Ægidius Elling
Jens William Ægidius Elling (also Aegidus or Aegidius) (26 July 1861 – 27 May 1949) was a Norwegian researcher, inventor and pioneer of gas turbines who is considered to be the father of the gas turbine. He built the first gas turbine that was able to produce more power than needed to run its own components.[1][2]
Elling was born in and grew up in
His first gas turbine patent was granted in 1884.[citation needed]
In 1903 he completed the first turbine that produced excess power; his original machine used both rotary compressors and turbines to produce 11 bhp (8 kW; 11 PS) net.
One major challenge was to find materials that could withstand the high temperatures developed in the turbine to achieve high output powers. His 1903 turbine could withstand inlet temperatures up to 400°Celsius (752°F). Elling understood that if better materials could be found, the gas turbine would be an ideal power source for airplanes.[
Elling also did significant development work in other areas, such as steam engine controls, pumps, compressors, vacuum drying et cetera.
In 1914 Elling produced a book called Billig opvarmning: veiledning i at behandle magasinovner økonomisk og letvint. (English: Cheap Heating: Guidance for the simple and economical treatment of base burners), which was published by Aschehoug. Books written by Elling are now rare, and are mostly found in museums and libraries.
References
External links
- Norwegian Technical Museum's biography of Elling (Norwegian)