Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford, (1753 – 1814). American-born
British physicist and inventor, whose challenges to established physical
theory were part of the 19th-century revolution in thermodynamics. He
served as lieutenant-colonel of the King's American Dragoons, part of
the British Loyalist forces, during the American Revolutionary War.
After the end of the war he moved to London, where his administrative
talents were recognized when he was appointed a full co
lonel,
and in 1784 he received a knighthood from King George III. A prolific
designer, Thompson also drew designs for warships. He later moved to
Bavaria and entered government service there, being appointed Bavarian
Army Minister and re-organizing the army, and, in 1791, was made a Count
of the Holy Roman Empire.
Thompson was an active and prolific inventor, developing improvements
for chimneys, fireplaces and industrial furnaces, as well as inventing
the double boiler, a kitchen range, and a drip coffeepot. He invented a
percolating coffee pot following his pioneering work with the Bavarian
Army, where he improved the diet of the soldiers as well as their
clothes.
The Rumford fireplace created a sensation in London when he
introduced the idea of restricting the chimney opening to increase the
updraught, which was a much more efficient way to heat a room than
earlier fireplaces. He and his workers modified fireplaces by inserting
bricks into the hearth to make the side walls angled, and added a choke
to the chimney to increase the speed of air going up the flue. The
effect was to produce a streamlined air flow, so all the smoke would go
up into the chimney rather than lingering, entering the room, and often
choking the residents. It also had the effect of increasing the
efficiency of the fire, and gave extra control of the rate of combustion
of the fuel, whether wood or coal. Many fashionable London houses were
modified to his instructions, and became smoke-free.
Thompson became
a celebrity when news of his success spread. His work was also very
profitable, and much imitated when he published his analysis of the way
chimneys worked. In many ways, he was similar to Benjamin Franklin, who
also invented a new kind of heating stove.
The retention of heat was a recurring theme in his work, as he is also credited with the invention of thermal underwear.
In 1804, he married Marie-Anne Lavoisier, the widow of the great French chemist
Antoine Lavoisier.
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A handsome, red-headed, pearly toothed individual..."
https://books.google.it/books…
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The child has a striking similarity to Benjamin Thompson - red hair, blue eyes, and crested eyebrows."
https://books.google.it/books…
