Why did Western alchemy develop into modern chemistry?

The goal of the ancient Greek alchemists was clear, which was to turn base metals into precious metals and profit from them.

In fact, many alchemical craftsmen are very clear-eyed about the fact that fake gold cannot become real gold, and they are always trying new fake gold formulas and techniques to make it more difficult for the public to see through. Greed drives competition and innovation.

There were also some scholars in ancient Greece who were interested in alchemy. They did not roll up their sleeves and do alchemy in small workshops just for profit. Their curiosity made them excited about the transformations between various metal alloys. They believed that metals could "transform".

Thinking about the laws of material change, some theories were left behind.

The decline of ancient Greece silenced Greek culture, which included the exploration of metal transmutation, but the activities of folk craftsmen making fake gold continued quietly.

In the late Middle Ages, scholars rediscovered ancient Greek civilization from Arabic documents. At this time, the Arabs also brought their own developed alchemy plus Chinese alchemy to Europe.

As a result, ancient Greek alchemy, Arabic alchemy and Chinese alchemy entered the field of vision of European Renaissance scholars.

European scholars during the Renaissance were sharp-minded and daring to criticize. They were full of surprises but not dogmatic about the splendid civilization of ancient Greece that had come to light. They also happily thought about elements of civilization from other regions.

Another characteristic of this group of scholars is that most of them are people who have no worries about food and clothing, and rarely use profit-making as the purpose of scientific activities.

By the late Renaissance, many first-class scholars came out of the "ivory tower" to learn craftsmanship (including alchemy) from craftsmen, and then made new tools and established laboratories.

At this moment, modern experimental science has begun to take shape.

It was the British natural philosopher Roger Bacon (1214-1293) who first advocated the experimental method of natural exploration instead of relying solely on logical deduction. Therefore, he is regarded by historians of science as the founder of modern science.

In fact, Bacon was passionate about alchemy, and his experimental methods came from the alchemists who had always been looked down upon by the noble natural philosophers.

The first modern chemist to emerge from the cocoon of traditional alchemy with chemical theory was the Englishman Robert Boyle (1627-1691). His representative work "The Skeptical Chemist" was published in 1661.

Sceptical Chemist), is a milestone in modern experimental science.

In this book, he uses the form of dialogue to criticize some unfounded theories of ancient Greece (such as the "four elements theory"), and also proposes how modern chemical research can move from the myths and mysteries of "alchemy" and "alchemy"

Come out of ism.

He expounded a set of rigorous scientific research methods and believed that all theories must be experimentally proven before their "correctness" can be established.

After Boyle, European classical alchemists gradually withdrew from the stage of history, and modern chemists made a brilliant appearance.