Karl Ziegler

Karl Waldemar Ziegler was a German chemist. His scientific life's work includes contributions to the chemistry of carbon radicals, organolithium compounds and ring closure reactions, to natural product chemistry and organometallic chemistry, to useful organic synthesis methods such as Wohl-Ziegler bromination and to the understanding of living polymerization. His work on the reaction of triethylaluminum with ethene led to the production of fatty alcohols for biodegradable detergents and, as a co-product, to high-purity aluminum oxide, which has a wide range of uses in the chemical industry.