In 1847 he began his studies at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, and several years later became an instructor at the Lycée Charlemagne (1855).
From 1875 onward, he taught classes in chemistry at the École Normale Supérieure,[1] where in 1881 he succeeded Henri Étienne Sainte-Claire Deville as professor of chemistry.
[2] Their process for melting platinum remained the chosen method until induction furnaces became available decades later.
[4] In 1860, the two scientists were the first to melt an appreciable quantity of iridium.
[5] During his career, Debray served as an assayer for the Bureau de Garantie of Paris, was vice-president of the Société d'Encouragement pour l'Industrie Nationale and was a member of the Académie des sciences.