Frederick Thomas Trouton: The Man, the Rule, and the Ratio

Abstract

Trouton was a multifaceted theoretician and experimentalist who lefthis name in several fields. Here, his many contributions to scienceare described and analyzed with particular emphasis on Trouton'srule and its further development, his contributions to rheology (Trouton'sratio), and the famous Trouton–Noble experiment, which is relatedto the absolute movement of the Earth through the æther.Chemists and chemical engineers are familiar with Trouton throughthe rule that carries his name. Trouton’s rule states that at thenormal boiling temperature the entropy of vaporization is constant.They are generally unaware of his rich contributions in other scientificareas, such as rheology, osmotic pressure, and physics. Here we describehis personal life and career, his scientific achievements, and, inparticular, how his rule has been further developed by others.