M. Hall of Pittsburgh both invented
the methods of manufacture which gave to the world the new metal,
malleable and ductile, exceedingly light, and capable of a
thousand uses. Carborundum is another product of the electric
furnace. It was the invention of Edward B. Acheson, a graduate of
the Edison laboratories. Acheson, in 1891, was trying to make
artificial diamonds and produced instead the more useful
carborundum, as well as the Acheson graphite, which at once found
its place in industry. Another valuable product of the electric
furnace was the calcium carbide first produced in 1892 by Thomas
L. Wilson of Spray, North Carolina. This calcium carbide is the
basis of acetylene gas, a powerful illuminant, and it is widely
used in metallurgy, for welding and other purposes.
At the same time with these developments the value of the
alternating current came to be recognized. The transformer, an
instrument developed on foundations laid by Henry and Faraday,
made it possible to transmit electrical energy over great
distances with little loss of power. Alternating currents were
transformed by means of this instrument at the source, and were
again converted at the point of use to a lower and convenient
potential for local distribution and consumption. The first
extensive use of the alternating current was in arc lighting,
where the higher potentials could be employed on series lamps.
Pages:
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212