RSC remembers forgotten man of Scottish science

The Royal Society of Chemistry is marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of a scientist whose many achievements have been largely forgotten.

The son of a Glasgow carpenter, Robert Young became a scientist, humanitarian reformer and entrepreneur who could claim to have been the first oil tycoon. He devised a method for distilling oil from natural deposits of hydrocarbons called naphtha, which was used for lighting and lubrication in Manchester’s cotton mills.