Georges Claude facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Georges Claude
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Georges Claude in 1926
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| Born | 24 September 1870 Paris, France
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| Died | 23 May 1960 (aged 89) Saint-Cloud, France
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| Known for | Claude cycle Neon lighting Ocean energy conversion |
| Awards | Leconte Prize (1921) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Engineering |
Georges Claude (born 24 September 1870 – died 23 May 1960) was a French engineer and inventor. He is famous for his early work on turning air into liquid. He also invented and sold neon lighting. Another big project was trying to create energy by using cold seawater from the deep ocean. Some people even called him "the Edison of France." However, Claude supported the German occupation of France during World War II. Because of this, he faced serious consequences after the war.
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Georges Claude's Early Life and Work
Georges Claude was born in Paris, France, on 24 September 1870. This was during a time when German forces were surrounding the city.
He studied at a well-known engineering school called the École supérieure de physique et de chimie industrielles de la ville de Paris (ESPCI). After his studies, he worked in different jobs. He was an electrical inspector in a factory that made cables. He also managed a laboratory at an electric company. Claude started and edited his own magazine called L'Étincelle Électrique (which means The Electric Spark).
Around 1896, Claude learned about the dangers of storing acetylene gas in bottles. Acetylene was used for lighting back then. It could explode if stored under pressure. Claude discovered that acetylene could dissolve well in a liquid called acetone. This made it much safer to store the gas under high pressure.
How Georges Claude Liquefied Air
In 1902, Georges Claude created a special system to turn air into a liquid. This process is now known as the Claude system. It allowed factories to produce large amounts of liquid nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. Claude's method was very successful and competed with an older system developed by Carl von Linde.
Claude and a businessman named Paul Delorme started a company called Air Liquide. Today, Air Liquide is a very large international company based in Paris, France.
The Invention of Neon Lighting
Georges Claude was inspired by earlier inventions like Geissler tubes and Daniel McFarlan Moore's nitrogen-based light. He realized that neon gas was a byproduct of his air liquefaction business. He decided to use this neon to create new types of lights.
These lights were "glow discharge" tubes. They create light when electricity passes through a small amount of gas inside the tube. Claude first publicly showed a large neon light at the Paris Motor Show in December 1910. He filed his first patent for his neon lighting technology in France in March 1910.
In 1913, Claude explained that two main inventions made neon lighting possible. First, he found ways to make the neon gas (and other gases like argon) very pure. He did this inside a completely sealed glass tube. This was different from other lights that needed their gases refilled. Second, he designed special parts called electrodes. These electrodes transfer electricity to the glowing gases. His design helped stop the electrodes from wearing out too quickly. This invention was very important for his lighting business.
Today, the words "neon light" and "neon sign" are often used for any electric light that uses sealed glass tubes. These tubes can be filled with argon, mercury vapor, or other gases, not just neon. In 1915, Claude received a U.S. patent for his electrode design. This patent helped his company, Claude Neon Lights, control the neon sign market in the U.S. until the early 1930s.
Georges Claude's company is often said to have brought neon signs to the United States. They supposedly sold two signs to Earle C. Anthony, who owned Packard car dealerships in California in 1923. However, clear proof of this is hard to find. Photos from 1923-1925 show a neon sign in Los Angeles, but not until 1925. A photo of Anthony's San Francisco dealership might show a neon Packard sign in 1924, but it's not certain.
By 1924, Claude's company had opened branches or licensed its patents to other companies across the U.S. At first, neon signs became popular slowly. But by the 1930s, they were very common across the United States. For several decades, they were the most popular type of lighted sign in the country.
Using Ocean Heat for Energy
Claude's mentor and friend, Jacques-Arsène d'Arsonval, first came up with the idea of "Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion" (OTEC). This idea is about using the temperature difference between warm surface water and cold deep water to create energy.
Georges Claude was the first person to build working models of this technology. In 1930, he built his first plant in Cuba. This system produced 22 kilowatts of electricity using a special low-pressure turbine.
In 1935, Claude built another plant. This time, it was on a large 10,000-ton cargo ship anchored off the coast of Brazil. Sadly, both of Claude's ocean energy plants were destroyed by bad weather and waves. They were destroyed before they could produce more power than they used to run themselves.
Georges Claude's Actions During Wartime
Even when he was a young engineer, Georges Claude did not support democratic governments. In 1933, he joined a group called Action Française. This group wanted to bring back a king to rule France. He was also a close friend of the group's leader, Charles Maurras.
After France was defeated by Germany in 1940 at the start of World War II, Germany occupied northern France. A new French government, called the Vichy regime, was set up in the south. Georges Claude publicly supported the French government working with Germany. He wrote several articles supporting this cooperation. He was also part of an important committee called the Groupe Collaboration, which started in September 1940. In 1941, the Vichy government named him a member of a national advisory council.
After the Allied forces freed France in 1944, Claude was taken into custody in December 1944. This was because he had supported the Axis Powers during the war. He was removed from the French Academy of Sciences. In 1945, he was found guilty of spreading ideas that favored cooperation with Germany. However, he was found innocent of another charge that he helped design the V-1 flying bomb. He was sentenced to a long time in prison. In 1950, he was released from prison. His release recognized his important research on ocean thermal energy conversion.
Images for kids
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Georges Claude in 1926
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Gas discharge tube containing neon; "Ne" is the chemical symbol for neon.
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Georges Claude conducting a demonstration on ocean thermal energy conversion at the Institut de France in 1926.
See also
In Spanish: Georges Claude para niños
