Gustave Eiffel
Gustave Eiffel was a French engineer who turned his attention to aero late in his career. He is credited with developing an improved type of wind tunnel.
Eiffel attended the École Polytechnique and then the École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures in Paris. He worked on various engineering projects including bridges and the Statue of Libery. He led the construction of the Eiffel Tower in 1887–1889 for the 1889 Exposition universelle.[1]
His involvement in aeronautics began with drop tests conducted at the tower, starting in 1903. He created an instrument for measuring drag on a falling object.[1]
In 1909 Eiffel constructed a wind tunnel at the Champ-de-Mars near the tower. The facility was powered by an electrical generator already housed at the tower itself. He used a new design with enlarged space and a column of air moving freely through the middle, to reduce interference with the air except that caused by the object of study.[1] Lucien Marchis called this the "Eiffel method" as opposed to the "tunnel method."[2]
Among other findings he provided clear evidence for the principle that airfoils create lift by reducing the pressure of air above them. Also, "Eiffel was the first to test models of complete airplanes in his wind tunnels and to show a correlation between test data and the actual performance of a full-size airplane.[1]
After success at the Champ-de-Mars lab he created another, with more space, at Auteuil, southwest of Paris.[1]
In 1912 he patented the "diffuser" used in these wind tunnels.[1]
Publications
- Recherches expérimentales sur la résistance de l'air exécutées à la Tour (1907)
- La Résistance de l'air: Examen des formules et des expériences (1910)
- Resistance de l'air et l'aviation: Expériences effectuées au Laboratoire du Champs-de-Mars (1911); translated into English in 1913 by Jerome C. Hunsaker[1]
Patents whose inventor or applicant is Gustave Eiffel or Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel or Eiffel
- Patent BE-1912-250450 (English title: Laboratory for trials of model airplanes and propellers, Supplementary to patent: Patent FR-1911-436934)
- Patent FR-1911-436934 (English title: Laboratory for trials of model airplanes and propellers, Filing date: 1911-11-28)
- Patent FR-1920-503363 (English title: High-speed fighter airplane, Filing date: 1917-05-16)
- Patent FR-1917-436934.21631 (English title: Laboratory for trials of model airplanes and propellers, Supplementary to patent: Patent FR-1911-436934, Filing date: 1917-11-29)
Publications by or about Gustave Eiffel or Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel or Eiffel
- Eiffel, 1900, Travaux scientifiques à la Tour Eiffel de 1899 à 1900 (Simple title: Scientific work at the Eiffel Tower from 1899 to 1900)
- Eiffel, 1902, La Tour Eiffel en 1900 (Simple title: The Eiffel Tower in 1900)
- Eiffel, 1903, Expériences sur la résistance de l'air (Simple title: Experiments on air resistance, Journal: C. R. Acad. Sci.)
- Eiffel, 1905, Études pratiques de météorologie (Simple title: Practical studies of meteorology)
- Eiffel, 1905, Observations courantes en météorologie (Simple title: Current observations in meteorology)
- Publication 8367, 1906, Metodo Eiffel di registrazioni meteorologiche (Simple title: Eiffel method of meteorological recordings, Journal: Boll. Soc. Aer. Ital.)
- Eiffel, 1907, Recherches expérimentales sur la résistance de l'air exécutées à la Tour Eiffel (Simple title: Experimental research on the resistance of the air performed at the Eiffel Tower)
- Levy, 1908, Rapport sur un mémoire intitulé 'Récherches expérimentales sur la résistance de l'air effectuées par M. G. Eiffel.' (Simple title: Report on a thesis entitled 'Experimental research on air resistance carried out by G. Eiffel.', Journal: C. R. Acad. Sci.)
- Crocco, 1908, Sulla resistenza dell' aria nel moto non uniforme (Simple title: On the resistance of the air in the uneven motion, Journal: Boll. Soc. Aer. Ital.)
- Levy, 1909, Recherches expérimentales de M. Eiffel sur la résistance de l'air (Simple title: Mr. Eiffel's experimental research on air resistance, Journal: L'Aérophile)
- Brunet y Viadera, 1910, Curso de Aviación (Simple title: Course of aviation)
- Boyer, 1910, Eiffel's recent experiments on the resistance of the air (Simple title: Eiffel's recent experiments on the resistance of the air, Journal: Scient Amer.)
- Eiffel, 1910, Eiffel's experiments. The Eiffel aerodynamometric installation (Simple title: Eiffel's experiments. The Eiffel aerodynamometric installation, Journal: Scient. Amer. Suppl.)
- Soreau, 1910, Las Componentes de la Presión sobre las superficies de los aeroplanos (Simple title: Components of pressure on airplane surfaces, Journal: Revista de Locomoción Aérea)
- Eiffel, 1911, M. Eiffel's new researches of aerial resistance (Simple title: M. Eiffel's new researches of aerial resistance, Journal: Vestnik Vozdukhoplavaniya)
- Ventou-Duclaux and Robert, 1911, Bases et méthodes d'études aéronautiques (Simple title: Bases et méthodes d'études aérontechniques)
- Sellers, 1912, The resistance of the air and aviation from a report made by M. G. Eiffel, to the Aero Club of France (Simple title: The resistance of the air and aviation from a report made by M. G. Eiffel, to the Aero Club of France, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Zahm, 1912, The resistance of the air and aviation. Eiffel's memoir on experimental aero-dynamics (Simple title: The resistance of the air and aviation. Eiffel's memoir on experimental aero-dynamics, Journal: Scient Amer.)
- Eiffel, 1913, Gustave Eiffel. Builder of the world's highest structure and one of the foremost authorities on aerodynamics (Simple title: Gustave Eiffel. Builder of the world's highest structure and one of the foremost authorities on aerodynamics, Journal: Scient. Amer. Suppl.)
- Eiffel, 1913, Eiffel: an English translation (Simple title: Eiffel: an English translation, Journal: Flight)
- Sellers, 1913, Some more recent experiments of M. Eiffel (Simple title: Some more recent experiments of M. Eiffel, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Eiffel, 1914, Eiffel and his work. Editorial (Simple title: Eiffel and his work. Editorial, Journal: Flight)
- Delaunay, 1914, New experiments of M. Eiffel. Further light on aeroplane problems (Simple title: New experiments of M. Eiffel. Further light on aeroplane problems, Journal: Scient. Amer. Suppl.)
- Delaunay, 1914, New experiments by M. Eiffel (Simple title: New experiments by M. Eiffel, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Delaunay, 1914, The experiments of the Aeronautical Laboratory of Saint-Cyr (Simple title: The experiments of the Aeronautical Laboratory of Saint-Cyr, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Eiffel, 1915, New aerodynamical researches. Results of many important experiments (Simple title: New aerodynamical researches. Results of many important experiments, Journal: Scient. Amer. Suppl.)
- Eiffel, 1915, Aeronautics' data sheet No. 18 (Simple title: Aeronautics' data sheet No. 18, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Sellers, 1915, Eiffel's Nouvelles Recherches (Simple title: Eiffel's Nouvelles Recherches, Journal: Aeronautics)
- Charru, 2023 (Simple title: Fluid Mechanics in France in the First Half of the Twentieth Century, Journal: Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics)
Gustave Eiffel (or Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel or Eiffel) participated in these events:
- 1889 Exposition universelle (Locations: Champ-de-Mars, Country: FR, Tech focus: LTA • Balloon • Photography • Military)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Dijana Damljanović, "Gustave Eiffel and the Wind: A Pioneer in Experimental Aerodynamics", Scientific Technical Review (2012), Vol. 62, No. 3–4, pp. 3–13.
- ↑ Lucien Marchis, "Aerodynamics—Experimental Researches on the Resistance of Air", extracted from the Second Annual Report of the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics, reprinted in the Textbook of Naval Aeronautics, 1917; pp. 250–251.
| Names | Gustave Eiffel; Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel |
|---|---|
| Birth date | 1832 |
| Death date | 1923 |
| Countries | FR |
| Locations | Dijon; Paris |
| Occupations | engineer |
| Tech areas | Airfoil, Aerodynamics, Wind tunnel, Airplane, Lift |
| Affiliations | |
| Wikidata id |
