Paris. Lavoisier gave the name Oxygen (literally “Acid Generator”) to the comburent absorbed from the air during multiple combustions. In fact, he had demonstrated years earlier that the transformation of copper and iron into green copper and rust, respectively, is accompanied by a gain in weight, hypothesizing that these substances absorb something from the air. Lavoisier had already demonstrated years earlier that diamonds, sulfur, and phosphorus also all gain weight when burned in air (taking into account both the ash and the gases emitted, of course). The discovery of the new element can be attributed to Scheele and Priestley, but it was Lavoisier who revealed its omnipresence in nature and placed it within the rest of chemistry, demonstrating its centrality for water, salts, and acids. Priestley’s specific interest was primarily in atmospheric gases, while Scheele (as with most Swedish chemists) was primarily interested in minerals. Note that oxygen is the cause of the incredible variety of minerals and compounds on planet Earth compared to planets that lack them: oxygen expands the variety from about 50 to about 500, while life expands that variety further to about 5000.
