In 1927 he earned his doctorate in natural sciences with a thesis on the red algae genera Acrochaetium and Rhodochorton.
[1] He is known for research performed in the "Laboratoire de Cryptogamie" at the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle in Paris.
[2] He reportedly died while trying to reach Paris by bicycle prior to its liberation in August 1944.
[4] Since 1927 he was also the editor and a contributor to the exsiccata series Algues de France.
[5][6] In 1942 Frederik Børgesen named the brown algae genus Hamelella (family Chordariaceae) in his honor.