Rudolf Diesel
18 March 1858 – 29 September 1913
Rudolf Diesel was a German inventor and mechanical engineer who invented the compression-ignition engine that bears his name. His efficient diesel engine transformed industry, shipping, and transportation worldwide. He disappeared from a steamship crossing the English Channel in 1913 and is presumed to have drowned.
Lived at the same time
Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Rudolf Diesel.
- Abdülhamid II (1842–1918) Overlapped 55 years →
- Alfred Russel Wallace (1823–1913) Overlapped 55 years →
- Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919) Overlapped 55 years →
- Auguste Rodin (1840–1917) Overlapped 55 years →
- Eugene V. Debs (1855–1926) Overlapped 55 years →
- Georg Cantor (1845–1918) Overlapped 55 years →
Life events
Rudolf Diesel was born to Bavarian immigrant parents living in Paris.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgAfter the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, the family left France and the young Diesel was sent to Augsburg, Germany, to continue his schooling.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel studied under refrigeration pioneer Carl von Linde and achieved the highest examination scores in the institution's history to that point.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel joined Linde's firm, managing refrigeration and ice plant operations and earning numerous patents.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel married Martha Flasche, with whom he had three children.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel's treatise laid out the theoretical basis for his high-efficiency engine.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel was granted patent RP 67207 for a working method for internal combustion engines using compression ignition.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgWorking with Maschinenfabrik Augsburg, Diesel completed a prototype engine that achieved unprecedented thermal efficiency.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDiesel vanished overnight while crossing the English Channel en route to London; a body identified as his was found in the sea days later, and the circumstances of his death remain debated.
Source: en.wikipedia.org