German chemist and historian of chemistry whose studies of the relation of physical properties to chemical structure pioneered physical organic chemistry.

Kopp became Privatdozent (unsalaried lecturer) at the University of Giessen in 1841. In that year he began work on one of his most notable achievements, the great Geschichte der Chemie, 4 vol. (1843–47; “History of Chemistry”). Although he spent his life gathering material for a second edition, it was never finished.

Extraordinary professor of chemistry at Giessen from 1843, in 1863 Kopp was appointed professor of chemistry at the University of Heidelberg. His research—especially on boiling point, specific gravity, specific heat, and thermal expansion—demonstrated that compounds differ in their physical properties according to the degree by which their structure differs.