【Haichuan. Pioneers of the Chemical Industry】17 Sun Xuewu – Founder of China’s first chemical research institution
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The following information was collected from the Internet ------－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－ Sun Xuewu, a chemical engineering expert and a pioneer in China’s chemical technology sector. He presided over the establishment of China’s first chemical research institution – the Huanghai Chemical Industry Research Society – and pioneered research in applied inorganic chemistry, applied organic chemistry, and bacterial chemistry in China. He also promoted the production and development of Juda Salt Company and Yongli Chemical Industry Company, as well as the growth of the chemical industry in the southwestern region. He successively put forward a series of guiding principles for scientific research that were grounded in practical realities and linked to industrial applications; he acquired extensive experience in organizing and managing scientific research efforts, united and trained a large number of talents in chemical engineering, and made significant contributions to the development of China’s chemical industry as well as to scientific and technological progress.
Sun Xuewu, styled Yingchuan, was born on October 27, 1888, into a merchant family in Sunjiatong, Weihaiwei, Wendeng County, Shandong Province. There are four brothers, and three of the older brothers followed their father in business. Since he was intelligent from a young age, his father was determined to turn him into a scholar. At that time, Weihai was a leased territory of Britain. The young Sun Xuewu was deeply affected by Western science and ideas, as well as the aggressive and exploitative actions of the colonizers; from an early age he had a broad mind and a strong sense of patriotism. After completing his secondary education at the Anglikan School run by Britons in 1905, he followed his father’s orders to go to Japan and study at Waseda University. In the same year, he joined the Tongmenghui led by Sun Yat-sen in Japan, and the following year was sent back to China to participate in the revolutionary efforts to overthrow the Qing dynasty. His father was furious that he had dropped out of school and returned to the country without reason, and he confined him strictly, not allowing him to go outside. In 1907, Sun Xuewu attended St. John’s University in Shanghai, using his studies as a cover to continue carrying out revolutionary propaganda activities. After some time, he gradually realized that efforts to promote the revolution through propaganda were yielding little results, and thus he developed the idea of saving the country through science, aiming to revitalize poor and underdeveloped China with practical science and technology. In 1910, Sun Xuewu was admitted to the preparatory class for studying in the United States at Tsinghua School. In 1911, he went to the United States to study chemistry at Harvard University. In 1915, he received a doctorate in chemistry and stayed at the university as an assistant instructor due to his outstanding performance. In 1919, at the invitation of Zhang Boling, Sun Xuewu returned to China filled with the ambition to revitalize it, and worked to establish a science department at Nankai University. In 1920, a former classmate from Harvard invited him to work as the chief chemist at the Kailuan Coal Mine; Sun Xuewu accepted the position because it was more closely related to actual production practices. Kailuan Coal Mine is a British-owned enterprise. In his work, Sun Xuewu increasingly felt the sense of relying on others, which was contrary to his original intention of reviving the national industry. Although he enjoyed the highest treatment available to Chinese scholars, with a monthly salary of up to 300 silver dollars, it was still not what he desired. At the time when Fan Xudong founded Jiuda and Yongli companies, he invited Sun Xuewu to join them. Fan Xudong’s idea of \"saving the nation through industry\" resonated strongly with Sun Xuewu. In 1922, while interacting with Hou Debang, who had been in the Tsinghua Preparatory Class for Study in the United States, later went to the U.S. to study as well, and had recently returned to work at the Yongli Company, Sun Xuewu felt a strong sense of kinship with him; thus he readily accepted Fan Xudong’s invitation to help develop Yongli. Hou Debang once said to him in half-joking tone, “Our salary and benefits can’t compare to those at Kailuan!” ”Sun Xuewu replied seriously, \"If it were for a high salary and good benefits, why would I need to return to my home country?\" I want to build our own chemical industry together with a few like-minded friends; this is my long-held desire, and I’m determined to do it even if it means going through hardships. ”He resolutely went to the desolate Tanggu salt flats to take up the position of head of the chemistry department at Jiuda Salt Industry Company, where he was responsible for establishing the Yellow Sea Chemical Industry Research Society (hereinafter referred to as Yellow Sea). Fan Xudong said to him, “If there are no people in China who are willing to put in the effort, who are not afraid of hardship, who are not distracted by worldly fame and wealth, and who work hard to create new academic knowledge and skills, then China will never be able to give birth to something new.” ”Sun Xuewu strongly agreed and gladly accepted the position of director of China’s first chemical research institution.
Born on October 27, 1888, in Weihaiwei, Wendeng County, Shandong Province. Studied at Anligantang School in Weihai from 1902 to 1905. Studied at Waseda University in Japan from 1905 to 1906. Studied at St. John’s University in Shanghai from 1907 to 1910. From 1910 to 1911, he studied at the Tsinghua Preparatory School for American Studies in Beiping. Studied chemistry at Harvard University in the United States from 1911 to 1919 ； In 1915, he received a Ph.D. in chemistry and stayed at the university as an assistant instructor. In 1919, a Department of Science was established at Nankai University in Tianjin. From 1920 to 1922, he served as the chief chemist at the Kailuan Coal Mine. From 1922 to 1952, he served as the head of the chemistry department at Tanggu Jiuda Salt Industry Company; he founded the Yellow Sea Chemical Industry Research Society and served as its president. In 1952, he became the director of the Institute of Industrial Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He passed away from illness in Beijing on June 15, 1952.
It turns out to be the team led by Mr. Fan Xudong and Hou Debang – they can be considered pioneers. Every member of this team can be regarded as a founder of China’s modern chemical industry; with just their efforts, they managed to create entire new fields within this industry
The original site of the Yellow Sea Chemical Research Society in Tianjin
This is what leads to people being grouped together, and talents gathering in such groups
The predecessor of the Marine Chemical Industry Research Society was the laboratory of the Kudai Tanggu Salt Factory; initially, it focused on producing sodium thiosulfate from the brine remaining after salt refining, as well as manufacturing salty toothpastes and mouthwashes. Later, it began to produce calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate using by-products from the Yongli Alkali Factory. It was founded with over 100,000 silver dollars contributed by Mr. Fan Xudong. President Sun Xuewu led the R&D team and established five research laboratories: Fermentation and Microbiology, Organic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, and Analytical Chemistry.
Spreading out means a few research institutes
The soil, being close to the roses, absorbs their fragrance and thus can also emit a pleasant scent, bringing people the aroma of roses. The same is true for people; your circle determines your future.