Laboratory of English physicist Michael Faraday (1791-1867). Born into poverty and chiefly self-educated, Faraday is considered one of the greatest experimental physicists of all time. Among his achievements are the discovery of benzene (a hydrocarbon used in motor fuel), the liquidification of chlorine, and the formation of the Laws of Electrolysis (subsequintly called Faraday's laws) describing the behavior of chemical solution in electric currents. He also devised the first electric motor, dynomos and transformers.