Ružička's macrocyclic compounds (muscone and civetone)
Compuestos macrocíclicos de Ružička (muscona y civetona)
- Date
- 1926 · confidence high
- Place
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Credited to
- Leopold (Lavoslav) Ružička, born in Vukovar
- Field
- Matter & energy
What was discovered
He determined that muscone and civetone, perfume components, are rings of 15 and 17 carbon atoms. This refuted Baeyer's strain theory, which held large rings to be impossible, and he synthesised them.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1939 (shared with Butenandt) for his work on polymethylenes and higher terpenes. Born in Vukovar (Croatia), he worked in Zurich.
What it led to
- synthesis of perfumes and macrocyclic molecules
- chemistry of medium and large rings