Laboratory equiment of Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier, French chemist (1743-1794). Lavoisier's experiments in the calcination of tin, lead, and mercury, and his accurate techniques of weight determination led to the production and identification of oxygen. He is considered the founder of modern chemistry. He was instrumental in the use of accurate measurement in chemistry for the study of the composition of materials, oxidation and other combustion reactions. His book, "Methods of Chemical Nomenclature" of 1787 set the method of naming substances by their composition of elements, which is still used today.