Russian light of Pavel Yablochkov

Over a long period of time, many Western European representatives of various fields of science disseminated knowingly false information about our country and our people. According to them, it turned out that there could not be at least some worthy masters or scientists among the Russians. At one time, there was even such a slanderous fiction: "Of the Russian, neither scientists nor artists can be."

This lie has firmly entered the minds of many of our compatriots, not to mention those who live in the West. This situation is maintained consciously, forcing many to believe that the best technical innovations and scientific achievements are entirely the merit of Western scientists and masters.

As a historian Heinetskii wrote in 1711, one of the serious and impartial Western scholars of that time: “The Russian people for centuries had the misfortune that anyone could freely spread absurd absurdities about him all over the world, without fear of meeting objections.”

But it is worth taking a closer look at what was created, openly or investigated, how it is discovered that Russian scientists and inventors were in many ways the first, paving the way for further research.

We should dwell on the creation of the most important of all known methods of lighting, a great contribution to which was made by Russian technology innovators.

At the origins of the study of the possibility of electric lighting, the first place belongs to V.V. Petrov, who as early as 1802 established that with the help of an electric arc "dark peace can be quite clearly illuminated."

The contribution of our figures in the history of electric lighting is so great that in the seventies of the XIX century. special names appeared abroad.

“La lumiere russe” - “Russian light”, “La lumiere du Nord” - “Northern light” - this is what the French called electric lighting when its first sources, which received practical application, were created. This name is true: the first abroad who began to use suitable devices for electric lighting, became the French. They received these devices from Russian hands. They became "Electric candles" by Pavel Nikolayevich Yablochkov (1847-1894).

"Russian Light" was created, taking into account all the previous searches of different peoples.

March 23, 1876 in Paris P.N. Yablochkov received patent No. 112024 for the “electric candle” invented by him. This “candle” can be considered a prototype of a modern arc lamp. The conductor of electricity in the “candle” was two carbon plates, which were separated by an insulating insert.

Unlike his predecessors, who used special mechanisms to adjust the distance between the ends of the coals at the place of formation of the electric arc, Yablochkov removed all these mechanisms and arranged two coal rods parallel to each other, separating them with a kaolin insulating insert. Burning, the “candle” became shorter, but the distance between the coals remained constant. The “candle” gave a bright light for quite some time.

Such an “electric candle” was cheap, and its manufacture was not difficult. Demonstrated in Paris at the World Exhibition in 1878, the Yablochkov lighting system was an exceptional success. It began to be used in London, then in Berlin, then the light of the “candle” reached St. Petersburg.

Russian Light by Pavel Yablochkov

Until 1877, there were only 80 regularly operating electric lamps around the world. In 1878, after success at the World Exhibition "candle" Yablochkova increased their number to 500.

One of the first places in Russia illuminated by Yablochkov’s candles was: the bulkhead workshop of the capsule department of the Okhten plant, Liteiny Bridge.By 1880, about 500 electric lights were installed in Russia.

For such a short period, Yablochkov in fact proved the possibility of mass application of electric lighting systems.

In addition, working on the “candle”, P.N. Yablochkov solved many problems of paramount importance for the subsequent development of electrical engineering.

Starting with the use of direct current in his candles, Yablochkov soon decided to use alternating current, which gives uniform combustion of both coals. To power the candles with alternating current, the electrical engineer Gram built an alternating current dynamo. It became the first practically applicable alternating current dynamo.

A remarkable Russian electrical engineer was one of the first to use alternating current.

Having made a real revolution in its very short lifetime (less than five years) in the massive use of electric lighting systems, the "Yablochkov candle" then quickly left the stage, giving way to the new electric incandescent lamp created by A.N. Lodygin.

And although the “Yablochkov candles” have given way to incandescent lamps, we still use the fruits of Yablochkov’s creativity now. Before him, the lot of electrical engineering was: telegraph, electroplating, individual attempts to use electric lighting. He created the massive use of electric lighting, the first to apply alternating current in practice, worked on the creation of the first transformers. It should be remembered that the first electric light that illuminated Paris was P.N. Yablochkova.