Technikatörténeti szemle 25. (2001-02)

Papers of the Third International Conference on the History of Chemistry and Chemical Industry (Budapest, 2–4 July, 1999) – First Part - Lichocka, Halina: Ignacy Mościcki (1867–1946) in the history of science and technology

the Swiss locality of Chippis obliging him at the same time not to publish the results of the researches. Consequently the only information on Moscicki's achievements during that period of his co-operation with the "Aluminium Industrie" can be found in the patent prints. The factory at Chippis started working in 1910. It was equipped with absorbtion columns of Moscicki's invention and with the patented by him condensation devices making it possible to get the 98% nitric acid. It supplied completely the Swiss chemical industry and exported the surplus mainly to Germany. The profits brought by the production and the demand in the market led to the conclusion of another contract, on the strength of which Moscicki promised to increase the output. In 1912 a new production line was set in motion with the output five times greater than the previous one, while all the improvements in the new venture had been patented with the name of Moscicki. Capacitors The initial devices of burning nitrogen in the electric arc demanded the use of capacitors sustaining the work in the circuit of variable current of great frequency and tension of tens of kV. Since the capacitors of that period did not meet such demands Moscicki made thorough investigations into the dielectrics. He investigated the piercing resistance and that of surface explosions in various dielectrics, first of all in glass and ebonite. He came to the conclusion that the best material for high tension capacitors was glass. So he worked out a new type a high tension capacitor of glass whose production was undertaken by the firm of Electric Capacitors in Fribourg. Moscicki proposed the use of high tension capacitors for the protection of the power grid against atmospheric discharge. At a congress of Swiss electricians in 1905 he presented an original solution of that problem consisting in the installation of fuses made up of glass condensators and induction coils. The production of these fuses was immediately initiated by the Capacitor Factory in Fribourg. Subsequently they came to be known as the Giles valves (after the name of the factory's director). Moscicki's batteries of glass condensators proved very useful in the equipment of radio-telegraphic stations. The biggest of them (100 kV) was installed on the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Utilization of the water- oil emulsion When, having lived 20 years abroad, Moscicki received a proposal to take the chair of Technical Electrochemistry and Physical Chemistry at the Polish politechnical