Fourneyron, Benoît
Published: September 6, 2006, 6:01 pm
Updated: September 6, 2006, 6:01 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Tom Lawrence
Benoît Fourneyron (1802-1867), a French inventor who, at the age of 25, invented the first enclosed water turbine or reaction turbine of modern design. It was called a reaction turbine because of its design: a chamber containing an inner ring of rotor-blades that repel water outward against the moving vanes of a “runner,” which were curved in the opposite direction from the inner blades, thus reversing the flow of water within the device itself and producing the so-called reactive force. Fourneyron’s turbine benefited France’s bourgeoning industry, and it's use quickly spread to other countries. As a power source, the water turbine had many advantages over the open vertical water wheel. The water turbine could handle any head from less than a foot up to many hundreds of feet, its conversion efficiency was much higher, and it could handle much more water flow. Fourneyron went on to build more than 1,000 hydraulic turbines of various forms and for use in different parts of the world, including Niagara Falls, USA.
Further Reading
Fourneron Water Turbine Design (Water Wheel Factory)
Outward Flow Turbines (U. S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service)
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Citation
Cutler J. Cleveland (Lead Author);Tom Lawrence (Topic Editor) "Fourneyron, Benoît". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth September 6, 2006; Last revised Date September 6, 2006; Retrieved June 19, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Fourneyron,_Beno%C3%AEt>
The Author
Cutler J. Cleveland is Professor of Earth and Environment at Boston University, where he also is on the faculty of the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. Professor Cleveland is Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Energy (Elsevier, 2004), winner of an American Library Association award, the Dictionary of Energy (Elsevier, 2005), Handbook of Energy (Elsevier, forthcoming), and is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. He is the recipient of the Adelma ... (Full Bio)
Benoît Fourneyron (1802-1867), a French inventor who, at the age of 25, invented the first enclosed water turbine or reaction turbine of modern design. It was called a reaction turbine because of its design: a chamber containing an inner ring of rotor-blades that repel water outward against the moving vanes of a “runner,” which were curved in the opposite direction from the inner blades, thus reversing the flow of water within the device itself and producing the so-called reactive force. Fourneyron’s turbine benefited France’s bourgeoning industry, and it's use quickly spread to other countries. As a power source, the water turbine had many advantages over the open vertical water wheel. The water turbine could handle any head from less than a foot up to many hundreds of feet, its conversion efficiency was much higher, and it could handle much more water flow. Fourneyron went on to build more than 1,000 hydraulic turbines of various forms and for use in different parts of the world, including Niagara Falls, USA.
Further Reading
Fourneron Water Turbine Design (Water Wheel Factory)
Outward Flow Turbines (U. S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service)
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