Bela Karlovitz
Encyclopedia
Bela Karlovitz was a Hungarian
physicist
who pioneered research into the generation of electricity
directly from a body of hot moving gas without any mechanical moving parts. This process is known as magnetohydrodynamic generation
or MHD generation for short.
In the mid 1930s, while in his native Hungary, Bela Karlovitz approached Siemens
in Germany with a request to develop an MHD generator using combustion gases. Siemens referred him to Westinghouse
in the USA. He arrived at the Westinghouse research facility in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with colleague Denes Halasz in 1938.
His work there resulted in the world's first patent for the MHD power process on August 13, 1940 (U.S. Patent No. 2,210,918, "Process for the Conversion of Energy").
He worked at Westinghouse until 1947
The Second World War interrupted development and a practical working device was not built until 1992 by others.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
who pioneered research into the generation of electricity
Electricity generation
Electricity generation is the process of generating electric energy from other forms of energy.The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday...
directly from a body of hot moving gas without any mechanical moving parts. This process is known as magnetohydrodynamic generation
MHD generator
The MHD generator or dynamo transforms thermal energy or kinetic energy directly into electricity. MHD generators are different from traditional electric generators in that they can operate at high temperatures without moving parts...
or MHD generation for short.
In the mid 1930s, while in his native Hungary, Bela Karlovitz approached Siemens
Siemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
in Germany with a request to develop an MHD generator using combustion gases. Siemens referred him to Westinghouse
Westinghouse Electric (1886)
Westinghouse Electric was an American manufacturing company. It was founded in 1886 as Westinghouse Electric Company and later renamed Westinghouse Electric Corporation by George Westinghouse. The company purchased CBS in 1995 and became CBS Corporation in 1997...
in the USA. He arrived at the Westinghouse research facility in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with colleague Denes Halasz in 1938.
His work there resulted in the world's first patent for the MHD power process on August 13, 1940 (U.S. Patent No. 2,210,918, "Process for the Conversion of Energy").
He worked at Westinghouse until 1947
The Second World War interrupted development and a practical working device was not built until 1992 by others.