Fritz Haber was born 9th December 1868 in Breslau, Germany. Elizabeth classical school, where he performed many chemical experiments. .
From 1886 to 1891, he studied chemistry at Heidelburg University, Berlin University, and Charlottenberg technical school. In 1894, he was uncertain whether to focus on Physics or Chemistry, when he was offered an assistantship with a leading combustion chemist at Karlsruhe. He stayed there until 1911. Another chemist, Carl Enger introduced Haber to petroleum, and much of Haber's work stemmed from these two chemists.
Haber was then appointed to succeed Engler as Director of the Institute for Physical and Electrochemistry at Berlin-Dahlem, but in 1933, Nazi race laws forced him to resign, rather than fire almost his entire staff. He was invited to Cambridge by Sir William Pope, but, he had heart disease, and moved back to Switzerland to escape, scared of the English winter.
Haber invented the glass cathode for electrolysis of solid salts. He also did work on reducing the loss of energy in engines and motors, but was unable to produce a commercially viable solution. He did however find a solution for the laboratory combustion of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. He also undertook work on the fixation of nitrogen, for which he was awarded the Nobel prize for Chemistry for 1918.
He studied how he created small amounts of ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen at 1000 degrees celsius using iron as a catalyst. Later, he managed to reduce the required temperature to 500 degrees by using pressure.
Haber received a sigificant amount of recognition throughout his life, including the Nobel prize, and the Institute for Physical and Electrochemistry at Berlin-Dahlem was renamed the Fritz Haber Institute.
Haber died on 29th January 1934 at Basle, his spirit broken by the country he served so well.
