Moses Gomberg is widely and correctly acclaimed for his breakthrough discovery of the triphenylmethyl radical, although this was originally the object of dispute until validation by Schlenk's synthesis of an isolable triarylmethyl radical in 1910. These discoveries however were not recognized by the award of the Nobel Prize to Gomberg and Schlenk, for reasons documented by the late Lennart Eberson as due to confused policies and prejudice on the part of the Nobel Committee. Overlooked in this debate was an earlier clear and correct report of the discovery free radicals from 1879, unknown to historians of chemistry until 2013 (Nature Chem. 2013, 637).

Gomberg, Schlenk, and free radicals: An unknown discovery and belated breakthrough

248th National Meeting (2014)

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