1855-1931

Austro-Hungarian mineralogist best known for his fundamental work on metamorphism—alterations in rock mineralogy, texture, and internal structure by heat, pressure, and chemical reactions. Using his graphical method for representing rock components, he differentiated between metamorphic and sedimentary rock transformations. He put forth the Becke volume rule, according to which mineral formation with the greatest molecular density is favored under isothermal conditions and increasing pressure (1896). Becke also did considerable work on crystalline schists.