Alfred Nobel was a Swedish inventor, chemist, and industrialist who invented dynamite. His scientific and industrial contributions influenced modern chemistry and engineering practices, and the Nobel Prizes established according to his will created an international system of evaluation and recognition in the fields of science, literature, and peace.

Childhood and Youth

Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm in 1833 into a wealthy family, but his father, engineer Immanuel Nobel, went bankrupt in the year of Alfred’s birth. While the family faced economic hardship, Immanuel Nobel moved to Finland and Russia to rebuild his business. During this time, his mother Andriette Ahlsell remained in Stockholm with the children and supported the family.

Back in St. Petersburg, Nobel’s father regained his fortune by producing equipment for the Russian army and underwater mines for the Crimean War. When Alfred turned nine, he moved to Russia with his family.

Educational Background

Alfred Nobel received his education at home in Russia alongside his three siblings. Although he never attended university, he acquired extensive knowledge in the natural sciences, foreign languages, and literature. By the age of seventeen, he spoke five languages fluently: Swedish, Russian, French, English, and German.

He had a particular interest in literature, chemistry, and physics. Disappointed by his son’s passion for poetry, his father sent him abroad to pursue engineering. Nobel studied chemistry in France, Germany, Italy, and the United States, where he met renowned chemists and industrialists.

While working in the laboratory of the famous French chemist Professor T. J. Pelouze in Paris, he met the Italian scientist Ascanio Sobrero, who had discovered nitroglycerin. Sobrero described nitroglycerin as too dangerous for practical use; it was an extremely volatile solution highly sensitive to shock. Nitroglycerin captured Alfred Nobel’s attention, and he began researching how it could be safely used in construction.

Later, he also worked with the Swedish-American inventor John Ericsson, further developing his technical skills.

Career

Upon returning to Russia, Nobel collaborated with his father to develop nitroglycerin into a commercial explosive. Although his father returned to Sweden, Alfred and his brothers continued expanding the family business in Russia. They became prominent in the oil industry in southern Russia, and part of Alfred’s wealth was derived from these oil revenues.

In 1863, he returned to Sweden with his family. Nobel focused intensely on nitroglycerin, but several experiments resulted in explosions that killed many people, including his brother Emil. As a result, the Swedish government banned experiments within city limits. Nobel continued his work at a laboratory he built on Lake Mälaren.

In 1864, he began mass-producing nitroglycerin. In 1865, he patented a detonator using mercury fulminate. This new type of detonator enabled the controlled ignition of large explosive charges and became known as the “Nobel detonator.”

In 1866, during his experiments, he discovered that mixing nitroglycerin with kieselguhr—a fine, powdery soil—transformed the substance into a more stable, less sensitive paste. Inspired by the Greek word “dynamis,” meaning power, he named this new explosive “dynamite.” He developed it into a moldable stick form and created a new detonator that could be ignited with a fuse. These innovations made explosives controllable and safe to handle. Dynamite was soon produced in many countries.

Nobel’s inventions found great demand in tunneling, bridge construction, and mining. He eventually owned more than twenty factories worldwide.

In 1875, he developed gelignite, an explosive made from a colloidal suspension of nitrocellulose in glycerin, followed by ballistite, a nearly smokeless powder used in military munitions.

In addition, he conducted experiments on synthetic rubber, leather, and artificial silk. He held 355 patents worldwide in the fields of explosives and engineering.

Through his work, he established numerous companies including Nitroglycerin AB in Stockholm, Alfred Nobel & Co. Factory in Krümmel, United States Blasting Oil Company, Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) in Great Britain, Société Centrale de Dynamite in France, and Dyno Industries in Norway.

Personal Life

Alfred Nobel never married and had no children. He spent much of his life traveling. He began living in Paris in 1870; however, due to conflicts with French authorities, he moved to San Remo. After his activities there faced protests, he relocated to the Bofors-Gullspång facilities in Karlskoga, Sweden.

His library in San Remo contained more than 1,500 books, most of which were in their original languages. The majority of these works focused on literature, philosophy, religion, history, and science. Nobel also wrote poetry and novel drafts.

Final Years and Death

Alfred Nobel died on 10 December 1896 in San Remo, Italy. Until his death, he held 355 patents, primarily in biology, physiology, optics, and especially explosives.

Alfred Nobel (Pixabay)

Legacy and Impact

Nobel bequeathed a large portion of his fortune, approximately 31 million Swedish kronor, to establish the Nobel Prizes.

Disputes regarding Nobel’s nationality and the country in which the foundation should be established were debated for a long time. Under French law, a person’s domicile was considered to be where their horses were kept; since Nobel’s horses were in Sweden, this was sufficient to recognize him as a Swedish citizen. On 29 June 1900, the Nobel Foundation was officially approved by King Oscar II of Sweden.^【1】 

Will

In his will, Alfred Nobel stipulated that his fortune should be used to award prizes annually to those who, in the previous year, had made the greatest contribution to humanity in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. He appointed his assistant Ragnar Sohlman and his partner Rudolf Lilljequist as the two executors of his will.

Despite objections from his relatives, the will was accepted after a four-year legal process, and the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901.

“All the rest of my realizable assets shall be converted into secure securities and formed into a fund, the interest of which shall be distributed annually as prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The interest shall be divided into five equal parts: one part shall be awarded to the person who has made the most important discovery or invention in the field of physics; one part to the person who has made the most important chemical discovery or improvement; one part to the person who has made the most important discovery in the field of physiology or medicine; one part to the person who has produced in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction; and one part to the person who has done the most or the best work for fraternity among nations, the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and the establishment and promotion of peace congresses. The prizes for physics and chemistry shall be awarded by the Swedish Academy of Sciences, the prizes for physiology or medicine by the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, the prizes for literature by the Academy in Stockholm, and the prizes for peace advocates by a committee of five persons to be elected by the Norwegian Storting. In awarding the prizes, no regard shall be paid to nationality; it is my express wish that the prize be awarded to the most deserving person, whether or not they are a Swede.”^【2】