Anders Gustaf Ekeberg

Anders Gustaf Ekeberg (16 January 1767 in Stockholm, Sweden – 11 February 1813 in Uppsala, Sweden) was a Swedish analytical chemist who discovered tantalum in 1802. Notably, he was deaf.

Education Anders Gustav Ekeberg was a Swedish scientist, mathematician and expert in Greek literature. His father, Joseph Erik Ekeberg, was a shipbuilder. His uncle was Carl Gustaf Ekeberg.

He was made docent in chemistry in 1794 and experimentator (laborator) in 1799, working as a demonstrator in the laboratory of Torbern Bergman. In 1798 he lectured on the theory of combustion. In 1799, he was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Ekeberg was portrayed by his friends and students as a kind and gentle man. He died, unmarried, at the age of 46.

Research

Ekeberg analyzed a number of the minerals found at Ytterby and Falun. In 1802 he analyzed specimens of tantalite from Kimito, Finland, and of yttrotantalite from Ytterby, Sweden. He is credited with finding the element tantalum in both.

The Anders Gustaf Ekeberg Tantalum Prize In 2018 the Tantalum-Niobium International Study Center established The Anders Gustaf Ekeberg Tantalum Prize ("Ekeberg Prize"), an annual award to recognize excellence in tantalum research. The Prize will increase awareness of the many unique properties of tantalum products and the applications in which they excel. The inaugural winner of the Ekeberg Prize was Yuri Freeman, for his book "Tantalum and Niobium-Based Capacitors" (Springer, 2018).