Technikatörténeti szemle 20. (1993)

TANULMÁNYOK - Garamvári Pál: 100 Years of the Carburetor

PÁL GARAMVÁRI* 100 YEARS OF THE CARBURETOR It was 1860 when the French inventor, Etienne Lenior (1822-1900) presented to the world the first internalcombustion engine (ICE), which was capable of producing useful power. Appearance of this new prime mover was a clear indication to the end of an age — that of steam engines —, respectively the birth of a new one. The new machine, ICE was an integration of all the human experience, skill and knowledge having collected by the mankind during the previous centuries. Its emergence and fast proliferation gave rise to qualitative changes that changed life of mankind, as well as image and quality of our environment. Evolution and development of ICE — hereinafter also referred to as motor — commenced nearly at the moment of its birth. The improvements resulted from the largescale development activities of the reputed German inventors, Nikolaus August Otto (1832-1891), Gottlieb Daimler (1834-1900) and Eugen Langen (1833-1895) made more and more obvious that ICE is practicable in a wide range of applications. The useful power (or effective output) of the ICE is given by the process of burning the mixture of fuel and air injected into the cylinder of motor. Remember, please, that motors of this kind were originally operated on gas. Introduction of liquiform fuels (by S. Marcus in 1883, Spiel in 1884, Capitaine in 1885 and Daimler in 1886) has resulted in considerable expansion of areas where motors could be used. In addition to advantages that were to be experienced immediately a number of technical problems effecting motor operation fundamentally had to be solved. A task of this kind was to radically improve the fuel injection system of motors with a view to obtain the device capable of producing the satisfactory mixture. As a result, researchers, engineers, technicians — and what is more — unprofessionals were seen to try experiments of innumerable solutions. 'Országos Műszaki Múzeum, 1117 Budapest, Kaposvár u. 13-15.