Johannes Van der Waals

Johannes Van der Waals was a physicist known for describing how molecules interact and behave in gases and liquids. He developed the Van der Waals equation, which improves upon ideal gas laws by accounting for the volume of molecules and the attractions between them. This model helps explain why real gases deviate from ideal behavior, especially at high pressures and low temperatures, and it was fundamental in understanding phase transitions like condensation and liquefaction. Van der Waals’s work provided a deeper insight into the forces governing matter at the microscopic level.