acid, and improving the alembic used for distillation.
• Many books carry his name, such as Kitab al-Sab'in (The Book of Seventy).

2. Al-Kindi (c. 801–873 CE)

Worked in: Basra and Baghdad, Iraq

• Wrote Kitab Kimiya al-Itr wa al-Tasidat (The Book of the Chemistry of Perfume and Distillations), with over 100 recipes for perfumes and oils made by distillation.
• Said clearly that ordinary metals cannot be turned into gold, which went against what many alchemists believed.

3. Al-Razi (Rhazes) (c. 865–925 CE)

Worked in: Rayy (Iran) and Baghdad

• In Kitab al-Asrar (The Book of Secrets), he sorted substances into groups: mineral, plant and animal.
• Described more than 20 pieces of laboratory apparatus, such as flasks, beakers and furnaces.
• Credited with preparing alcohol (ethanol) by distillation and using it as an antiseptic in medicine.

4. Al-Zahrawi (Abulcasis) (936–1013 CE)

Worked in: Cordoba, Spain

• Best known for surgery, but his Kitab al-Tasrif also explains how to prepare medicines by sublimation and distillation: an early link between chemistry and pharmacy.

5. Abu Mansur Muwaffaq (10th century CE)

Worked in: Herat, Afghanistan

• Wrote a book on medicines describing hundreds of substances.
• Was one of the first to tell apart sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate, two white salts that look the same.

6. Al-Biruni (973–1048 CE)

Born in: Khwarazm (Uzbekistan) · Worked in: Ghazni (Afghanistan)

• His Kitab al-Jamahir (The Book of Precious Stones) describes many minerals and gems.
• Measured the densities of 18 metals and precious stones very accurately.

7. Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980–1037 CE)

Born: near Bukhara (Uzbekistan); died: Hamadan (Iran)

• Argued that alchemists cannot change one metal into another, such as lead into gold.
• Used steam distillation to extract essential oils such as rose water, a method still used to make perfumes.

A great Pakistani chemist

Dr Salimuzzaman Siddiqui (1897–1994) was one of Pakistan's best-known scientists.

• Isolated new medicinal compounds from plants, such as ajmaline from the root of Rauwolfia serpentina (sarpagandha), used to treat irregular heartbeats. He also studied the chemistry of neem.
• Founded and led the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) in 1953.
• Helped build the HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry at the University of Karachi into a leading research centre.

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