Åke Gerhard Ekstrand

Ekstrand enrolled at the University of Uppsala in 1865 and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1872. He became Docent in chemistry in 1875 and obtained his Doctor of Philosophy degree the same year (Primus). Supported by a state research scholarship, he continued advanced chemical studies in 1877–1878 at the University of Zurich and the University of Munich.

From 1879 to 1889 Ekstrand served as the commercial chemist in Uppsala. In 1889 he was appointed teacher at the Chalmers educational institution in Gothenburg. Beginning in 1890 he worked as a technical officer (byråingenjör) at the Control and Adjustment Bureau of the Ministry of Finance. He later served as chief engineer of the Inspection and Adjustment Board (1907–1909) and, subsequently, of the Control Board (Kontrollstyrelsen) from 1909 to 1913.

Ekstrand published studies in organic and industrial chemistry. His dissertation, Reten och några dess derivater, appeared in German in Liebigs Annalen (vol. 185, 1877). He produced further papers on reten in the Öfversigt af Kongl. Vetenskaps Akademiens Förhandlingar (1876, 1884). He contributed to the knowledge of carbohydrates (1887–1889) and authored numerous studies on naphthalene derivatives, mainly naphthoic acids (1879–1888).

As commercial chemist and later as technical officer, he wrote practical reports and articles on subjects such as sugar taxation (Lantbruksakademiens handlingar, 1905), the denaturing of spirits (Kemisk tidskrift, 1893–1901), and the malt drink industry (Kemisk tidskrift, 1893, 1897, 1898). He authored major sections on manufacturing industries in the compendium Sveriges land och folk (1901) and was responsible for most of the Swedish catalogues prepared for the world's fairs in Paris (1900) and Liège (1905).